Category Archives: Heritage & Historic buildings

3 big digs on Yonge Street (Part 2: FIVE Condos)

FIVE Condos site Toronto

May 1 2012: A view of the FIVE Condos development site at the southwest corner of Yonge and St Joseph Streets, one block north of Wellesley Street

 

FIVE Condos Toronto

May 1 2012: Excavation is well underway for a condo tower that will rise at least 45 storeys behind the facade of the former Rawlinson Cartage warehouse building, seen here being held in place by a giant frame on St Joseph Street

 

FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph

 

Much like the Nicholas Residences site a short walk up the street, the 5 St Joseph Street location for FIVE Condos poses some interesting challenges for excavation crews. They, too, have been digging directly behind a row of heritage buildings that front along Yonge Street. What makes their task even more complicated, however, is that they must work beneath the 4-storey brick facade of the historic Rawlinson Cartage building that formerly occupied the site — a huge structure currently held in place by a giant steel frame on St Joseph Street. The facade eventually will be incorporated into the condo tower podium, while the west wall of another brick building that once stood next door to it on St Nicholas Street also will be reconstructed as part of the FIVE Condos development.

 

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City Scene: Skating in sunshine and 16 degrees

Ice skating at Toronto City Hall

Skaters enjoy the rink at Nathan Phillips Square under sunny skies and mild 16-degree temperatures Wednesday afternoon. A National Historic Site, Toronto’s Old City Hall provides a grand backdrop for those enjoying their icetime. Built from 1889-1899, Old City Hall was designed by Toronto architect E.J. Lennox.

 

Subway service disrupted after crews break water main while building new platform at Union station

Front Street construction

January 31 2012:  Subway platform construction activity on Front Street between the Royal York Hotel and Union Station. Weekend service on part of the Yonge-University-Spadina line was disrupted after tracks at the Union subway station got flooded when construction crews accidentally ruptured a water main.

 

Soggy station: For the past year, construction of a new platform and concourse at the Union subway station — along with major revitalization work at Toronto’s historic Union Station building — has inconvenienced mainly motorists and pedestrians, thanks to minor detours around various different building zones on sections of Front and Bay Streets. This weekend, however, thousands of subway users had their travel plans disrupted when the Union subway stop was flooded after construction crews accidentally severed a water main.

 

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Public meeting will discuss 60-storey condo tower plan for site beside historic hall at Yonge & College

Historic Oddfellows Hall at Yonge & College Streets Toronto

February 26 2012: A 60-storey condominium tower that would loom above the historic Oddfellows Hall building (left) at Yonge & College Streets …

 

460 Yonge Street Toronto

… has been proposed for this location, currently occupied by a 2-storey building with shops and restaurants at street level and offices on the second floor

 

460 Yonge Street Toronto condo tower proposal sign

One of the development proposal signs posted outside 460 Yonge Street

 

Open for discussion: The City is holding a community consultation Wednesday night to get public input on a developer’s plan to build a 60-storey condo tower at Yonge & College Streets, right next door to a 4-storey heritage building constructed in 1891.

Designed by Graziani + Corazza Architects Inc. of Mississauga for developer Canderel Stoneridge of Toronto, the building would feature a 207-meter-tall tower containing 599 residential units at the municipal address of 460 Yonge Street. A podium ranging from 3 to 7 stories would contain the condo’s recreational amenities along with retail space on the street level and second floor, offices on the third floor, and an outdoor terrace with barbecue area on the podium roof. Six levels of underground parking would offer 196 vehicle spaces and 608 bicycle parking spots.

 

 

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Neighbours get to sound off at Monday meeting on 50-storey condo proposal for 308 Jarvis Street

308 Jarvis Street proposed condo site

February 22 2012: The City posted this sign on a proposed Jarvis Street condo tower site across from Allan Gardens only one week before a meeting scheduled to gather public feedback about the redevelopment plan

 

308 Jarvis Street proposed condo tower site plan

Site plan shows stepbacks for the proposed condo complex

 

Late notice: It took long enough, but earlier this week the City finally posted a development proposal notice on the 308 Jarvis Street site where a developer wants to incorporate part of a heritage building into a condo complex featuring a 50-floor tower, a 9-storey podium and townhouses with three levels.

Duration Investments Ltd. proposed the condo tower plan in a development application filed with the City on January 23, and a city planner told me that a community consultation meeting has been scheduled for the evening of February 27 to give the public an opportunity to comment on the project. He added that notices were going to be sent out to advise nearby residents about the feedback session. That was two weeks ago. However, a sign advising of the development plan was not posted on the property until last Monday — just one week before the community meeting — and people living nearby have told me they have not received any notices from the City about the upcoming public meeting. Some were not even aware that a condo tower is in the works for the site, currently being operated as a pay parking lot.

