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Aug-10-2010 The Star – Getting to know the King of Casa Loma
Sir Henry Pellatt lived in a world unto himself: lavish, bombastic and out of touch with Toronto
No statue was erected to the man, no arena named for him, no postage stamp printed in his honor.
No statue was erected to the man, no arena named for him, no postage stamp printed in his honor.
If you screamed “Sir Henry Pellatt!” down Yonge St., almost nobody would recognize the name.
Rich out of all proportion, he built Canada’s largest private home – now one of Toronto’s top tourist landmarks – yet he remains almost anonymous. Why?
A reading of Sir Henry Pellatt: The King of Casa Loma, a 1982 biography by Toronto writer Charlie Oreskovich, suggests the man lived apart from the city’s true development and primarily for his own self-aggrandizement.
Champion runner: In 1879, at the age of 20, Pellatt ran the mile in New York, beating the U.S. champion and setting a world record at 4:42.4. That same year, however, Toronto’s Edward “Ned” Hanlon captured the English championship in the far more popular sport of sculling, and
… Read the restAug-9-2010-Star- Sir Henry: Casa Loma king lived in a world unto himself
Rich out of all proportion, Henry Pellatt built a castle for a home — now one of Toronto’s top tourist landmarks — but remains all but anonymous.
PHOTO COURTESY OF CASA LOMA
Henry Pellatt poses in his track uniform in this undated photo. At 19, he won the amateur Canadian mile championship in Montreal. At 20, in New York, he won a race to become North America's top amateur mile runner.
By: John Goddard Staff Reporter, Published on Mon Aug 09 2010
No statue was erected to the man, no arena named for him, no postage stamp printed in his honour.
If you screamed “Sir Henry Pellatt” down Yonge St. almost nobody would recognize the name.
Rich out of all proportion, he built Canada’s largest private home — now one of Toronto’s top tourist landmarks — yet he remains almost anonymous.
Why?
A reading of Sir Henry Pellatt: The King of Casa Loma, a 1982 biography by Toronto writer
Posted in 2010 News
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Aug-3-2010 Globe and Mail – Kiwanis rejects city’s demand to fire Casa Loma chair
By Kelly Grant
From Wednesday’s Globe and Mail
August 3, 2010
Service club risks being evicted from castle as deadline passes
The Kiwanis Club is refusing to fire the chair of Casa Loma’s board, a move that could lead the city to evict the service organization from the castle.
Council set a deadline of July 31 for the Kiwanis Club – which has operated the interior of the city-owned attraction since 1937 – to replace Richard Wozenilek, a lawyer who allegedly directed $218,938 in castle legal work to himself over 18 months.
But the deadline has passed and Kiwanis has decided to back Mr. Wozenilek.
“The Kiwanis Club continues to maintain its full support behind Mr. Wozenilek as chair of the Casa Loma Board, and it understands the members of the Board also fully support him,” Joachim Gerschkow, the president of the Kiwanis Club of Casa Loma, said in a statement Tuesday.
At the beginning of July, council ordered … Read the rest
Posted in 2010 News, Archives, NEWS
Tagged 2010, Globe and Mail
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July-8-2010 Globe and Mail – Council gives Kiwanis deadline on Casa Loma
Service club has until July 31 to remove chair alleged to have directed legal work to himself
Kelly Grant
City Hall Bureau Chief Globe and Mail Update Published on Wednesday, Jul. 07, 2010 10:01PM EDT Last updated on Thursday, Jul. 08, 2010 1:43AM EDT
The city could move to evict the Kiwanis Club from Casa Loma if the club doesn’t remove by July 31 a board chair who allegedly directed $218,938 in legal work to himself over 18 months.Council set the deadline while voting to give the service organization, which has operated Casa Loma since 1937, another chance to meet the terms of a management deal inked with the city in 2008.
… Read the restCity manager Joe Pennachetti said the Kiwanians have agreed verbally to three of the four conditions council endorsed Wednesday, namely that Casa Loma�s board of trustees meet monthly; that Kiwanis develop a revised financial plan; and that a joint working group be established so the Edwardian mansion can
Posted in 2010 News, Archives, NEWS
Tagged 2010, Globe and Mail
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July-8-2010 The Star – An ultimatum to Casa Loma
Toronto Star
Author: Paul Moloney
Date:July 8, 2010
The Kiwanis Club of Casa Loma has until July 31 to recommend a new chair for the city-owned tourist landmark.
Toronto Council decided Wednesday that if the club doesn’t do so, the city will start looking for a new operator to replace Kiwanis, which has managed the castle for 73 years.
