The French Quarter, 120 Lombard St: 71 Suites, Parking and Hydro in the Fee

The French Quarter at 120 Lombard Street is the kind of building buyers walk past without noticing, and that is part of its appeal. It is a 2004 Intracorp mid-rise with only 71 suites, on a side street between Church and Jarvis, with suites larger than most downtown towers and a fee that covers parking and hydro. Small buildings have their own risks, and I will tell you exactly what to read. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A boutique building on a quiet downtown street

Lombard Street is a short east-west street tucked between Richmond and Adelaide, and it is far calmer than either. The French Quarter sits near its east end close to Jarvis, with a sister building, The French Quarter 2 at 115 Richmond Street East, on the same block from the same developer and the same year.

With 71 suites over about 10 or 11 floors, this is a genuinely small building. Sources differ on the floor count: condos.ca lists 11 storeys, while SKYDB lists 10 floors and a height of about 39 metres. That usually comes down to how a rooftop or mechanical level is counted.

The building has retail at grade according to SKYDB, and it shares the street with several other mid-rise and loft buildings, including Absolute Lofts and Spire. The scale of the street is one of the reasons people choose it: you are downtown without living on a six-lane arterial.

Small buildings also govern differently. With 71 owners, a handful of engaged people can shape the board, the budget and the rules, for better or worse. Ask how many owners attend the annual meeting and read the last few sets of minutes; in a building this size, they tell you more about daily life than any brochure.

Larger suites than the towers around it

Suites here start around 548 sq ft and run to about 1,424 sq ft, so there are no micro-studios. Current listings show one-bedrooms from the 500s up into the 800s, which is generous; in many newer towers nearby, 800 sq ft buys a two-bedroom.

Early-2000s layouts usually mean real bedroom walls, proper closets and fewer awkward angles, though the kitchens and bathrooms in unrenovated suites will look their age. If the suite is original, price the update into your offer.

On a 10 or 11 storey building, nobody is getting skyline views from every suite. Upper floors facing south or west see more light; lower suites can look onto neighbours across a narrow street. View it in daylight before you decide.

Parking and hydro are in the fee

Condos.ca lists common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, building insurance, parking and water as fee inclusions. Parking included in the fee is uncommon downtown, and it is the main financial difference between this building and its sister at 115 Richmond, where parking is not listed.

Current listings work out to about $1.17 per sq ft in fees, according to condos.ca. That looks high against a new tower at $0.70, until you add back a parking space, a hydro bill and heating. Then the gap narrows considerably, and with suites this size the monthly carrying cost is easier to predict.

Confirm that the suite you are buying actually has parking, and whether a locker comes with it. Inclusions listed for a building do not always apply to every suite.

Also look at how the fee has moved over the past five years. When heat and hydro are bundled, energy costs flow through the corporation’s budget, and a small building has less room to absorb an increase without passing it on to owners.

Living between St. Lawrence Market and Queen East

Day to day, St. Lawrence Market and the restaurants on Front Street are a few blocks south. St. James Cathedral and its park are a short walk south-west, and the King East furniture and design strip is close. Richmond and Adelaide carry the traffic and their cycle tracks, so cyclists heading west to the core have an easy run.

The big change nearby is the Ontario Line. Metrolinx is building Moss Park station at Queen and Sherbourne, and work has been visible at Moss Park for some time. When it opens, this corner of downtown gets a rapid transit option it has never had. Expect construction disruption along Queen East until then.

What The French Quarter costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $894 per square foot. That is notably higher than its sister at 115 Richmond, at about $753, and I think the bundled parking explains a good part of the difference.

When I checked, three suites were for sale and none for lease. Asking prices across those three listings ran from about $430,000 to $699,000, all one-bedrooms or one-plus-dens of different sizes, with fees from about $598 to $992 a month.

In a 71-suite building, there are rarely more than a handful of sales a year, so averages can move a lot from one sale to the next. Base any offer on recent sales in this corporation and the suite’s own condition. For the real numbers, ask me for the building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at The French Quarter

This is a lean amenity package: a rooftop deck, a party room and a meeting room. Condos.ca does not list a concierge here, unlike the sister building, so check how parcels and visitors are handled and whether owners have any access to the neighbouring building’s facilities. The roof deck is the amenity that earns its keep here, because a mid-rise on a narrow street gets little outdoor space otherwise.

Jatin’s honest take on The French Quarter

The French Quarter — frequently asked questions

Looking at St. Lawrence, the Financial District and Downtown Yonge more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.