 

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Winter photo walks: Bay/College area Part 1

Burano Condos Toronto

February 9 2012: The south side of Burano Condos, viewed from Grenville Street

 

Progress updates: I had the opportunity to pass through the Bay & College area on my way to some recent appointments, so I brought along my camera to catch up on construction progress in the neighbourhood. My “winter photo walk” series will show you what I’ve been seeing:

 

 

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50-storey condo tower proposed for Jarvis/Carlton parking lot site across from historic Allan Gardens

308 Jarvis Street Toronto

February 5 2012: Looking west from Allan Gardens toward the 308 Jarvis Street site, currently occupied by a pay parking lot, where a developer has proposed building a 50-storey condo tower with a 9-storey podium

 

Ramada Plaza Hotel 308 Jarvis & 314 Jarvis Toronto

February 5 2012: A view of the proposed tower site, looking southwest from Jarvis Street just below Carlton Street. At left is the 10-storey Ramada Plaza Hotel at 300 Jarvis Street, while at right is a heritage mansion at 314 Jarvis

 

308-314 Jarvis Street Toronto and Best Western Primrose Hotel

February 5 2012: Northwesterly view from Allan Gardens toward the proposed condo site. At left is the Ramada Plaza Hotel, at center is the parking lot and the mansion at 314 Jarvis, and at right rear is the 25-storey Best Western Primrose Hotel at the southwest corner of Jarvis & Carlton Streets

 

314 Jarvis Street Toronto

February 5 2012: The developer proposes to incorporate into its condo tower only the “front portion” of this designated heritage house at 314 Jarvis Street

 

Palm House built in 1910 at Allan Gardens Toronto

February 5 2012: The tower would rise behind the rear right side of the Allan Gardens Palm House, built in 1910, and would dominate the backdrop in this view

 

Allan Gardens Toronto west park area

February 5 2012: Looking toward the proposed condo site from the northwest side of Allan Gardens. City parks and planning staff are worried about the potential shadow impact a 50-storey tower would have on this part of the park …

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Allan Gardens Toronto

… as well as on these greenhouses connected to the Palm House conservatory

 

Tower above the trees?: With its 154- year-old park and century-old Palm House conservatory boasting rare tropical plants from around the world, Allen Gardens is one of downtown Toronto’s oldest and most important botanical parks. But plans for a 50-storey skyscraper that would soar high above the historic park from the west side of Jarvis Street aren’t flying well with city parks and planning staff.

The application for a “50- storey with 9-storey podium mixed-use building” was filed with the City on January 23 2012. The proposal would redevelop property situated at the municipal addresses of 308, 310, 312 and 314 Jarvis Street, as well as 225 Mutual Street. The complex would contain 590 units, of which 5 would be townhouses fronting on Mutual Street at the west side of the property. The podium would include commercial space. The building would have five levels of below-ground parking.

 

 

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Pit stop: Crews dig deeper at FIVE Condos site

FIVE Condos Toronto

January 25 2012: Excavation has reached more than one level deep at the northeast corner of the FIVE Condos site on St Joseph Street

 

FIVE Condos

January 25 2012: Looking south from St Joseph Street across the excavation for the 45-storey FIVE Condos tower.  For more information about the project, see my December 22 2011 post

 

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The ROM’s Crystal, after an overnight snowfall

Royal Ontario Museum's Michael Lee-Chin Crystal

A light layer of snow covers the sharply-angled east side of the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal on January 21 2012. Designed by “starchitect” Daniel Libeskind, the glass and aluminum-clad extension to the Royal Ontario Museum slices into the sky above Bloor Street. Below are several more wintertime views of the Crystal.

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Royal Ontario Museum's Michael Lee-Chin Crystal

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Royal Ontario Museum's Michael Lee-Chin Crystal

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Royal Ontario Museum's Michael Lee-Chin Crystal

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Royal Ontario Museum's Michael Lee-Chin Crystal

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Church-Wellesley village loses some of its heritage with demolition of Odette mansion & coach house

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

January 19 2012: Demolition commenced yesterday on Odette House, a 3-storey Victorian-era mansion at 81 Wellesley Street East …

 

Odette House 81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

… seen here on  September 27 2010 after the property was sold for a reported $4.5 million by its former occupant Wellspring, the cancer support organization

 

81 Wellesley Street East coach house

Demolition has also started on the coach house at the rear of the property …

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

… the building in which Wellspring initially launched its programs in 1992. The north side of the 2-storey coach house is seen here on September 27 2010

 

Ignominious end: Residents of the Church-Wellesley Village area are dismayed that a stately Victorian-era mansion that has stood for approximately 100 years near the corner of Church and Wellesley Streets is being destroyed just 12 weeks after their city councillor requested that the “architecturally significant structure” be considered for heritage designation.

Yesterday afternoon, a wrecking crew began tearing apart the 3-storey Odette House and the 2-storey coach house behind it at 81 Wellesley Street East. As I reported in a September 27 2011 post, the two buildings had been owned by Wellspring, a non-profit organization that describes itself as “offering psychological, emotional, social, spiritual and informational support to individuals and families living with cancer.” Wellspring had decided to sell the property and relocate not only since it had outgrown the site, but also because maintenance and repair of the two old houses had become too expensive.

Wednesday’s demolition activity took neighbours by surprise, since no safety fencing or scaffolding had been installed around the property before the wrecking commenced, nor had any signs been posted to warn that demolition was imminent. Debris from the top floor fell to a heap in front of the mansion’s former main entrance, landing mere steps from the public sidewalk on the south side of Wellesley Street. The gate in the wrought iron fence next to the sidewalk had not even been closed.

 

Heritage review requested in November 2010

The demolition had not been completely unexpected. Area residents were aware that, on December 1 2011, the City had accepted an application to demolish the two buildings. However, many were holding out hope that City Hall might be able to designate Odette House as a heritage property before its new owner could take any steps to redevelop the site.  Just one month earlier, on November 2 2011, Toronto and East York Community Council had adopted a motion in which Ward 27 Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam requested that city staff consider designating 81 Wellesley East under Ontario’s Heritage Act.  In a letter to the council, Councillor Wong-Tam explained that Odette House “is an architecturally significant structure but is not currently protected by heritage designation. The building is clearly a surviving part of the early neighbourhood development of this area. In order to preserve the building as an important heritage resource, I am requesting City staff undertake a process to review it for designation under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act.” However, the heritage designation process typically takes months, if not years, largely since the City’s understaffed and overworked Heritage Preservation Services team is swamped with an extensive caseload.

