Condo Living

June 22, 2026 Published by Toronto and Area Chapter - By James M. Russell

Condo Profile: The Sir Charles of Yorkdale

From the Spring 2026 issue of CCI Toronto Condovoice Magazine.

The luxurious condominium complex Chaz Yorkville is situated just east of Yonge Street on Charles Street, a fitting location, since the word Chaz is a form of Charles, a Germanic word meaning ‘Free man’.

Clearly, Page+Steele IBI Group, the architectural firm that designed this fifty-threestorey community of mostly young professionals and students, many of whom attend the University of Toronto, was devoted to providing the residents of Chaz Yorkville with unrivalled convenience and freedom with its well-designed suites and common areas.

Says Shadi, a resident at Chaz Yorkville for the past five years and the Board’s Secretary for two, who then adds, “it exceeded all my expectations.”

Chaz Yorkville began accepting residents in 2015 on the lot once occupied by a modernist, eightstorey building designed by the late Macy Dubois. Located at 45 Charles Street East, Chaz Yorkville’s majestic glass-and-steel facade towers above its neighbours, providing residents of the corner units on all four sides with a 180-degree view of this great city. Chaz Yorkville’s amenities include a selfserve pet spa, sauna, game room, theatre room, a fully equipped fitness studio with spinning, a billiards room, three guest suites, 24-hour concierge service, a car wash area, and four elevators to serve their towering community. The units at Chaz Yorkville range from bachelor to three-bedroom suites, from 378 square feet for a studio to 3413 square feet for a penthouse, many offering unobstructed southwest views of the city, Lake Ontario, and, on a clear day, the mist rising from Niagara Falls. All the suites feature contemporary urban kitchens, all equipped with sleek European-style stainless steel appliances and stylish cabinetry, porcelain and ceramic backsplashes, floor-to-ceiling windows, nine-foot ceilings, private balconies, and hardwood flooring.

Chaz Yorkville’s spacious outdoor terrace, featuring two stainless steel barbeques, is situated on the ground floor, adjacent to its immaculate, angelicwhite lobby, an elegant entrance to the five-storey, limestone-clad podium that serves to highlight the storeys above.

The building’s exclusive ‘Chaz Club’, clad in luxurious white and located on the building’s thirtysixth floor, is their two-level party area, which includes a kitchen, bathroom and a broad balcony with comfortable seating for residents’ outdoor enjoyment and breathtaking views for as far as the eye can see.

Chaz Yorkville’s residents enjoy a wide range of activities, including their Summer BBQ, Baseball Watch Parties, Valentine’s Day celebration and November/December holiday celebrations. Says Veronica, the Board’s Vice-President, who, along with Shadi, plans and organises the building’s social events, with the help of management and staff. “We have great turnouts for our events,” Veronica adds. The Board and management communicate with residents via email, their web portal, and notice boards in each elevator.

Joining the Board four years ago, Shadi was immediately impressed by how well-conducted and efficient the Board’s meetings were, many of which last just an hour or so. “In the beginning (2015), Board meetings would start at six o’clock, and you wouldn’t get out of there until eleven that night,” says Henry, the Board’s President, who adds, “A key reason for shorter meetings is that there are no personal issues or positions that are discussed at length. The Property Management (PM) team presents all materials ahead of the meeting to leave very few, if any, questions unanswered. The PM also promptly answers any advanced questions via email, and we do not hesitate to call supplemental Board meetings to resolve any confusion or issues.” Henry adds that much of the impressive groundwork that the Board and management currently enjoy was the result of Mona Chu, Chaz Yorkville’s first, and now retired from Chaz, property manager. “She was absolutely magnificent. She instituted many of the key processes. We couldn’t have gotten this far and this efficiently without her,” says Henry.

Chaz Yorkville’s Board of Directors consists of: Henry, President; Veronica, Vice President; Shadi, Secretary; Jayden, Treasurer; and Michelle, Director. “I must mention the professionalism of the Board members,” says Henry, who adds, “We have been very fortunate to have dedicated and focused directors elected by the owners.” Henry has been the Board’s president for the past six years, and a Board member and owner since 2015, when he purchased his suite in Chaz Yorkville as an investment. In addition to his Board duties, Henry volunteers with the Metro Toronto Police on their Community Liaison Committees, and is a member of a number of local resident associations, including the Ward 13 Council with the City of Toronto and other local organizations that provide support to underserved communities. When asked what stands out about Chaz Yorkville, Henry, who has extensive experience in the condominium industry, mentions the exceptional design, the building’s location in Toronto’s iconic Yorkville neighbourhood,” then adds, “I don’t see other buildings being so proactive in flood prevention, in crime prevention, in setting up processes so that any resident feels that all of their concerns are being welldocumented and addressed.”

Veronica, a resident of Chaz Yorkville from day one, and on the Board for the past five years, says she was convinced to purchase her suite in Chaz Yorkville not only for its investment value, prestigious ‘Yorkville’ location, a mere five minute walk from the city’s Yonge and Bloor commercial hub but because of, in her words, Chaz Yorkville’s “extremely well thought-out” design, “I’m proud to live here,” adds Veronica. Shadi feels the same and adds, “It’s a great community.”

“We could not do this (have achieved this level of success) without Novo,” says Henry of Robert Bellissimo, General Manager and Owner of Novo Property Management, Chaz Yorkville’s management company, when Chaz Yorkville was still in the preplanning stage. “We (the Board and management) work really well together,” says Henry of Robert and his team. “This is the best high-rise,” says Robert proudly, then continues on to say, “We (the Board, management, staff and the trades) do work well together.” Henry and Robert also agree that efficiency and a carefully maintained sense of community have, over the years, been largely responsible for the lack of staff turnover. “There is a lot of longevity (with management and staff)", says Robert.

One of Chaz Yorkville’s original staff members is Mohamaed Zuber Shaikh, who began at 45 Charles as the corporation’s part-time security guard and soon moved up to the Concierge Supervisor position. Filling out the management team is Jhon Angeles, the building’s full-time, live-in superintendent, who provides invaluable support to the Board, management, staff and Chaz Yorkville’s residents.

Roopkowal Cheema, Chaz Yorkville’s Property Manager for the past year and a half, and the building’s assistant property manager four years previous. “My job is never boring,” says Roopkowal, who adds,“ There are new challenges every day.” The management office oversees the building’s staff of security personnel and cleaners - all of whom are contracted, and nearly all have been at Chaz Yorkville since the day it opened its doors. One of the newest members of the management staff is Hargun Singh Bindra, Chaz Yorkville’s Assistant Property Manager, who joined the team just seven months ago. Hargun says what he loves about the building is, “The great relationship between staff, management, the Board, and residents.”

An impressive twenty Chaz Yorkville residents have installed EV charging stations in their private parking spots, and the Board installed a further charging station for communal use.

Charles Street was named after Charles Mercer Jones, an early 1800s administrator in Upper Canada. Mr. Jones was partially credited with establishing the Huron Tract, a nearly three-millionacre swath of Canada that was once home to environmentally important wetlands, swamps, and one of Ontario's largest deer sanctuaries. Not surprisingly, there are no reported sightings of deer in Chaz Yorkville’s spacious lobby, just residents enjoying the freedom and luxury of their thoughtfully designed and well-managed condominium from the outside world.

James M. Russell, Newsletters et Cetera