The Crossroads, 1900 Sheppard Ave E: Big 1976 Suites, Hydro Included

The Crossroads at 1900 Sheppard Avenue East is what buyers who are tired of 600-square-foot new builds are usually looking for: every suite is over 860 square feet, and the fee pays your hydro, heat and cooling. You are buying a 1976 building, and that brings real homework. Done properly, it is one of the more sensible ways to own space near Fairview Mall. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A 1970s tower built for space, not for square-foot counts

The Crossroads went up in the mid-1970s, when North York was filling the land around the new Highway 401 and 404 interchange with tall concrete slabs. Condos.ca records 22 storeys and 217 suites, registered in February 1976. That makes it one of the older condominium corporations in this part of the city.

The developer is recorded as Crossroads Apartments. The name hints that the building may have been planned as apartments, but I could not confirm whether it ever operated as a rental before registration, so I will not claim it did. What matters more for a buyer is the suite mix that resulted.

Condos.ca records suites from about 861 to 1,343 square feet. There is nothing small here. The smallest suite is bigger than many two-bedrooms in towers built in the last ten years, and the largest is closer to a townhouse in floor area.

What a fee that covers hydro really means

The fee list is the second reason people look at this building. Condos.ca shows common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, water, cable TV, building insurance and parking all covered. In a newer tower you would pay for hydro, heating and cooling yourself, and often for parking as well.

That bundling is typical of the central systems built in the 1970s, where one plant heats and cools the whole tower. It makes your monthly costs predictable, which many retirees and young families like. It also means the corporation carries the energy bill, so rising utility rates show up in the budget and, eventually, in your fee.

There were no suites listed for sale when I checked, so I cannot give you a current fee range from active listings. Ask the listing agent for the fee schedule by suite size, and compare the total against a newer building’s fee plus hydro, heat and parking before you decide the fee here is high.

Pleasant View, Highway 404 and Fairview Mall

Pleasant View is the pocket bounded by Highway 404 on the west, Victoria Park on the east and Sheppard Avenue on the south. It is mostly houses, with a cluster of 1970s towers near Sheppard. The Crossroads sits in that cluster, with Crossroads at 10 Muirhead Road and 5 Old Sheppard Avenue as near neighbours of similar age and height.

The daily draw sits just across the highway to the west. Fairview Mall, at Don Mills Road and Sheppard, has a T&T Supermarket, a cinema and the Don Mills station of Line 4 Sheppard built into its grounds. Highway 404 and the 401 are right there for drivers, which is the main reason commuters to Markham and the office parks along the 404 choose this location.

The Fairview Mall lands are worth watching. Cadillac Fairview completed an expansion with new restaurants and better TTC access in 2023, and in 2019 the owners announced plans that, according to trade press, included towers on the property. If that goes ahead, the area will gain new housing and shops, and also years of construction.

East of the towers the neighbourhood is quiet and residential. Pleasant View has its own community centre and public library branch, and small local parks such as Old Sheppard Park and Muirhead Park. Families who grew up in the houses here are a big part of the downsizer market for these towers, because they can stay close to everything they know without the stairs and the snow shovel.

Older systems, careful questions

A building from 1976 has already been through at least one cycle of major repairs, and probably more. Windows, balcony guards, the garage, elevators and the central heating and cooling plant are the big items. Some of those will have been replaced, and some will be on the list for the next few years.

Inside the suites, expect a wide range. Some will still have original kitchens, bathrooms and electrical panels, and others will be fully renovated. Ask about the corporation’s rules on flooring and plumbing changes before you plan a renovation, since concrete buildings of this era often require approved acoustic underlay for hard floors.

Price per square foot and how it compares

Condos.ca puts the building’s average at about $495 per square foot. Its neighbours are lower: Crossroads at 10 Muirhead Road averages about $429 and 5 Old Sheppard Avenue about $454. Buyers seem to pay a modest premium here, which may reflect the larger suites, the amenity list or suite condition. I would not assume it is permanent.

Compare that to new condos around Fairview Mall and along Sheppard, which typically ask far more per square foot for much smaller suites with parking and utilities extra. The gap is the core of the value case here.

Because nothing was for sale when I checked, the panel’s recent sold and leased figures are the best guide to what suites actually trade for. If you are planning a purchase, I can pull the building’s recent sales history and match it to the suite type you want. Book a call and I will walk you through it.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Crossroads

A tennis court and sauna with a security guard is a classic 1970s package: no pool listed, but more outdoor space than a new tower gives you. Condos.ca also flags pet restrictions, so read the declaration and rules before you bring an animal.

Jatin’s honest take on The Crossroads

The Crossroads — frequently asked questions

Looking at Downsview, Weston, York University Heights, Rexdale and northwest Toronto more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.