 

Outraged neighbours vent on Facebook group site

After crews started smashing apart the two buildings at 81 Wellesley yesterday, outraged area residents posted photos of the wrecking work on the members-only Facebook page for the Church Wellesley Neighbourhood Association (CWNA), decried what one man called “another major heritage preservation failure in Ward 27,” and speculated about the motive for what appears to some people to be a suspiciously hasty demolition.  One CWNA Facebook group member, who reproduced details of the demolition application from the City’s website, said: “It looks like the developer wants to demolish these buildings pronto before any action can be taken to save them.” “Without doubt,” said another, “it was [Councillor Wong-Tam’s] motion to have the property designated which provoked the demolition on this site.” A third man, observing that the demolition had begun from the rear of Odette House, wondered if this was a tactic “to hide work till last possible moment?” Whatever the real reason, another huge disapppointment is likely in store for Church-Wellesley Village residents. As one of the CWNA Facebook group commentators pointed out, “Aside from the terrible loss here, now we’ll be staring at a gravel lot come Friday for the next few years” and quite possibly “a whole lot longer”  if there is a “correction” in the Toronto real estate market. Just one block along Wellesley Street, he noted, an empty gravel lot occupies the property where a former St John Ambulance building was demolished several years ago to make way for a condo highrise project that hasn’t materialized. The lot is an eyesore that irks many neighbours, who would like to see the City acquire the property to establish a public park — something they realize is highly unlikely to happen.

 

Condo development proposal expected

So far, there has been no public word on what 81 Wellesley’s new owner plans to do with the property, though it’s widely expected that a condominium tower will be proposed for the site. A Colliers International real estate listing had described Odette House as a “rare boutique building” with “development potential,” while a September 26 2011 Twitter post by real estate research firm Urbanation announced that 81 Wellesley had been sold for $4.5 million with a “future high-rise condo site planned.” In a quick Google search this afternoon, I found one real estate website touting “luxury condominiums” for 81 Wellesley. The website for Milborne Real Estate Inc. Brokerage sales representative Nadine Robbins includes several photos of the property and says it “is sure to be developed into a modern, luxurious and extremely convenient residential condominium.” Since the website provides an email address and phone number so people can “find out more about this exclusive pre-construction condominium,” I emailed to ask if Ms. Robbins could provide any details about the development plans for 81 Wellesley. She replied promptly, saying: “Unfortunately, I have no new information on the project.” Similarly, the development application status page on the City of Toronto website does not yet list any proposals for the site.

However, two things do seem certain at this point. One is that the former Wellspring buildings will soon disappear forever from the Church-Wellesley Village landscape. The other is that neighbours are mad as hell about it — and worried about what will take their place.

Below are photos I snapped this afternoon of demolition progress on Odette House and the coach house. Wrecking crews were not working either of the two times I passed by 81 Wellesley, so snow from today’s light flurries was beginning to accumulate on the rubble.

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

Odette House front window and porch demolition

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

A huge heap of rubble lies outside the main entrance to Odette House, just inside the front gate. Demolition started without any scaffolding being put in place.

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

Debris and a destroyed tree at the northeast corner of Odette House

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

Looking up the brick wall on the east side of Odette House. The building’s roof, and much of the third floor, have been knocked down

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

A pile of demolition debris at the southeast corner of Odette House

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

The wrecking machines were idle, and no demolition workers in sight, when I took these photos of 81 Wellesley this afternoon

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

An idle wrecking machine behind partially-demolished Odette House

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

Demolition site viewed from the apartment building parking lot next door

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

Half of the coach house’s second floor has been knocked down

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

A closer view of the coach house roof demolition

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

A view of the coach house from a service laneway leading south from the property to Maitland Street. Area residents are dismayed that a condo tower might ultimately rise on the site.

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

The south-facing side of the coach house is still intact — but for how long?

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

Graffiti tags on the rear brick wall of the coach house

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

Maintenance and repair of the coach house and Odette House had become too expensive for the former owner, Wellspring

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto coach house

Another view of the coach house, from a laneway to its southeast

 

81 Wellesley Street East Toronto

The 46-storey Casa condominium tower on Charles Street is slightly visible in the background. Area residents worry that a similar tall glass condo tower might be built at 81 Wellesley.

 

 

Shoring continues at FIVE Condos site as developer seeks city’s approval to add 5 more floors to tower

FIVE Condos site Toronto

December 11 2011: The tower for FIVE Condos will rise up to 50 storeys from this location near the southwest corner of Yonge Street and St Joseph Street …

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

… where earth moving and drilling machines have been preparing the site for full-scale excavation, expected to commence early in the New Year

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

An enormous steel frame extends halfway across St Joseph Street to support the four-storey brick facade of the former Rawlinson Cartage Company warehouses at 5 St Joseph Street. The facade will be incorporated into the base of the tall glass condominium tower, with minor alterations to some of its ground floor openings.

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

The frame looms above the arched main entrance to 5 St Joseph Street …

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

… seen here, from the northwest corner of St Joseph and St Nicholas Streets …

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

… and here, from the public sidewalk at the west side of the structures

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

This row of designated heritage buildings from 606 to 618 Yonge Street …

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

… also will be incorporated into the FIVE Condos development. The buildings will be restored with retail shops at street level and condo suites on the upper floors.

