UPDATED: Jilly’s strip club has finally been sold to a developer
For thirty years, the story of Toronto’s once-proud strip-club scene has been one of continual decline, and today it seems as though another one will be joining its departed friends in that big VIP room in the sky. Streetcar Developments, a condo company, announced via press release earlier today that it has purchased Jilly’s, the Queen and Broadview landmark known for its imposing Romanesque presence (the four-storey building was, according to its listing on the city’s heritage inventory, built in 1891), its windows plastered over with pictures of sultry women, and the motto on its sign (“The Finest in Adult Entertainment”).
The release says Jilly’s will be closing down, and that residents of the hotel rooms above the bar will be forced to vacate. In late 2013, the city issued an emergency work order in an attempt to get the building’s owner to address structural problems, leading to an initial flurry of speculation about the club’s fate. Streetcar says it will be making the necessary repairs.
Streetcar’s release says the company is in the early stages of planning, and that it “does not see this building as a residential condominium project.” Jilly’s seems more suited to a Gladstone-style hotel makeover, but we’ll see.
UPDATE: Hilariously, the Post reports that the building’s structural problems were the result of the former owners tearing down a load-bearing wall so people could see the strippers better.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/jillys-strip-club-finally-sold-developer/&title=UPDATED: Jilly’s strip club has finally been sold to a developer&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/jillys-strip-club-624x395.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_274062" align="alignnone" width="656"] (Image: Google Street View)[/caption]
For thirty years, the story of Toronto's once-proud strip-club scene has been one of continual decline, and today it seems as though another one will be joining its departed friends in that big VIP room in the sky. Streetcar Developments, a condo company, announced via press release earlier today that it has purchased Jilly's, the Queen and Broadview landmark known for its imposing Romanesque presence (the four-storey building was, according to its listing on the city's heritage inventory, built in 1891), its windows plastered over with pictures of sultry women, and the motto on its sign ("The Finest in Adult Entertainment").
The release says Jilly's will be closing down, and that residents of the hotel rooms above the bar will be forced to vacate. In late 2013, the city issued an emergency work order in an attempt to get the building's owner to address structural problems, leading to an initial flurry of speculation about the club's fate. Streetcar says it will be making the necessary repairs.
Streetcar's release says the company is in the early stages of planning, and that it "does not see this building as a residential condominium project." Jilly's seems more suited to a Gladstone-style hotel makeover, but we'll see.
UPDATE: Hilariously, the Post reports that the building's structural problems were the result of the former owners tearing down a load-bearing wall so people could see the strippers better.){kind=link}
Scummiest place ever! House of Lancaster Next! Brass Rail has to be the “Classiest” Joint in town.
hah, you haven’t been to Filmore’s
There is hope for the finest spirits of humanity eventually getting beyond the limitations of myopic self interest. Allowing the possibility of understanding the significance of this structure in the growth of community and the development of an urban structure that satisfies the necessary feeling of natural fit, as in nature, housing both history and healthy desire, speaks well of the future. If Dingman’s Hall can be restored to some semblance of its intended stature as a place where the serious and the silly find expression, each honoured as vital to lives lived large, we have a unique opportunity to perfect an historic district that satisfies all criteria of Victory. Please consider this first step with tolerance and learn of the amazing story behind the history.
Filthmores is still around?
That place is a definite Scourge as well!
Bring back The Avro bar and put it in the renovated building.
Too many hipsters already
Please be aware of the history of most of the 103 year-old artists within this aromatic establishment.
who in god’s name takes down a load-bearing wall?
Nooooooooo…I mean, uh, never heard of the place.
thanks rico for the silly
myopic self interest is a necessary to live
yet we may look beyond
seriously
most contractors will tell you they will do it for a fee
one would hope though an engineer would be involved
Don’t get me wrong. It’s an absolutely gorgeous building. The brickwork is impressive. I am assuming it’s from up the valley, which played a serious part of my childhood, from two angles no less. I hope Streetcar does an excellent job.
If it is redeveloped into a condo, I wonder what the building name would be? Possible that there would be a discount for strippers to purchase first?