After years of neglect, the historic Regent Theatre is being renovated and restored, but residents in the Mount Pleasant Village area are pushing back against the renovation, claiming the development will negatively affect locals.
The theatre at 551 Mount Pleasant Rd. — designated as a heritage property in 2022 — first opened in 1927 as an entertainment and movie venue; the last major renovations at the site took place more than three decades ago in 1988. When the theatre was listed for sale in 2017, local residents and city councillors, including Josh Matlow, advocated for the venue to be restored and revamped rather than torn down.
It was entertainment company Terra Bruce Productions who stepped in to help. Last year, the company submitted its application to develop the venue, with plans to replace the existing lobby, auditorium and stage to create a state-of-the-art live theatre and performance venue. The venue’s historic facade will be preserved, but developers will add a third-storey lobby and balcony seating area, as well as a three-storey, 1,078-square-metre addition to the rear of the building, which will contain back-of-house uses, mechanical spaces and a community rehearsal space.
The north and south walls and east wall will be replaced, while the historic west façade facing Mount Pleasant Road will be preserved.
But according to the Mount Pleasant Village Revival Residents Association (MPVRRA), this development is not a restoration of a historic landmark theatre — it’s a new building that will massively expand its size and uses, negatively affecting the quality of life of local residents.
“The Developer … purchased the Regent Theatre, along with seven low-rise residential properties adjacent to the property,” the MPVRRA stated on their website. “Coupled with almost 2,000 square feet of “community space” and an 800-square-foot commercial kitchen, the Regent will become a facility not just for live theatre or cinema showings, but also for multi-purpose events such as weddings, bar mitzvahs, graduation ceremonies, corporate events and more. All deliveries, waste management and personnel will be on Hadley Road. This multi-use building will bring over 100,000 visitors annually to our neighbourhood.”
This, MPVRRA notes, will result in significant commercial traffic, creating a huge increase in demand for parking in the area. They add that, although there is off-street parking within the area, it includes spots already permitted to residents of surrounding areas, like Hadley Road, Belsize Drive, Harwood Road, Millwood Road, Tilson Road, Manor Road, Penrose Road, Thurloe Avenue, De Savery Crescent, Wilfrid Avenue, and Acacia Road.
“In addition to converting Hadley [Road] into a commercial corridor, this development will create significant traffic and parking pressures on a quiet residential neighbourhood that does not have the infrastructure to support it. What will you do when you come home and all the parking spaces on your street and in the area are occupied?”
The Association is urging residents to speak to their city councillors and make their concerns heard. A virtual OLT hearing is scheduled to take place on July 15, 2024, at 10 a.m., and MPVRRA is attempting to get the hearing held in person.
They also created a GoFundMe page to get the developers to moderate their proposal. They’re ultimately requesting that the Regent Theatre be “truly restored,” not torn down and rebuilt; that the existing lane (the one used for decades that has serviced storefronts and the theatre on Mt. Pleasant Road, not Belsize Drive, Manor Road and Hadley Roadd) be used to service the theatre; and that the developer follows the proper process with community consultation to obtain a zoning change if they wish to expand the commercial facility onto residential lands.
To date, the Association has raised $5,800 out of their goal of $50,000.