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

The historic Henry Turner Building at the corner of Yonge and St Joseph Streets is presently home to the FIVE Condos presentation centre

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

The west (rear) side of the Yonge Street heritage buildings that will be restored and revitalized as part of the FIVE condo complex

 

Higher FIVE?: One of the most talked-about condo projects in downtown Toronto, FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph, could wind up slightly taller than was originally envisioned if a city committee gives the developers approval to boost the tower’s total height.

Back in the fall of 2008, the owner of a .267-hectare site at the southwest corner of Yonge and St Joseph Streets applied to the city for zoning bylaw changes that would permit redevelopment of several historic buildings on the property into residential and retail uses, along with construction of a 49-storey condominium point tower. In August 2009, the developer revised its application after receiving preliminary feedback from city planners and Toronto’s Heritage Preservation Services. It trimmed the tower to 45 floors, and also reduced the height and size of the tower podium. On October 22 2009 the Toronto Preservation Board gave the nod to the heritage components of the proposal, while five weeks later Toronto City Council approved the project.

Graywood Developments Ltd. and Mod Developments Inc. subsequently launched sales for FIVE Condos in 2010, and the project proved immensely successful: suites sold swiftly, and FIVE Condos emerged a big winner at the 2011 BILD Awards in April, claiming honours for High-Rise Project of the Year, Best High-Rise Building Design, Best High-Rise Sales Office, and Best Model Suite. (Hariri Pontarini Architects designed the condo project, while E.R.A. Architects Inc. is overseeing the restoration of the heritage building component.) Now the developers are seeking approval to add 5 more floors to the tower, for a total of 50 storeys. They have submitted a minor variance application to the Committee of Adjustment, and anticipate that their application will be heard at the committee’s February 2012 meeting, Graywood’s development manager, Gabriel DiMartino, told me this week.

 

Yonge Street condo development trend?

Despite all the accolades and strong sales, some area residents are disappointed that the developers are seeking to add more floors to the tower. They worry that city approval for the extra height will set what they consider to be a disturbing trend for skyscraper development along the stretch of Yonge Street between College and Bloor Streets, where several condo tower projects have already been proposed and more are in the works.  Last year, for instance, the developer of the Nicholas Residences condominium on St Nicholas Street two blocks north of FIVE Condos appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board after the city’s Committee of Adjustment denied its application for a “minor variance” permitting it to add six storeys to its popular tower project. (The city had approved a 29-floor tower, but the developer wanted to increase that to 35.) A residents’ group called Save St. Nick opposed the extra floors; they were concerned about the potential detrimental impact the tower could have on the livability of their quiet downtown neighbourhood and the quaint tree-lined and cobblestoned St Nicholas Street in particular. The case settled when the developer agreed to pay $750,000 towards projects intended to benefit the local community. (Construction of the 35-storey tower is now underway.)

 

Biggest heritage protection project in Canada

Although the extra height proposed for FIVE Condos irks some people, most neighbourhood residents seem pleased — and relieved — that the project will save a significant stretch of heritage buildings along Yonge Street while retaining the historic Rawlinson Cartage Company warehouse facade on St Joseph Street. Staff with the city’s planning and heritage departments are happy, too. At one public meeting I attended, for example, City of Toronto senior planner Michael Hynes praised FIVE Condos as “the largest heritage building protection project in the country,” and pointed out that part of the project will include substantial streetscape improvements to Yonge, St Joseph and St Nicholas Streets. Indeed, facades for two recently-demolished heritage buildings on the west (St Nicholas Street) side of the FIVE Condos site will be recreated from new brick matching the size and colour of brick on the original structures. Incorporated into the condo tower base, the rebuilt facades will maintain much of the unique look of the pre-construction St Nicholas streetscape. And at several public consultation meetings I attended this fall, members of local neighbourhood associations cited the FIVE Condos treatment of heritage properties and the placement of the tower 30 meters back from Yonge Street as an example of appropriate condo development that could complement and perhaps even enhance Yonge without destroying the street’s historic look and character.

 

Project praised in local newspaper reports

Meanwhile, FIVE Condos continues to attract positive public attention in local newspaper reports. In an October 27 2011 Globe and Mail article entitled “Yonge Street’s oldsters make room for a glitzy neighbour,” columnist Dave LeBlanc describes the “metamorphosis” the Yonge-St Joseph-St Nicholas block will undergo, and provides a brief history of the heritage buildings on the FIVE Condos site. In the November 9 2011 Metro newspaper article “Toronto’s old buildings get a second life as condos,” writer Duncan McAllister describes FIVE Condos as a project “heavy on the conservation,” and a development that “promises to transform this forgotten corner into a renewed urban zone.” And in the November 11 2011 National Post article “Follow the cobblestoned street to the city’s best new-but-old condos,” writer Suzanne Wintrob examines how the FIVE Condos project is retaining the historic integrity of the late 19th Century buildings on its site. She quotes Mary MacDonald, acting manager of the city’s Heritage Preservation Services, as saying that the FIVE Condos developers are “keeping all the exterior elements of the heritage property, adding their own tower, and they’re going the extra mile to make sure that the commercial character of Yonge Street as a main street — with a certain 19th-century character that we’ve kind of lost sight of these days — is restored. We’re hoping that will trigger a conservation movement and a restoration movement up the street.”

