103 Summerhill Ave., Toronto
Asking Price: $2,950,000
Sold price: $2,875,000
Taxes: $12,239.00 (2025)
Lot Size: 17 by 111.16 feet.
Agents: Christian Vermast and Paul Maranger, Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
The backstory
In the rush of central Toronto, Summerhill Avenue winds through a tranquil enclave unknown to many people.
Only a light flow of traffic enters the landlocked pocket just east of Yonge Street because of the boundaries created by David A. Balfour Park, a network of ravines and a railway line.
In 1993, it was this calm setting a few blocks south of Yonge Street and St. Clair Avenue that drew the attention of media sales maven Meg Pinto.
Ms. Pinto, who worked for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. at the time, toured a rundown semi-detached house for sale.
The circa 1924 home across from a parkette was owned by an investor who was struggling to sell during the severe real estate downturn of the early 1990s.
“The house was pretty beaten up,” recalls Ms. Pinto. “He was just trying to unload it.”
Ms. Pinto negotiated a deal for the vacant home, closed very quickly, and moved in in July of 1993.
The house today
Ms. Pinto began to take on the most urgent renovations, starting with the removal of knob-and-tube wiring and an upgrade to the electrical system.
In those days, there was little she could do to improve the dungeonlike lower level, which had red indoor-outdoor carpet glued to the floor and nasty pipes cluttering the space.
“The basement was a disaster. All the doors were totally destroyed,” she recalls.
Ms. Pinto renovated the kitchen at the rear of the house and tackled the waist-high weeds and the falling-down chain-link fence in the backyard.
As her career advanced, Ms. Pinto took on the role of senior vice-president of marketing and sales at Discovery Channel. The salary bump allowed her to pay off her mortgage quickly and invest in additional improvements.
“When I had more cash, I started doing more,” she says.
Mshati Productions
Today, the house has three bedrooms and three bathrooms in 2,475 square feet of living space, including the renovated lower level.
Over time, Ms. Pinto worked on the landscaping with her father, who was a passionate gardener.
Then, after 35 years in the television industry, Ms. Pinto began exploring a mid-career change.
She visited Paris and was charmed by the beautiful hand-tied bouquets in the flower markets near Notre-Dame Cathedral.
That visit inspired Ms. Pinto to apply for a job in the diminutive Parterre Flowers boutique on Davenport Road.
“I had never worked in a flower shop,” she says. “I worked for free for them for about six months.”
Fast forward a few years, and Ms. Pinto became Parterre’s owner in 2011.
In 2014, Ms. Pinto stopped in for a manicure at her regular hair and nail salon on Yonge Street and learned the business was closing shop. She decided to relocate Parterre to the vacant storefront a few blocks from her Summerhill home.
By 2020, Ms. Pinto was ready to refurbish the house once again. As work began, she learned the house contained asbestos within the walls.
“I had to go down the studs,” she says of the removal process.
Just as the renovation was under way, COVID-19 pandemic restrictions made supplies hard to get and twice brought work to a halt.
As the project resumed, Ms. Pinto called on a friend in the design industry for advice in choosing fixtures and finishes. In 2021, the renovation was complete, and she moved back in.
Mshati Productions
Today, visitors step inside to an open living and dining area with wood floors in a herringbone pattern and a gas fireplace with a contemporary marble surround.
In the kitchen, the rear wall was replaced with a glass door that folds open to connect the breakfast nook to a secluded terrace.
“I wanted to bring more light into the house,” she says.
Upstairs, the primary suite overlooks the parkette. The renovated ensuite bathroom has a soaker tub and a glass-enclosed shower.
Another bedroom on that floor is currently used as an office, and there’s a three-piece bathroom.
Stairs lead to the third floor with two additional bedrooms.
The lower level has been renovated with a family room and new bathroom.
About two years ago, Ms. Pinto sold Parterre, which has a new owner on Yonge Street amid the neighbourhood’s many boutiques, restaurants and cafes.
Several prospective buyers toured 103 Summerhill as soon as it arrived on the market and an offer landed 24 hours later, Ms. Pinto says.
The deal was firmed up at $2.875-million after two days on the market.
The best feature
As Ms. Pinto absorbed more knowledge about flowers and design, she continued to refine the gardens. Today, the front of the house is sheltered from the street by flowering standards, window boxes and formal plantings.
In the rear, a terrace and a patio in a checkerboard pattern are sheltered by maple, chestnut, and Japanese maple trees.