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Oct-30-2013 Public Meeting

  • This item was considered by the Executive Committee on October 30, 2013 and adopted without amendment. It will be considered by City Council on November 13, 2013.
Executive Committee consideration on October 30, 2013
EX35.2

ACTION 

Adopted 

 

Ward:All 

Casa Loma Request for Proposals - Operator for Main House and Grounds
Confidential Attachment - The security of the property of the municipality or local board

Committee Recommendations

Caution: This is a preliminary decision. This decision should not be considered final until the meeting is complete and the City Clerk has confirmed the decisions for this meeting.

The Executive Committee recommends that:

 

1.         City Council enter into a twenty year agreement with the a newly formed company controlled by Liberty Entertainment Group (the "Recommended Proponent") to improve, and operate the Main House and Grounds of Casa Loma substantially as set out in Confidential Attachment 1 to the report (October 16, 2013) from the City Manager with other such terms to be

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Oct-30-2013 Executive Committee Meeting

Re: EX35.2  Casa Loma Request for Proposals-Operator for Main House and Grounds

Speaker: Trelawny Howell,

Great-grandniece of Sir Henry Pellatt, builder of Casa Loma

Since 2005, I have being speaking at Executive Council meetings and sending letters to City Councilors and staff, advocating for an open governance process and revitalization of Casa Loma.

In April 2005 I received my first media support after an article I wrote on Casa Loma’s fate was published in a magazine. It was about the City’s unaccountable history of leasing Casa Loma solely to the Kiwanis Club since 1936. I was a member of the Kiwanis Club of Casa Loma for six years and resigned in 2005 before writing my article. I knew firsthand that the city privately subsidized Kiwanis Club Charity operations for 75 years, renewing their leases without ever having an open tender process for competitive bids.

I took my article to the City’s Press Gallery. The Globe and Mail’s City bureau chief,

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Oct-24-2013-Star-Restaurateur pegged to move into Casa Loma

(Original link at the Toronto Star.)

Restaurateur pegged to move into Casa Loma

For 73 years, the Kiwanis Club had run Casa Loma but the city, unhappy with how it was being managed, took it over and a year ago and issued a request for proposals.

By: Paul Moloney
City Hall Bureau reporter

Published on Thu Oct 24 2013

The company that runs the Liberty Grand banquet facility at Exhibition Place has been picked to bring fine dining to the city-owned Casa Loma.

City of Toronto officials are recommending the city grant a 20-year lease to Liberty Entertainment Group starting Jan. 1.

For 73 years, the Kiwanis Club had run the facility but the city, unhappy with how it was being managed, took it over and a year ago issued a request for proposals.

Assuming city council approves the proposed lease, Liberty Grand would turn ground floor rooms and the patio into a fine dining establishment and use the library and sun room for large functions, said … Read the rest

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Oct-24-2013-CBC-Liberty Group floats Casa Loma proposal

hi-852-casa-loma

Casa Loma, one of the city's oldest attractions, may be getting a new lease on life.

Liberty Entertainment Group has put forward a recommendation to revitalize the iconic Edwardian manor. The company is known for its upscale events and venues, such as the Liberty Grand and the Rosewater.

Their plan includes a restaurant and upgrades to the event space, revenue that could help fund a Toronto museum on the property.

A year ago, the city asked for proposals from companies for the future of the iconic castle.

"There were some ideas just to sell the castle, turn it into a hotel, maybe even a casino," said Coun. Josh Matlow.

Casa Loma's fate has been in limbo for more than two years since the city ended a longterm agreement with the Kiwanis Club to manage the site. At one point Mayor Rob Ford said a $20-million repair backlog and high operating costs may force the city to sell the 98-room manor.… Read the rest

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Oct-24-2013-680 News-Liberty Group proposes fine dining at Casa Loma

TORONTO – At long last, the future of Casa Loma may soon be decided.

The Kiwanis Club ran the landmark for 73 years, but the city scrapped the agreement about two years ago — and Toronto City Hall has been accepting proposals ever since.

Now, officials with the city and Liberty Entertainment Group are discussing a 20-year deal to install a fine dining restaurant and banquet hall in the 98-room Edwardian landmark.

The financial terms of the deal are not yet known, but CityNews has learned at least $7-million will be invested by Liberty Entertainment Group to renovate the tourist attraction.

The company declined to comment but details released by the city state that Liberty Entertainment “will make a significant capital investment in the interior of the Main House. Further, over twenty years the base rent from the lease will generate income for the City greater than that earned under continued management by Casa Loma Corporation.”

Under the proposed agreement, … Read the rest

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Oct.-24-2013-New vision for Casa Loma includes fine dining

Joshua Freeman, CP24.com Published Thursday, October 24, 2013 12:42PM EDT Last Updated Thursday, October 24, 2013 2:29PM EDT

A deal could soon be inked that would see Toronto’s only castle revamped with a fine dining restaurant, air conditioning and a busier events schedule.

A report by city staff is recommending that the city enter into a 20-year agreement with Liberty Entertainment Group to upgrade and operate Casa Loma.

The city-owned Edwardian Castle at Spadina and Davenport roads has been without a long-term operator since a previous operating agreement with the Kiwanis Club expired more than two years ago.

“We expect that with this operator the rooms would not be dark nearly as often as they are now,” Councillor Joe Mihevc told cp24.com Thursday.

The library and conservatory at the castle are already utilized as a banquet facility, hosting about a hundred events a year. But Mihevc said the site could handle more.

Liberty Entertainment Group already operates a number of

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Sep-17-2013-Town Crier-Turn around at Casa Loma

Revival of castle's fortunes attributed to new management
By Eric Emin Wood
September 17, 2013 Neighbourhoods: Casa Loma
town-crier-sept-17-2013-1
ERIC EMIN WOOD/TOWN CRIER
A TEAM EFFORT: Casa Loma employees (from left) Kelly Ng, Paul Iorfida, Megan Anderson and Melissa Cadman joined interim CEO Eva Pyatt in pulling out all the stops to bring about a reversal in the iconic attraction’s fortunes.
Casa Loma CEO Eva Pyatt chalks up the Toronto landmark’s dramatically rising fortunes to the simplest of changes: fresh eyes. The castle on the hill had been losing money under the strains of a complex relationship between the city, which owns the castle, and the Kiwanis Club, which had managed it since 1937. When city council established the Casa Loma Corp. as a temporary caretaker in 2011, “everything was on the table,” Pyatt said in an interview. “Everything” included selling Casa Loma entirely, but the corporation’s five-member board,
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Nov-26-2012 Future of Casa Loma – Toronto Museum – Public Meeting

Date: Monday, November 26th, 2012
Time: 7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
Location: Casa Loma (1 Austin Terrace)

Attendees may arrive at 5:30 p.m. for a site visit of the property prior to the
meeting starting at 7:00 p.m.

Background:

In August 2011, City Council created the Casa Loma Corporation (CLC) for the
purpose of managing the continuing operations of Casa Loma on an interim basis
until its future ownership and management direction could be determined. The
City of Toronto is now moving forward with a plan to ensure the long-term
viability of Casa Loma and the potential for a Museum of Toronto as part of the
site’s future. For more information about our progress, click [1]here. I invite
you to attend a public meeting to learn about these opportunities and give us
your feedback, vision and guidance.

We will be seeking feedback from the public in two key areas at this meeting:

  1. The future of the main building (south side
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