(Extensive information about the heritage properties and how they will be restored and incorporated into the condo complex can be reviewed in an October 1 2009 background report that the city’s planning department prepared for the Toronto Preservation Board and the Toronto and East York Community Council.)

Although the FIVE Condos application to the Committee of Adjustment won’t be decided until February at the earliest, preliminary construction activity continues. Shoring work has been underway for several months, and excavation has commenced. Full-scale excavation will begin in the new year once the shoring is finished, Mr. DiMartino said.

Below are several illustrations of the FIVE Condos project, provided courtesy of Hariri Pontarini ArchitectsThe post previous to this one features photos of site demolition and pre-construction activity on the FIVE Condos site between April and today. (If some of the images seem familiar, it’s because they have appeared in my previous blog posts about FIVE Condos, including June 2 2011, May 12 2011, and April 28 2011).

 

FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph Street rendering

This illustration suggests how the 19th Century heritage buildings at 606 to 618 Yonge Street will look once the project has been completed

 

FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph Street rendering

This illustration shows the facade of the Rawlinson Cartage Company warehouse building at 5 St Joseph Street  incorporated into the condo complex

 

FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph Street

This rendering shows how the west side of the FIVE Condos complex will appear along St Nicholas Street once the heritage building facades have been rebuilt

 

FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph Street

This drawing depicts a view of the FIVE Condos complex from the northeast

 

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In photos: A block of heritage buildings begins its transformation into FIVE Condos at 5 St Joseph

FIVE Condos site

April 9 2011: The FIVE Condos site viewed from Yonge Street, looking west along St Joseph Street. A 50-storey tower will ultimately dominate this scene

 

FIVE Condos site on Yonge Street

April 9 2011: Vacant retail premises in some of the heritage buildings at 606, 608, 610 and 612 Yonge Street that will become part of FIVE Condos

 

FIVE Condos Toronto site

April 9 2011: Vacant retail premises at 614, 616 and 618 Yonge Street that also will be restored and incorporated into the condo complex

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

April 22 2011: The Henry Turner building at 618 Yonge Street, left, and its tacky rear addition that once housed a sports bar on the second floor, plus coffee and fast food outlets with a small patio on the street level.

 

5 St Joseph Street

April 22 2011: The Rawlinson Cartage warehouse at 5 St Joseph Street once housed nightclubs on its street level, and fitness clubs on its upper floors

 

St Nicholas Street facade of the Rawlinson Cartage heritage buildings

April 22 2011: Looking south along St Nicholas Street at the west walls of the former Rawlinson Cartage buildings

 

St Nicholas Street Toronto

April 22 2011: Looking north along St Nicholas Street at the west walls of the former Rawlinson Cartage buildings

 

St Nicholas Street outside the FIVE Condos site

April 23 2011: St Nicholas Street is closed so crews can locate gas, hydro and water utility lines servicing the old buildings on the FIVE Condos site

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

May 11 2011: Demolition equipment arrives at 5 St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

May 13 2011: Crews begin destroying trees outside 5 St Joseph Street

 

St Nicholas Street Toronto

May 13 2011: St Nicholas Street is closed to traffic between St Joseph Street and Phipps Street, and won’t reopen until the condo construction is complete

 

Hoarding outside 606 to 618 Yonge Street Toronto

May 31 2011: Hoarding outside the former retail shops at 606 to 618 Yonge Street

 

FIVE Condos site demolition

May 31 2011: The rear addition to the Henry Turner building at 618 Yonge has been torn down, and demolition continues on the rear of 616 Yonge Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

May 31 2011: Drilling and shoring equipment outside 5 St Joseph Street

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

June 18 2011: Demolition at the rear of 616 and 618 Yonge Street is complete

 

The west sides of 606 to 618 Yonge Street

June 21 2011: The west side of the heritage buildings at 606 to 618 Yonge Street, after their rear additions have been demolished

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

June 21 2011: Drilling and shoring equipment outside 5 St Joseph Street

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

June 30 2011: An excavator digs on the property between the Yonge Street heritage buildings and 5 St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

June 30 2011: Drilling and shoring equipment outside 5 St Joseph Street

 

Phipps Street view of the FIVE Condos site

July 2 2011: Demolition of 15 St Nicholas Street viewed from Phipps Street


Demolition of 15 St Nicholas Street

July 2 2011: A demolition machine at work on a heap of debris

 

19 St Nicholas Street demolition

July 2 2011: Rubble is all that remains of the former Shred Central indoor skateboard park at 19 St Nicholas Street

 

Demolition of 15-25 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 2 2011: Demolition viewed from St Nicholas Street, looking north

 

Demolition of 19 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 2 2011: Shred Central had occupied 19 St Nicholas for over 13 years

 

Demolition of 15 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 2 2011: Demolition at the southwest corner of 15 St Nicholas Street

 

Demolition of 15 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 2 2011: The south wall of 15 St Nicholas Street is pulled down

 

19 St Nicholas Street Toronto demolition

July 9 2011: Demolition continues at 19 St Nicholas Street

 

Demolition of 19 and 25 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 15 2011: Ongoing demolition of 19 and 25 St Nicholas Street

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Demolition of 25 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 18 2011: A demolition machine pulls apart 25 St Nicholas Street 

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St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 21 2011: Looking north from the corner of Phipps & St Nicholas Streets

 

Demolition of 19-25 St Nicholas Street Toronto

July 24 2011: Demolition of 19-25 St Nicholas Street nears completion

 

Demolition of 15-25 St Joseph Street Toronto

August 6 2011: There is little left of the buildings at 15-25 St Joseph Street

 

