Monthly Archives: July 2005

Dusty effort to restore tourist magnet

Casa Loma long a victim of local neglect

A man's home is his castle; in Sir Henry Pellatt's case, it was Casa Loma.

Built between 1911 and 1914, it was ó and still is ó the grandest residence ever constructed in Canada. With 98 rooms, it was conceived on a scale that dwarfed everything else around it.

These days Casa Loma is one of Toronto's most popular tourist attractions. Since the city took over Pellatt's castle for non-payment of taxes and handed it over the Kiwanis Club in 1936, little has changed at the "house on the hill" above Spadina Rd. Now people are beginning to wonder if the Kiwanis Club is the best choice to run Casa Loma. The well-intentioned service club uses its portion of the profit to support charitable projects, but many feel that it has failed to take advantage of the place.Last year a special committee was