Monthly Archives: March 2013

Winter building pics: March 2013

 My March 2013 album on Flickr features more than 500 photos showing dozens of downtown construction projects and building sites. Click once on the image above to view a small-format slideshow of the pictures, or click twice to access the actual album where you can view individual full-size photos with captions.

 

 

Frozen fingers: It’s only a few days into spring and I’m still sorting through hundreds of building and construction photos I took during the winter. What has struck me the most is how gloomy and grey the city looked most of the time. Sunny, clear days were few and far between — and when they came, it was usually too bitterly cold and windy for me to risk freezing my fingers by wandering around with my camera.

I did manage a few long photo walks, though, and have been gradually posting the pics in albums on thetorontoblog.com’s Flickr photostream.  Above is a link to my fourth winter photo album, March 2013.

 

 

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Application filed with City to build 45-storey condo tower at NE corner of Church & Carlton

70 & 72 Carlton Street

A 45-storey condo tower with retail and institutional space is being proposed for the property currently occupied by the two low-rise buildings at 70 and 72 Carlton Street, seen here from the intersection of Church & Carlton Streets …

 

SE corner of Church & Wood Streets

… but it is unclear if the development site includes this surface parking lot behind the two buildings, at the corner of Church & Wood Streets.  The lot is seen here from Wood Street, looking toward Maple Leaf Gardens on Church Street.

 

 

New neighbour for the Gardens: Details are sketchy, but a proposal to build a 45-storey mixed use tower at the northeast corner of Church & Carlton Streets — directly across the street from Maple Leaf Gardens — has been filed with the City’s planning department.

An undated entry on the development projects page of the City of Toronto website says that applications have been filed for site plan control, zoning bylaw amendment and rental housing demolition for property at 70 Carlton Street. The site would be redeveloped with “a 38 storey tower atop of a 7 storey podium separated by a two-storey reveal comprising of 35149m2 of residential space 845m2 of retail space and 17m2 of institutional/other space. There will be a total of 202 parking spaces,” the website entry states.

 

 

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Construction reaches top floor for One32 Berkeley rental apartment midrise in Corktown district

132 Berkeley

March 17 2013: Construction is underway on the top floor of the rental apartment building at 132 Berkeley Street. Windows have been installed on 4 levels so far.

 

 

Topping off: The project website and signs at the building site say summer move-ins are expected for the new One32 Berkeley rental apartment midrise in Corktown. But with construction still underway on the top floor, that might be a bit optimistic — unless Toronto’s dreary winter lingers longer than it’s supposed to.

Work was underway on the top level of the 10-storey building when I passed by on St Patrick’s Day, while window and cladding installation had reached the fifth floor.

The midrise building will offer 177 rental apartments in 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom configurations. Amenities will include a party room with outdoor terrace, a fitness studio and a library/meeting room. A 2-level underground garage will have parking for 72 vehicles as well as parking facilities for 180 bicycles.

A project of Concert Properties, One32 Berkeley was designed by Page+ Steele / IBI Group Architects.

 

 

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Winter building pics: February 2013

Above is a link to my February 2013 Flickr album of building and construction photos I shot during walks in the downtown area. Click once on the image to view a small-format slideshow of the pictures, or click twice to access the album directly on Flickr and see full-size photos and captions.

 

Excavation continues, but bottom parking level begins to take shape at Backstage Condos

Backstage Condos

March 10 2013: A view of construction progress at the west end of the Backstage Condos site at the southeast corner of Yonge Street and The Esplanade. The deep excavation will gradually fill in with 6 underground parking levels.

 

 

Backstage Condos

March 10 2013: The construction crane rises near the center of the pit

 

 

Backstage Condos

March 10 2013: Looking toward the east end of the construction site, from Yonge Street. A 1-storey-tall mound of excavation material near the crane still has to be removed from the oddly-shaped pit, which extends between the condo highrise at 25 The Esplanade (left) and the railway tracks that lead into Union Station (behind the giant retaining wall to the right).

 

 

 

Digging and pouring: Although dozens of truckloads of dirt remain to be excavated from the Backstage Condos site at Yonge Street and The Esplanade, construction of the 36-storey building’s bottom level of underground parking — P6 — is already well underway.

Crews have been busy pouring concrete for walls and footings at the west end of the site, while just a few dozen meters to the east a “long reach” excavator keeps digging away, gradually removing a big mound of excavated material from the middle area of the six-level-deep pit.

Interestingly, the 373 vehicle parking spaces aren’t being provided for Backstage Condo residents — they’re actually intended for use by residents at The L Tower, which is approaching the end of construction on the other side of the street. L Tower residents will reach the parking garage through a tunnel that has already been bored several meters beneath The Esplanade. Backstage will have 150 parking spots in its own 4-level garage, which will be built above ground in the tower’s 4-storey podium. (Backstage and The L Tower aren’t just neighbours on The Esplanade, they’re sisters — adjacent condo projects sharing the same parents, developers Cityzen Developments, Castlepoint Realty, and Fernbrook Homes.)

 

 

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Winter building pics: January 2013

Above is a link to my January 2013 Flickr album of building and construction photos I shot during walks in the downtown area. Click once on the image to view a small-format slideshow of the pictures, or click twice to access the album directly on Flickr and see full-size photos and captions.

 

Winter building pics: December 2012

Above is a link to my December 2012 Flickr album of building and construction photos I shot during walks in the downtown area. Click once on the image to view a small-format slideshow of the pictures, or click twice to access the album and see full-size photos and captions.

 

U/G parking floors filling in at Post House Condos

Post House Condos

A red construction crane rises behind hoarding along the west (George Street) flank of the Post House Condos site

 

Filling in: The last time I passed by the Post House Condos site in August, crews were just installing the red construction crane that is helping to build the 21-storey structure.  I got another brief glimpse of the site this afternoon, where construction of four underground parking floors is progressing quickly. Two of the floors appear to have been built, with just two more to go before the construction reaches street level.

Located on the east side of George between Richmond and Adelaide Streets, Post House Condos is just steps from the St James Campus buildings of George Brown College, one block from St James Park, and a short walk from the interior design and furniture shopping strip along King Street East. The world-famous St Lawrence Market is only two blocks to the south, while the historic Distillery District is just a 10-minute stroll to the southeast.

 

 

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