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Showing posts from June, 2021

The Minto Bungalows of Beacon Hill North

The Minto Bungalows of Beacon Hill North By request (I do take requests!), this post is on the Minto bungalows that were built in Beacon Hill North. The neighbourhood is a mixture of houses built by both Campeau and Minto, but for the most part, the Minto houses were built in the area between La Verendrye and Olgilvie. These houses were predominantly built between 1968-1978 and some of these designs were also built in Beacon Hill South. The Agincourt is one of the largest and widest Minto bungalows built in the area and the design won a Canadian Housing Design Council award in 1971. This design was built on the most northerly streets in Beacon Hill North. The Bayview is a plan that has roots in the early 1960s and continued to be built for many years, suggesting that it was a best-selling design. There are two variations in the garage placement as shown above and below. The Chatham and the Bayview are essentially the same plan with variations on the façade. The Glenview is one of two M

Canada's First Condominium Highrise: Horizon House

 Condominium apartment living has become so commonplace that it is hard to imagine that the first time this style of housing came to be in Canada was as recent as 1969. It was in that year that Minto completed Horizon House (now called The Horizon) at 1356 Meadowlands Drive in Parkwood Hills. That year it won a Canadian Housing Design Council Award as described below: To make this concept of condominium ownership appealing, earlier unit layouts have some features that are more common with houses at the time, and are quite different from today's open concept designs. These include: Separate dining rooms. Very large living rooms. Fully enclosed kitchens with space for a small table. Bedrooms that are separated from the living area via a hallway with a door. The 3 bedroom design is the only plan where one bedroom opens directly off of a living space.  Bathrooms are separated from the living space and located next to the bedrooms. The layout of the building with two intersecting rectan