TORONTO | Highrise Developments Compilation Thread

[caltrane74]

Right on Queen Street west...

will fit in well with the hippies and punk rockers.

also,

nouveau riche!

[Travis007]

http://thetorontoblog.com/2011/10/03...teycc-tuesday/

Proposal to add 43-floor apt tower + townhouses to Sherbourne Str. complex goes to TEYCC Tuesday

03 Oct 2011

Lots of photos of the existing buildings and area on the blog link.

Spruce-up for Sherbourne?: At its public meeting tomorrow morning, Toronto and East York Community Council will consider an intriguing development proposal that would see a 43-storey rental building and rows of 2- and 3-storey townhouses added to a complex of three apartment towers constructed on Sherbourne Street in the late 1970s. The plan also would see the redevelopment and improvement of the retail space occupying the street level of the apartment complex podium along Sherbourne Street.

The development application, filed by community planning and urban design firm Bousfields Inc. on behalf of Medallion Properties Inc., would add 409 rental units to the Medallion-operated complex, which currently has 1,117 apartments on the northwest edge of downtown’s densely-populated St James Town neighbourhood. Although the proposed development would increase density in an already-crowded residential area likely to experience significant condo tower development in the next several years, it also would substantially improve the appearance of the tired and worn-looking complex as well as three adjacent streets — Sherbourne, Earl and Bleecker.

A background report prepared by the city planning department for Toronto and East York Community Council (TEYCC) has recommended that the redevelopment application be approved on certain conditions, including payment of $1 million — in what’s known as Section 37 benefits under the Ontario Planning Act — in exchange for the increased project height and density. Of that sum, $900,000 would be put towards the future construction of a swimming pool at the Wellesley Community Centre next door, while $100,000 would be earmarked for streetscape improvements on Bleecker Street.

The proposal to remove an elevated podium segment between 545 and 555 Sherbourne Street would vastly improve Earl Street by eliminating a dark and dreary passageway that looks more like a barrier than a gateway to the St James Town neighbourhood next door. Meanwhile, new townhouses along the building’s ugly east side would drastically improve what is possibly the bleakest stretch of Bleecker Street.

Full details in the city planning department’s September 13 2011 background report to the TEYCC.

http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2...file-40968.pdf

[Travis007]

Potential large development in the works for the massive Queen/Mutual parking lot.

http://www.thegridto.com/life/real-e...11-queen-st-e/
(Link found via Taal on UrbanToronto)

There has also been considerable interest in the parking lot across the street, which is bordered by Queen, Shuter, Mutual and Dalhousie, and Alikakos reveals a deal is very close to being brokered. For years, the parking lot has been a blight on the area, to some degree preventing the neighbourhood’s development. Once completed, the deal will be one of the biggest of its kind in recent Toronto history (given that the parking lot takes up an entire downtown city block), with an ambitious plan to build retail, office and residential spaces on the site. As such, the retail strips lining both sides of Queen east of Church would likely see a considerable increase in foot traffic.

[Travis007]

21 Grenville has been reduced from 52 to 46 floors, but appealing to the OMB.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10...han-asked-for/

New tower gets greenlight on near Yonge, but at six storeys shorter than asked for

Natalie Alcoba Oct 4, 2011 – 7:52 PM ET

... a 46-storey tower a few steps from Yonge Street.

That is six storeys shorter than developers had envisioned for the 660 square metre property on Grenville Street, setting the stage for another battle at the Ontario Municipal Board over density in an area that may seem packed at first blush, but is actually ripe for development.

“Everywhere you see a surface parking lot right now in the city, there is potential that an application could come in for that,” said Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam, who represents Ward 27 (Toronto Centre-Rosedale). “Where you see the nondescript, three- to five-storey building, there is potential for that.”

Close proximity to subway and streetcar lines, grocery stores and ever growing employment opportunities makes her area an attractive target for developers. The provincial government’s “places to grow” strategy demands that Toronto make room for more people over the next 20 years (Queen’s Park says Toronto can expect to get 170,000 more people in the next decade; the city says 270,000). The city’s official plan says the most density should go downtown.

City planners say a 52-storey tower is “too aggressive” given the existing heights in the immediate area, which range from 33 to 50 on Bay Street. Going down to 46 floors reduces shadows cascading on parks, staff said, although the architect and developer insist the higher levels result in minimal shade. The applicants, who are appealing the decision to the OMB, also take issue with a slightly smaller footprint approved by Toronto East York community council on Tuesday, which they say forces a redesign.

“This is going to drastically rejuvenate the area. You would think that our site is in a suburban area of the city. You’re talking about a site one block north of College Park where they have 70-plus storeys,” said Adam Brown, a lawyer who represents Mr. Clewes and Lifetime Developments. “If we want to protect the neighbourhoods, this is where you develop.”

[Dale]

Travis, you're the hardest-working man in show business!

