Toronto art-house destination the Gladstone Hotel has been sold to a development team with a reputation for maximizing the potential of historic properties.

It’s not yet clear what the new owners plan to do with the 37-room Gladstone Hotel, an arts and dining hub on Queen Street West near Dufferin Street. But the buyers, Streetcar Developments and Dream Unlimited, are known for character projects.

They are behind the makeover of the 127-year-old Jilly’s strip club into the Broadview Hotel on Queen Street East. Condo developer Dream is the company that helped transform the Distillery District into one of the city’s destination neighbourhoods with its Victorian buildings and cobbled streets now overlooked by modern, high-rise condos.

Christina Zeidler, president of the Gladstone Hotel, said it was a personal decision to sell the property. She said she was looking for a buyer who would respect its historic and cultural significance.

The Gladstone became a hub for the arts after her father, architect Eberhard Zeidler, renovated it about 15 years ago. 

The buyers are committed to the hotel’s cultural pedigree, said Streetcar Developments founder and president Les Mallins, in a press release on Wednesday.

“We look forward to amplifying the hotel’s offerings with our refreshed vision, enhancing the current building while ensuring the property remains a staple within the community,” he said. 

The Gladstone, which has a heritage designation from the city, will be part of the developers’ “portfolio of character buildings of historical significance,” said Dream’s Michael Cooper.

The Gladstone advertises itself as Toronto’s oldest continually operating hotel, built in 1889. It has 37 artist-designed rooms and three gallery spaces.