FIVE Condos site demolition

August 6 2011: A demolition machine stirs up dust on the future tower site

 

5 St Joseph STreet Toronto

August 14 2011: Drilling work continues outside 5 St Joseph Street

 

St Nicholas Street Toronto

August 14 2011: Looking south along St Nicholas Street

 

FIVE Condos site

August 14 2011: St Nicholas Street view of the FIVE Condos site

 

FIVE Condos site

August 14 2011: Looking east across the site where the warehouse buildings at 15-25 St Joseph Street once stood

 

606-614 Yonge Street Toronto

August 19 2011: Marketing billboards for FIVE Condos on hoarding outside the Yonge Street heritage buildings

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

August 19 2011: Excavating equipment outside 5 St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

August 19 2011: The red targets and holes in the brockwork mark the spots where steel supports will be installed to hold up the 5 St Joseph Street facade during construction of the condo tower

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

September 3 2011: Foundation building equipment on the empty lot where the buildings at 15-25 St Nicholas Street once stood

 

FIVE Condos site

September 12 2011: Crews will soon begin erecting the giant steel frame that will support the facade of 5 St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

September 24 2011: The massive steel support starts taking shape

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

September 24 2011: The support structure will eventually extend the length of the building’s St Joseph Street facade

 

5 St Joseph STreet Toronto

September 24 2011: The huge frame extends halfway across St Joseph Street

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5 St Joseph Street Toronto

October 8 2011: The supports will hold the 4-storey brick wall in place while the condo tower is being built

 5 St Joseph Street Toronto

October 14 2011: The full support structure is now in position

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

November 20 2011: This wall along St Nicholas Street will be demolished soon

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

November 20 2011: A view of the east side of 5 St Joseph Street before the remaining rear section of the building is demolished

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

November 20 2011: The section of building with the windows will be demolished next, leaving only the front facade intact

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

November 25 2011: Demolition begins on the upper floor of 5 St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

November 25 2011: The top three floors of the building were once home to gyms, including Epic Fitness, L3 Fitness, and Level Fitness

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

November 25 2011: Demolition viewed from the northwest along St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 8 2011: All that’s left of 5 St Joseph is the 4-storey brick facade

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 11 2011: Sunlight streams through windows and the former main entrance doorway to 5 St Joseph Street

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 11 2011: Shoring work continues along the east side of St Nicholas Street behind the wrapped warehouse building facade

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 11 2011: The south-facing side of the 5 St Joseph Street brick facade is being kept under wraps

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

December 22 2011: Excavation has begun for the 50-storey tower that will rise in the center of this site

 

FIVE Condos site Toronto

December 22 2011: A construction crew works at the edge of the excavation behind the Yonge Street heritage buildings

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 22 2011: Passersby often ask construction workers if the steel support is permanent. It eventually will be removed, of course.

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 22 2011: Shoring activity at the northwest corner of the site

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 22 2011: The wrapped facade looms above excavation and shoring machines on the condo site

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 22 2011: This site will be excavated for five underground levels

 

Welders at FIVE Condos site

December 22 2011: Welders work on one of the I-beams that will be sunk into the ground to shore up the excavation site

 

5 St Joseph Street Toronto

December 22 2011: If only the facade could have been wrapped in festive colours for the holiday season!

From NHL hockey shrine to food-lovers’ paradise: Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store poised to open

Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store Toronto

November 20 2011: Crews prepare to install a Loblaws sign on the south side of Maple Leaf Gardens at the corner of Church Street…

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store Toronto

… a similar sign had earlier been installed just around the corner on the building’s east facade along Church Street …

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store Toronto

… while yet another sign listing all the new tenants of the renovated heritage building sits on a flatbed truck, awaiting installation at the Gardens’ northeast corner at Church and Wood Streets

 

Month-end opening: The public will get its first peek inside the revitalized Maple Leaf Gardens on November 30 — the day the new flagship Loblaws grocery store will officially open its doors for business.

Scores of construction crews have been buzzing around the inside and outside of the building this week, hurrying to finish the store in time for its much-anticipated and months-overdue opening. Today, crews were installing Loblaws signage atop a new canopy at the southeast corner of the Gardens, where the grocery store entrance is situated, as well as working on the underground parking garage entrance at the southwest corner of the building. Work also is continuing on the new Maple Leaf Gardens marquee along Carlton Street, and inside the upper levels of the Gardens, where the new Ryerson University Athletics Centre is being built. (Unlike the grocery store, the sports & recreation complex is not scheduled for completion until next spring.)

 

8 a.m. opening on November 30

In a press release issued today, Loblaw Companies Limited said “Toronto’s new crown jewel of food stores” will open at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, November 30.  Although the company is keeping most details about the new store under wraps for now, it did drop “some delectable tidbits about the food experiences that will be found on Food’s Greatest Stageunder the legendary roof located at 60 Carlton Street.” The media release said some of the store’s highlights include a complete ACE Artisan Bakery, an 18-foot-tall “Amazing Wall of Cheese” boasting more than 400 varieties of cheese from around the world, a patisserie featuring handcrafted chocolate and a huge assortment of pastries baked in-store, a tea emporium, an omelet station, a sushi Bar, and an open kitchen preparing take-home breakfast, lunch and dinner meals.