[Travis007]

LOL, Thanks Dale. Just doing my part to keep the world aware of Toronto's dynamic construction boom.

[Travis007]

21 Grenville will be called "Karma Condos".

Originally Posted by urbandreamer on UrbanToronto

This project is to be known as Karma Condos. Website is being uploaded as I type http://www.karmacondos.com/ Edit: website is live check it out.

Full details including project rendering here: http://condosforu.com/2011/10/21-gre...th-of-college/



My opinion: It's attractive, but rather typical/conservative aA glass box design. Still much better than 75% of competing projects...but hey, I'd love to see some more red brick aA--like the base of Market Wharf for example...

edit: This is a preliminary rendering, project as per decision yesterday is to be modified...stay tuned for final rendering.

[Travis007]

Elevation drawings for 43 Gerrard Street West (Toronto).

Potentially interesting but kind of iffy, a bit too much going on. Looks modern Dutch influenced.Will hold back judgement until detailed renderings are released.

Posted by Bayer on Urban Toronto:

[Travis007]

Kings Club Condos

More mid-rise density infill for the King West/Queen W Triangle area.

Found this on Urbanation's Twitter feed:

http://twitter.com/#!/urbanation

Rendering of future 4 bldg, 638 unit "Kings Club Condos" by Urbancorp and First Capital Realty coming to King St:

Renderings posted by UrbanDreamer on UrbanToronto:

[Travis007]

34 Southport Street, Swansea, Toronto. 30 & 25 Floors

http://www.insidetoronto.com/news/lo...says-developer

Article found via yyzer on UrbanToronto

Dense developments now part of Toronto's landscape, says developer

Residents demand a grocery store, bank in new condo, townhouse complex

LISA RAINFORD|Oct 07, 2011 - 2:03 PM

The developer of a proposed condominium and townhouse complex in Swansea attempted to reassure residents that he has every intention of providing a grocery store as part of the mixed-use project, at a community consultation meeting Wednesday, Oct. 5.

State Building Group has submitted an application to the City of Toronto to construct two point towers, 25- and 30- storeys tall, comprised of 534 condominium units and 14 townhouses on vacant land at 34 Southport St. The publicly accessible residential development would include 10,400 sq. ft. of retail space.

"The grocery store is our prime motivation," said Zagdanski. "The bottom line is, we will get a coffee shop, a restaurant, a small grocer that the community can benefit from daily. We are committed to this - we are going to make this happen."

"A lot of people bought when they did because of the plaza," she said, "A restaurant or cafe would be nice, a bank would be brilliant. Please consider your retail space. You'd have everyone here who'd use it, plus the 500 units you're building plus those who live in the towers on the lakeshore."

The project's architect Sal Vitiello of EI Richard Architects explained that sites today are much more dense than they were a decade ago. Density in Toronto is going up, he said.

Renderings found here: http://www.nwaretail.com/pdfs/34_Sou...re_03Mar11.pdf

[Travis007]

Minto purchases a site in Liberty Village. Inevitably, more development coming to this rising neighbourhood in the future.

http://twitter.com/#!/urbanation

Minto purchases 1.78 acre 1 Atlantic Avenue site (near Liberty Village) for $19.8 million, see property outline: http://twitpic.com/6vkim6

Peter Freed just bought the Church/Colborne parking lot site.

Originally Posted by urbandreamer on UrbanToronto

Sounds like Peter Freed just bought this site:

@JShamess on twitter says

2 large redevelopment land sites closed this week: Freed buys site east of King Eddy for $19.2m ($77 BSF) and 1 Atlantic Ave to Minto $19.8m

@urban__dreamer Bit farther East Colborne & King 18,500 SF land piece maybe 20s some planning issues...

More intriguing real estate news regarding Freed:

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

http://www.hojo.com/HowardJohnson/co...opertyId=12334

From http://twitter.com/#!/BuzzBuzzHome

AND, it is official! Freed purchased the HoJo site in Yorkville.... Learn all about it

buzzbuzzhome forum member Ara writes:

It's official! Was just speaking with one of PSR's agents. They had a conference today where FREED outlined 10 new sites that he has closed on. The only one she confirmed for now was the Church and Colbourne and definitely the HoJo in Yorkville. That's huge! Looks like he's sreading his wings.

Sounds like another Thompson Hotel here, or perhaps another brand....W?

[yaletown_fella]

The Howard Johnson always bugged me. Ugly building.

I hope Freed will design a building that uses brick/stone and reflects Yorkville instead of somthing that looks identical to their developments south of Bloor (many of which look pretty good in their respective neighborhoods) I would love to see a building like "The Falls" in Victoria with a water feature.

[Travis007]

Yeah, the insignificant Howard Johnson hotel has no place in the rapidly evolving Yorkville scene. A fresh new, posh condotel would be great. Great to see Freed expanding his work to different parts of the city.

