Academy Arms, 22 Shallmar Blvd: A Co-op Turned Condo Near Bathurst

Academy Arms is not a new condo, and it never pretended to be. It is an older nine-storey apartment building on Shallmar Boulevard, just north of Bathurst and Eglinton, that was converted from an equity co-operative into a condominium in 2006. That history explains almost everything about it: the generous suites, the low price per foot, the fee that covers your hydro, and the questions I would ask before buying. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

From co-op to condo

In 2003, Toronto City Council adopted an Official Plan amendment allowing the existing nine-storey, 90-unit equity co-operative apartment building at 22 Shallmar Boulevard to be converted to a condominium. The amendment specified no structural changes or additions, and it required the condominium to be registered within three years. The corporation was registered in March 2006, inside that window.

Why does this matter to a buyer today? In a co-op, residents own shares in a corporation rather than title to a suite, which makes financing harder and resale slower. Converting to a condominium gave each owner a registered unit they can mortgage and sell like any other condo. That is a big part of why this building trades the way it does now.

The City document describes 90 units; condos.ca lists 89. A small difference like that usually comes from suites being combined over time, but I have not confirmed the reason. The status certificate will show the current count.

An older building, with older-building space

The 2006 date you see on listings is the condominium registration, not the construction date. The building itself is older, and I could not confirm its original construction year from a reliable source. Ask for it, because it drives the reserve fund conversation more than the registration date does.

Condos.ca lists suites from about 495 to 1,917 square feet. The larger plans are the kind of apartment-era layouts that are hard to find in new construction: separate dining areas, real hallways and closets, and bedrooms that fit a queen bed with room to walk around it.

Because no structural changes were made in the conversion, what you see is the original building. Ceiling heights, window sizes and the heating and cooling system are what they were. That can be charming, and it can also mean older windows and mechanical systems that the corporation has to fund.

A fee that includes hydro

Condos.ca lists common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, building insurance, parking and water as included. Hydro is the unusual one. In most condos it is metered to the suite, so here the fee replaces the last big utility bill most owners pay.

That changes how you compare it. A fee that looks higher than a newer building’s can come out lower once you add back the newer building’s hydro, heat and parking. Do the arithmetic on total monthly cost, not on the fee line alone.

The trade-off with bulk utilities is that everyone shares the cost regardless of how much they use. In older buildings, the corporation may eventually look at suite metering or energy upgrades, both of which are capital projects. Ask whether either has been discussed in the board minutes.

Parking is also on the inclusion list, and the building has an underground garage with visitor parking. In an older building, especially one that started life as something else, the parking and locker allocation can vary from suite to suite, and it is one of the details buyers most often assume and least often verify. Check the status certificate for the exact parking and locker units that come with the suite you are buying, rather than assuming one is included.

Living on Shallmar Boulevard

Shallmar is a short residential street lined with mid-century apartment buildings, many of them still purpose-built rentals, such as CAPREIT’s Shallmar Apartments at 20 Shallmar. Academy Arms is one of the buildings on the street that owners actually own, which gives it a steadier, longer-term feel than a rental tower.

Bathurst and Eglinton is a practical corner rather than a pretty one. The value is in the location: Forest Hill and Cedarvale are close, Eglinton runs east toward Yonge, and Bathurst carries you north or south without touching the highway. Groceries, pharmacies and everyday shops along Bathurst and Eglinton handle most errands. The panel beside this review covers transit and schools.

Eglinton Avenue is the route of the Crosstown line, and transit corridors like it tend to attract new mid-rise and tower proposals. Expect change along Eglinton over the next decade, while Shallmar itself stays a side street.

How Academy Arms is priced

Condos.ca puts the building’s average at about $576 per square foot. That is low for a location this central, and it reflects the building’s age, its history as a co-op, and the larger suites, which always sell for less per foot.

There were no suites listed for sale when I checked, which is not unusual for an 89-suite building with long-term owners. It also means there is no live asking price to anchor on, so recent sales matter more than usual.

The sales panel beside this review shows what has traded. Because each suite here is a little different, I would not rely on the building average for a specific unit. If you want a real number, book a call and I will pull the comparable sales for the plan you are looking at.

Building specifications

Amenities at Academy Arms

An indoor pool and sauna in a building of fewer than 100 suites is uncommon, and it is a real perk for swimmers. It is also a cost: pools are expensive to run and to rebuild, so look for the pool in the reserve fund study and see when its next major repair is scheduled.

Jatin’s honest take on Academy Arms

Academy Arms — frequently asked questions

Looking at York Mills, Don Mills, Lawrence Park, Bathurst Manor and midtown-north Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.