In 2018, Bret Williams and her husband, Julian Lo, bought a loft in Mimico. But Bret never felt entirely at home there—it was too sleek, too white. She favours moody homes with eclectic yet traditional vibes. Her dream was to live in a converted church or schoolhouse, maybe in her hometown of Thornbury. In 2022, Bret viewed a converted schoolhouse in the town with 20-foot ceilings and hefty ceiling beams. The wood building sat on a bucolic half-acre overlooking a pond. She loved its charm and put in an offer hours after her viewing. The structure was solid, but the conventional interior felt too pedestrian. So the couple gutted the space, removing mouldy carpets, redoing the layout to carve out three bedrooms in the loft, and replacing the lath-and-plaster walls with drywall. Bret and Julian love their new lifestyle. “There are hip little restaurants, whiskey bars, coffee shops and an amazing school system,” says Bret. For all of our city coverage, visit torontolife.com or subscribe to our print edition. |
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| Before he retired, Peter Petrosoniak spent two years searching for a physician to take over his practice in Lindsay, Ontario. “It used to be that, when family doctors wanted to retire, other doctors in their practice could absorb their patients,” he says. “But, now, everyone is fully rostered.” His story, here. |
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| What would a Pierre Poilievre government mean for Canada’s biggest city? In our October issue, 12 prognosticators give us their thoughts. “A Poilievre government would be a profound step backward for the 2SLGBTQ+ community in Toronto,” says Cheri DiNovo, a minister at Trinity–St. Paul’s United Church and former MPP for the Ontario NDP. Here, she tells us why. |
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What to see, do, read and hear this month |
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| Who could turn a meditation on the American constitution into a Broadway hit? Heidi Schreck, a New York–based playwright who paid her way through college by winning constitutional debate competitions. That story and others are recounted in her one-woman show, What the Constitution Means to Me. Five years after its premiere, a new version is being put on by Soulpepper and Nightwood Theatre. Soulpepper Theatre, Oct. 31 to Nov. 8 |
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| In the latest issue: dispatches from the front lines of Ontario’s broken health care system. Plus, a sneak preview of Poilievre’s Toronto, a bold next step for Chinese-food king David Schwartz, converted schoolhouses that blend history and style, and more. Still not receiving Toronto Life at home? Subscribe today. |
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