[Travis007]

30 Ordnance Street, 35 & 30 Floors

http://www.diamondcorp.ca/?p=135

Found link via Urbandreamer on Twitter

[Travis007]

http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/10...rs/#more-99172

Information Booth: Three red cranes signal life at MaRS

Peter Kuitenbrouwer Oct 11, 2011 – 8:33 AM ET

In 2007 MaRS began Phase 2, a 20-storey, 750,000 square-foot glass box. But transforming “Ideas to Reality” proved more difficult than just painting the slogan on a stretch of plywood. Pasadena, California-based Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc., MaRS’s development partner, halted the project in the fall of 2008, citing liquidity issues. Tenants also proved scarce; Randal Froebelius, vice-president of real estate for MaRS, told the Post: “We don’t want to build an empty building.”

This July workers returned to the job site after Ontario expanded the loan program of Infrastructure Ontario, a provincial Crown agency, to include MaRS. The agency is lending MaRS $230-million to build the tower.

“The current MaRS Centre is at full occupancy, and cannot meet the increasing demand for space,” MaRS said in a news release. The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research and Public Health Ontario have both signed on as tenants at the new tower, which MaRS plans to open in 2013.

[Travis007]

More renderings of Karma Condos.

http://www.facebook.com/LifetimeDevelopments

[caltrane74]

Nice looking tower for Toronto!!!

Hope they are able to get the full height they are looking for.

[Travis007]

http://www.blogto.com/city/2011/10/o...condo_project/

Opposition grows against Minto Freed condo project

Posted by Emma Marcon / OCTOBER 13, 2011

Last night a frustrated group of about a hundred residents of the Wellington and Niagara neighbourhoods met with city councillor Adam Vaughan and two representatives from development company Minto Freed to discuss the proposal of a massive high-rise condominium complex in the area. The proposed building, at the corner of Bathurst and Niagara, will reach 81 metres in height and add an estimated 1,000 new vehicles to an area already battling serious traffic problems. Residents are concerned about this influx in traffic as well as the impact the building will have on the neighbourhood's historic character.

The future of the proposal remains uncertain. Vaughan is now on record as wanting Minto Freed to withdraw their rezoning application, but acknowledged the company's legal right to pursue the plan further. As for the residents, they remain concerned that if the plan is approved by city council, it will set a precedent for other monolithic developments in the neighbourhood.

[Travis007]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toront...waterpark.html

CPP, Oxford team up on new Toronto bank tower

CBC News Posted: Oct 14, 2011 10:25 AM ET

Two of Canada's largest pension plans are teaming up to build a new office tower in downtown Toronto that's slated to be the headquarters for Canada's largest bank.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Oxford Properties, the real estate arm of OMERS will build RBC WaterPark Place, a 30-storey office tower on Queens Quay between Bay and York Streets in Toronto's financial district.

Construction is expected to begin by the end of the year and be completed by the third quarter of 2014.

The building will have 930,000 square foot and the Royal Bank of Canada has signed on to be the anchor tenant, headquartering its domestic banking business in the LEED-certified building.

RBC will occupy 550,000 or 60 per cent of the 930,000 square feet. Their space alone will house some 4,000 employees.

http://business.financialpost.com/20...-for-bay-view/

RBC: On the waterfront

Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s biggest bank, said Friday it is moving the headquarters of its domestic operations from a smattering of locations across the city to a sparkling new home on the north side of Queens Quay — outside the traditional Bay Street corridor bounded by Queen Street to the north and Front Street to the south.

The new 30-storey skyscraper to be developed by Oxford Properties, a unit of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will be just a few blocks south of the Royal Bank’s corporate headquarters at the storied intersection at Wellington and Bay Streets.

The tower will also have more than 50,000 sq. ft. for retail services and amenities and a view of Lake Ontario. It will be connected to Toronto’s PATH walkway system through an elevated, enclosed pedestrian bridge linked directly to the Air Canada Centre and Union Station.

Designed by Toronto-based WZMH Architects, construction of the tower is to begin in late 2011, which completion scheduled for the third quarter of 2014. Neither the cost of RBC’s lease nor construction costs were disclosed.

[yaletown_fella]

Oh my G-d, I really hope that dosen't get built as shown in the render. There's way too many bland glass towers in the area already. Unless other materials and styles are introduced it will become an upper crust St James town.

On the other hand, Karma condos is growing on me. There's some thoughtfully subtle detailing on what looks to be high quality window-wall on the east side of the tower. It kills two bird with one stone as it also blocks the awful blank facade of the beige carcass butcher job tower next door. As far as boxes go, it's quite nice. Funny enough, the tallest tower proposed for NYC is an ultra modern box that would put aA to shame This is somewhat reassuring to me that we're not lagging behind the rest of the world lol .

However, I hope some non glass towers pop up in the College Park area as we've already got Murano/Burano/Aura need i say more..