The city is concerned that commitments to upgrade the facility have not been met and wants the board to suggest possibilities to replace lawyer Richard Wozenilek, with the decision to be made by Mayor David Miller, said city manager Joe Pennachetti.
Wozenilek, who has held the post since 1991, couldn’t be reached for comment.
“They haven’t come close to completing the projects that were anticipated. They know that,” Pennachetti said.
Miller told council the city has been patient.
“We have given them every opportunity in the world to say, ‘Yes, we’ll address these issues,'” the mayor said. “Again and again and … Read the rest
July-7-2010 Globe and Mail – Council gives Kiwanis deadline on Casa Loma
Kelly Grant Wednesday, Jul. 07, 2010
Service club has until July 31 to remove chair alleged to have directed legal work to himselfCity Hall Bureau Chief Globe and Mail
The city could move to evict the Kiwanis Club from Casa Loma if the club doesnï’t remove by July 31 a board chair who allegedly directed $218,938 in legal work to himself over 18 months.
Council set the deadline while voting to give the service organization, which has operated Casa Loma since 1937, another chance to meet the terms of a management deal inked with the city in 2008.
City manager Joe Pennachetti said the Kiwanians have agreed verbally to three of the four conditions council endorsed Wednesday, namely that Casa Loma�s board of trustees meet monthly; that Kiwanis develop a revised financial plan; and that a joint working group be established so the Edwardian mansion can begin to meet its goals.
But the club has so far refused to
… Read the restJuly-2-2010 Globe and Mail – Feud brews over
Kelly Grant City hall bureau chief —
From Saturday’s Globe and Mail Published on Friday, Jul. 02, 2010 6:38PM
From Saturday’s Globe and Mail Published on Friday, Jul. 02, 2010 6:38PM
Casa Loma is the perfect setting for palace intrigue, and that’s exactly what’s unfolded beneath its Norman and Scottish towers in the last two years.
Now the intrigue is moving from castle to council.
Toronto’s elected officials will decide this week whether the Kiwanis Club, the charitable organization that has managed city-owned Casa Loma since 1937, deserves a third chance to drag the tourist trap into the 21st century or whether the city should begin severing a partnership that’s been a royal pain for both sides.
Internal e-mails and other confidential documents obtained by The Globe and Mail show conflict has plagued a new City-Kiwanis management agreement practically since the deal took effect in the summer of 2008. The mayor now admits he was wrong to support the Kiwanians in 2006 and 2007, when a public review of Casa Loma’s future
… Read the rest
Posted in 2010 News, Archives, NEWS
Tagged 2010, Globe and Mail
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June-20-2010 The Star – Casa needs new King
June 20, 2010
After 70 years of serving on its battlements, the Kiwanis Club should surrender its hold on Casa Loma. The service club’s stewardship of Sir Henry Pellatt’s fanciful estate, a prominent landmark owned by the City of Toronto, has been plagued by missed renovation deadlines, wasted potential and unmet promises. And it just isn’t good enough to blame the recession, as does Richard Wozenilek, chair of Casa Loma’s board of trustees.
Pellatt’s neo-Gothic extravagance remains a popular Toronto tourist attraction. But the faux castle, built complete with battlements and secret passageways in 1914, is in desperate need of upgrades and repairs. The board of trustees, composed of city appointees and Kiwanis delegates, was supposed to handle interior renovations, but it has fallen far short of its commitments.
City staff is recommending several changes, including creation of a new joint working group, fresh auditing, more board meetings and a new financial plan, with Kiwanis pushed out if it fails … Read the rest
June-19-2010 The Star – Castle’s chair denies billing his own firm – Jun 19/10
Lawyer rejects charge Casa Loma is far behind on renovations; Miller wants new leadership
Toronto Star
Author:Paul Moloney
Date:Jun 19, 2010
Mayor David Miller may want him removed, but Casa Loma’s chair says he enjoys the support of his board, which believes the landmark is making progress on its turnaround plans.
Lawyer Richard Wozenilek fended off city allegations that invoices totaling $118,000 were paid by Casa Loma for legal work he did on a new management agreement between the city, which owns the castle, and the Kiwanis Club of Casa Loma, which has run it for decades as a tourist attraction.
In an interview, Wozenilek said the billings presented to the vice-chair in January 2009 came to approximately $40,000.
“They’re saying in January 2009 the vice-chair was asked to sign invoices in the amount of approximately $118,000 for payment to my firm. That’s what they’re saying and that’s not true.” Miller responded that the figure of $118,000 covers billings from
… Read the rest