Churchill Collection, 288 St Clair Ave W: Condo Townhomes Facing the Park

Churchill Collection is what I show buyers who are leaving a Forest Hill or Annex house and refuse to move into a tower. It is a short row of brick-and-stone townhomes on St Clair Avenue West, each over 2,000 square feet, with outdoor space at the back or on the roof and parking underground. The catch is that almost nothing ever comes up for sale, so you need to know what you are looking at before one does. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A townhouse row, not a condo building

Most of what sells along this stretch of St Clair is tower living. The Code Condos sits right next door at Parkwood Avenue, and the Churchill and Churchill Park buildings are a short walk up Spadina Road. Churchill Collection is the opposite: a handful of three-storey homes with their own front doors on the street.

National Homes pitched the project in 2013 as a modern version of the classic townhome, and the facades lean on red brick and stone in the spirit of a New York brownstone. Not everyone loved the final result. On the SkyriseCities forum, one observer preferred the original renderings and was lukewarm on the cedar shingle detailing, so look at the finished street wall yourself rather than relying on marketing images.

National’s own sales page called these the only new townhomes in Forest Hill at the time and noted that the site sits on some of the highest ground in the city. That elevation is the reason the roof terraces matter: from the top of these homes you are looking out over the ridge rather than into a neighbour’s window.

Layouts: three bedrooms, tall main floors, room for an elevator

Every home at launch was a three-bedroom plan, and the original release put sizes at 2,000 to 2,369 square feet. Condos.ca now shows the range topping out near 2,464 square feet, which likely reflects how a larger plan or rooftop room was measured. Ask for the builder’s floor plan and the registered unit size, and do not assume the listing figure.

Ceilings were specified at 10 feet on the main level and 9 feet above. That main floor height is what makes these feel like a house when you walk in, and it is rare in new townhomes, where 9 feet across every level is the norm.

Two details stand out for downsizers. The homes were designed so that an elevator could be added, which matters if stairs across three floors are the reason you are leaving your current house. And each home came with either a private rear yard or a rooftop terrace, so check which one the unit you are viewing actually has, because the two make for very different daily lives.

Finishes and what has aged

Interiors were specified by Alex Chapman of Union31 Design, with engineered hardwood, oak stairs with iron pickets, natural stone counters and backsplashes, and appliance packages from Sub-Zero, Wolf and Bosch. Buyers chose from a set of finishes and could pay for upgrades, so no two homes are identical.

These homes are now roughly a decade old. That is the age when premium appliances start to need service, roof terrace membranes and decking deserve a hard look, and original caulking around stone and windows begins to show wear. In a building this small, how those items are split between owner and corporation is set out in the declaration, and it varies from project to project.

Living at St Clair and Spadina

The location is the real asset. You are across St Clair from Winston Churchill Park, with its trails and tennis courts, and the Nordheimer Ravine runs south from it. Casa Loma and Spadina House are down the hill, and the Forest Hill Village shops on Spadina Road are north of you.

The trade-off is that St Clair is a busy arterial road with the streetcar running down the middle, and these homes face it directly. If you are sensitive to traffic noise, visit at rush hour and stand in the front bedroom with the windows closed. The transit, school and walkability details for this address are in the data panel on this page.

How to price a home that rarely trades

At launch in 2013, National priced these homes from about $1.39 million to $1.7 million. The neighbourhood has moved a long way since then, but that range is still useful as a reference point for how the original buyers valued the space.

There were no active listings in the data I reviewed, and with only about a dozen homes, a year can pass with one sale or none. That means you cannot price a home here off its own building alone. I compare per-square-foot values against other large Midtown condo townhomes and the bigger suites in nearby towers like The Code and Residences of Russell Hill, then adjust for the parking, the outdoor space and the fact that you have no one living above or below you.

The maintenance fee covers common elements, building insurance and water. I could not confirm a current fee figure from a source I can publish, so get it from the listing and the status certificate, and work out the fee per square foot yourself. Then add your own hydro, heat and any separate charges. For the aggregate sold history, ask for my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Churchill Collection in Forest Hill

There is no gym, concierge or party room here, and that is the point. Your fee pays for the shared structure and the garage, not for amenities you would not use, and your outdoor space is your own.

Jatin’s honest take on Churchill Collection in Forest Hill

Churchill Collection in Forest Hill — frequently asked questions

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