From what I’ve heard, the Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws will be the most impressive grocery store in downtown Toronto, providing an unrivalled shopping environment that will dazzle and delight foodies who have been starved for alternatives to the congested and dumpy-looking food stores currently serving the fast-growing condo and apartment neighbourhood. Last week, I spoke to several newly-hired Loblaws employees who had just received their first tour of the historic building where they soon will be working. Since the site is still a construction zone, with crews putting finishing touches on the building’s interior and exterior, they had to wear hard hats and safety boots throughout their orientation tour. But they said the store basically looks set to open, with all shelves already fully stocked with merchandise. Describing the Loblaws as easily “the nicest grocery store” they’ve seen “in all of downtown,” they said customers will be amazed by both the look and feel of the interior as well as the extensive product line-ups that will tempt their tastebuds and pocketbooks.

According to the Ryerson University website, the architectural team for the Gardens transformation includes Turner Fleischer Architects Inc. for the “base building” and BBB Architects Inc. for the “Ryerson fit up.” Heritage consultant is E.R.A. Architects Inc.

Below are more photos I took outside Maple Leaf Gardens this afternoon. Photos of earlier construction activity at the iconic hockey shrine can be viewed in my posts on November 3, June 14, April 14, March 29 and February 2.

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store Toronto

November 20 2011: Crews working outside the parking garage entrance at the southwest corner of the Gardens on Carlton Street

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store Toronto

November 20 2011: Workers on a portable crane attend to details on the wall above the underground parking garage entrance.

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Loblaws store Toronto

November 20 2011 There is one level of parking underneath the grocery store

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: Work continues on the Carlton Street marquee. The entrance to the Ryerson University Athletics Centre will be here.

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: Sign installation above the Loblaws entrance

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: The new canopy above the Gardens’ southeast corner

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: Workers prepare to erect a vertical sign on the northeast corner of the building, at Church & Wood streets. A Joe Fresh clothing shop, an LCBO liquor outlet and a medical clinic will also be opening soon in the Gardens.

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: The Gardens’ northeast corner, at Church & Wood Streets

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: Construction cranes and elevators along Wood Street

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: A crew prepares to install a vertical sign at the northeast corner of the building

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: The slender sign is set in place

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 20 2011: The service entrance on the north side of the Gardens, along Wood Street, was punched into the brick wall of the historic building.

 

Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto

November 17 2011: Construction activity on the north and east sides of Maple Leaf Gardens. On weekdays, the building is constantly surrounded by cranes, equipment supply vehicles, and concrete delivery trucks and pumpers.

 

4-tower condo proposal for North St James Town faces 2nd public feedback meeting tonight

North St James Town proposed condo development site

From a City of Toronto planning department background report, this illustration outlines the various parcels of land that Lanterra Developments is proposing to redevelop into a condo complex featuring four tall towers

 

 

Feedback forum: A daring proposal to dramatically redevelop the scruffy North St James Town neighbourhood with four new condo skyscrapers, several low-rise buildings and seven restored heritage houses is headed for a showdown with the public tonight at a community consultation meeting being held by Toronto’s City Planning Division.

The meeting, the second to be held this year, will give the public an opportunity to hear revised plans for the massive condo  project that Lanterra Developments has proposed for three blocks of a long wedge-shaped area bounded by Bloor, Parliament, Howard and Sherbourne Streets. In a rezoning application filed with the City on August 25 2010, Lanterra outlined bold development plans that would revitalize three separate blocks of land at the northern perimeter of the St James Town district with four towers designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance.

 

Block 1: Northeast corner of Sherbourne and Howard Streets

For this area, the developer proposed a 390-unit condo complex featuring a 50-storey tower, 7-storey podium and 5 levels of underground parking with 288 spaces. The tower would rise next to the Anson Jones House, a Queen Anne-style heritage building designed by Edmund Burke that sits on the corner of Sherbourne and Howard at 603 Sherbourne. The podium would include retail space along Sherbourne Street, while a 3-story mixed use building located along Howard Street would be linked to the complex. The plan would require the demolition of three heritage properties: two semidetached houses at 605 and 607 Sherbourne, next to the Anson House, along with a standalone house at 4 Howard Street. Vehicular access to the complex would be off Red Rocket Lane, which runs north-south between Howard and Bloor Streets one block east of Sherbourne.

 

Block 2: Glen Road between Howard and Bloor Streets

The west side of this leafy one-block-long section of Glen Road is noteworthy for six semidetached brick houses which have been boarded and bricked up for decades. Under Lanterra’s proposal, these homes would be restored for residential use, though rear portions of the buildings would be demolished to allow for construction of a 5-storey apartment building with 41 units along with 15 above-ground parking spots and 17 below-ground spaces.

 

Block 3: From Edgedale Road to Parliament Street

This long stretch of land between Howard and Bloor Streets would feature three condo towers on the eastern end of the property along with a 2-storey amenity and service building at the site’s southwest corner at Edgedale and Howard. The west tower would be 56 storeys tall with 630 units; the middle tower would be 46 floors with 425 units, and the east tower would rise 53 stories and contain 348 units. The complex would have 5 levels of underground parking with 869 spaces. A heritage building at 76 Howard Street would have to be demolished to make way for the three skyscrapers.

 

Public consultation and working group meetings

In a December 8 2010 background report, city planners said they could not support Lanterra’s proposal “in its current form.” They wrote: “Of considerable concern to staff is the appropriateness of the proposed land use redesignation, along with the proposal’s significant scale, density, massing and transition towards the existing adjacent Neighbourhoods in the centre of the North St. James Town neighbourhood and Apartment Neighbourhoods to the south, as well as the provision of open space.” They also identified 26 specific planning issues that would have to be considered and addressed before they could give their blessing to the condo plan.

