A derelict Toronto landmark has sat dormant for close to a decade, but big changes are now happening at the former Oak Leaf Steam Baths at 216 Bathurst Street.
Opened in 1941, the Oak Leaf Steam Baths served many communities during its over seven decades in operation, including eastern European immigrants, the 2SLGBTQI+ community and unhoused locals.
The baths finally closed in 2015 amid mounting debts and a dispute between the business owners, though it wouldn’t be long before a new use for the building was planned.
Despite its age and cultural importance, the building never earned heritage protections, though it is indeed set to live on through a new project now getting underway.
A boutique hotel conversion was first proposed by new owners of the property, Xana Group, in 2017, seeking to transform the building into a 30-suite accommodation with a single-storey addition and full interior makeover.
However, that proposal was refused by the City of Toronto’s Committee of Adjustment and later appealed to the Toronto Local Appeal Body, where it was approved in 2020. Hilariously, the settlement granted the project to proceed with a form almost identical to what was first proposed three years earlier.
Building permits were issued the following year, granting the owner approval to press on with the hotel.
In mid-2024, XANA Group announced on LinkedIn that the company was “officially under contract for an exciting new turnkey project in the heart of downtown Toronto this summer.”
After years of behind-the-scenes wrangling, the company wrote, “This endeavour is a testament to the power of perseverance and dedication—proof that if it’s meant to be, it will happen. After nearly two years, the contract is finally signed.”
The conversion’s design from Ava Janikowski Architect will see the ground floor opened up, new windows added above, and modern ornamentation wrapping the brick exterior.
XANA Group.
The steam baths’ iconic signage will be repurposed in the hotel interior.
Construction is now underway on this conversion and addition, which will expand the building’s south side with a one-storey add-on.
Other features of the hotel conversion include a new cafe and bar on the existing building’s ground floor, as well as a basement lounge space.
