Cornell · Markham
Window and door glass for Cornell's porch-front homes
Cornell was planned in 1994 to feel like an older Ontario town, with homes close to the sidewalk and garages tucked behind on rear lanes. Building began in 1997, so the first streets now have windows at the age when sealed units fog. Fixing the glass is half the job; the other half is keeping a front designed as a set looking like one. We match you with an independent local glass pro who quotes and does the work, and we follow up so your request isn't left hanging.
At a glance
- Housing
- Townhomes, semis and detached homes, built from 1997 on
- Layout
- Street-facing fronts; garages on rear lanes
- Boundaries
- Highway 407, 16th Avenue, Ninth Line and Donald Cousens Parkway
- Common jobs
- Fogged sealed units, grille matching, screens, garden doors
A planned community from the late 1990s
Cornell is a New Urbanist plan. Most homes are townhomes, semis or detached houses with the garage at the back on a lane. So the most visible windows sit on a front meant to be read as a whole, while patio and garden doors face the lane.
The earliest streets date from the late 1990s, which puts their original sealed units in the years when fogging becomes common. Newer phases more often need a cracked pane or an adjustment.
Traditional-style facades: keep the grilles consistent
Many Cornell homes have colonial grilles, the bars that divide a window into smaller panes. In most windows of this age the bars sit between the two layers of glass, sealed inside the unit. Replacing a unit means rebuilding its grilles too: same pattern, same bar width, same colour, lined up with the windows beside it. On a row of porch fronts, a mismatch shows from across the street.
A photo of the whole front of the house, one of the window and one of a corner where the grille meets the frame let the pro match it the first time. Our foggy window page explains the unit swap itself. Angus Glen, another community built to look historic, raises the same question.
Porches, screens and doors
- Window screens: casement and patio screens rescreened in their frames, or new frames made to measure when the old ones are bent or missing.
- Entry doors: new glass in the front door you have, or a door and sidelights chosen to suit a traditional porch front.
- Patio door replacement: for a lane-side garden or sliding door whose frame or glass has failed; one that only drags usually needs rollers first.
- Porch screens: custom panels between porch posts, quoted from a photo and rough measurements.
Cornell window and door questions
Can new glass match the grilles on my Cornell home?
In most cases, yes. The replacement unit is built with new grilles in your pattern, bar width and colour, so it sits in line with its neighbours. Photos of the whole front, the window and a grille bar where it meets the frame make the difference. If an exact match isn't available, the pro should say so before ordering, not after.
Do Cornell townhouses need approval to replace windows?
It depends whether your townhouse is freehold or part of a condominium corporation. In a condo, windows and exterior doors are usually common elements, so the board approves changes before any work; check your declaration or ask your management company. A freehold owner replacing a window in the same-size opening needs no City building permit. Either way, say which you are in your request.
Can porch screens be made to measure?
Yes. Screens for porches, patio doors and windows can be built to fit your openings, from a replacement frame for a bent casement screen to a custom panel between porch posts. Send a photo of the whole opening and rough measurements, and the pro can say which approach suits it.
The garden door behind my Cornell townhome has dropped and sticks. Can it be fixed?
Often, yes. A sliding door that has dropped or drags usually has worn rollers, a track full of grit or a panel that has shifted out of adjustment. New rollers and an adjustment usually put it right. A bent frame, a fogged glass unit or rot at the sill is when replacement is worth pricing. The sliding door repair page explains more.
Cornell homes look historic. Do heritage rules apply to their windows?
Not because of the look. Markham's heritage permit applies inside its four heritage conservation districts, Unionville, Markham Village, Thornhill and Buttonville, and Cornell isn't one of them. So a same-size replacement on a Cornell home needs neither a heritage permit nor a City building permit. Individually designated properties are the exception; the heritage window guide explains how to check.