As mentioned previously, city planners then held a public community consultation session to gather feedback about Lanterra’s proposal. The first meeting, attended by more than 150 people on April 5, drew sharp and overwhelmingly negative criticism from the audience, which objected to the proposed project’s height and density in particular, as well as to the impact that 1,840 new condo units could have on the heavily-populated low-income St James Town neighbourhood to the south.

The proposal was subsequently considered during an April 19 meeting of the city’s Design Review Panel, and during a series of working group meetings that city planners organized between neighbourhood representatives, professional advisors for the developer, and staff from the city’s planning and transportation departments. (Draft minutes from the meetings held on May 24, May 31, June 7 and October 5 can be viewed online at the links provided from the community group-run Smart Development in North St James Town website.)

Tonight’s meeting, from 7 to 9 pm at St Simon-the-Apostle Anglican Church on Bloor Street, is being held to update the public on the status of the rezoning application, and give the community a change to review and ask questions about revised project plans.

Below are some of my photos showing how the three development sites currently look, along with three videoclips showing each of the three blocks proposed for development and revitalization. (Note: The photo captions describe the original development proposal, not the revised plans which will be unveiled at tonight’s meeting.)

 

Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church Sherbourne Street

The 50-storey tower proposed for Block 1 would rise to the right of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church on Sherbourne Street

 

607 605 and 603 Sherbourne Street  Toronto

From left: 607, 605 and 603 Sherbourne Street. The two buildings on the left would be demolished and only the corner building, the Anson Jones House, would be kept and incorporated into the new tower project.

 

607 and 605 Sherbourne Street Toronto

607 and 605 Sherbourne Street, which would be destroyed to make room for the proposed 50-storey condo tower

 

603 Sherbourne Street Toronto

The Anson Jones House at 603 Sherbourne Street, which would be restored and incorporated into the condo development

 

603 Sherbourne Street Toronto

The Anson Jones House at 603 Sherbourne viewed from Howard Street

 

4 Howard Street Toronto

This heritage building at 4 Howard Street would be demolished and replaced with a 3-storey mixed-use building

 

4 Howard Street Toronto

The east side of 4 Howard Street, viewed from Red Rocket Lane

 

Bleecker Street view of site for proposed 50 storey condo

Looking northwest from Bleecker Street to the site for which a 50-storey condo tower had been proposed. The Filipono food store building visible at right is not part of the redevelopment plan.

 

site for proposed 50 storey condo tower

The proposed tower site is less than a minute’s walking distance from Bloor Street and the Sherbourne subway station

 

Red Rocket Lane Toronto

Another view of the site, off Red Rocket Lane, where the developer has proposed building a 50-storey tower

 

southeast view down Red Rocket Lane

Southeasterly view down Red Rocket Lane of the site for the proposed tower

 

architectsAlliance illustration of Block 1 tower elevations

This architectsAlliance illustration of the proposed 50-storey tower for Sherbourne & Howard appears in documents filed with the city planning department

 

North view of Glen Road Toronto

Looking north along Glen Road. The six semidetached houses that would be restored sit on the left side of the street.

 

6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 Glen Road

The houses that would be restored at 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 Glen Road

 

the rear of 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 Glen Road

A view of the rear of the houses at 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 Glen Road

 

6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 Glen Road

The proposal called for part of the back of these buildings to be demolished. A 5-storey apartment building would be constructed in the area behind the houses, along with above- and below-ground parking.

 

Glen Road viewed from Bloor Street

Bloor Street view of Glen Road, looking south toward Howard Street

 

architectsAlliance illustration of Block 3 tower elevations

This architectsAlliance illustration of the Block 3 tower elevations appears in application documents filed with city planners. These towers would stand between Edgedale Road at the west and Parliament Street to the east.

 

 

Edgedale Road Toronto

Edgedale Road, looking north from Howard Street toward Bloor Street

 

property along Howard Street near Edgedale Road

Looking west along Howard Street toward Edgedale Road. The amenities and service building for the towers would be situated near this spot.

 

illustration of west view along Howard Street

This illustration, from a planning rationale report filed with the city planning department by Bousfields Inc., shows how the view west along Howard Street could appear once the towers are constructed

 

76 Howard Street Toronto

This house at 76 Howard Street was built in 1887. It sits near the middle of the proposed site for the three towers, and would have to be demolished to permit construction.

 

76 Howard Street Toronto

Bloor Street view of the heritage house at 76 Howard Street

 

looking east along Bloor Street toward 76 Howard Street

A view of the 3-tower site, looking east along Bloor Street toward Parliament Street from behind the house at 76 Howard.

 

looking east toward Bloor & Parliament intersection

Looking east toward the Bloor-Parliament intersection, from the field next to 76 Howard Street.Two of the towers would be built here.

 

view toward Bloor Street from the field next to 76 Howard

View toward Bloor Street and the Rosedale ravine from the field next to 76 Howard Street

 

Looking west along Howard Street from Parliament Street

West view from Parliament Street of the development site along Howard Street

 

west view across the site for 3 proposed towers

The property between Parliament Street and 76 Howard Street currently is home to trees, a grassy lawn, billboards and dozens of squirrels

 

Bloor Parliament intersection

Looking west toward the development site from the Bloor-Parliament intersection

 

Bloor Street view toward downtown Toronto

Looking west along Bloor Street from the sidewalk opposite the Castle Frank subway station. If built, the four condo towers would dominate this view.

 

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