Category Archives: Four Seasons Toronto

Untinted cladding lets 55-storey Four Seasons Toronto hotel & condo tower ‘blend into the sky’

Four Seasons Toronto

August 31 2012:  The 55-storey Four Seasons Toronto hotel and condo tower viewed from the corner of Hazelton Avenue and Scollard Street

 

Light & airy: Every time I have looked up at the new Four Seasons Hotel and condo tower in Yorkville, I’ve been amazed that it doesn’t appear to soar 55 storeys high. It does look and feel very tall, of course, but it doesn’t have a hulking, looming or even overwhelming presence like many towers just half its height. I never understood why — until I read “A tower that aims to ‘blend into the sky” in the August 31 Globe and Mail.

In the article, architecture columnist John Bentley Mays relates a conversation he had with the Four Seasons Toronto architect, Peter Clewes of architectsAlliance.

Clewes explains how the skyscraper was designed to be “light on its feet,” achieving “a kind of fading of the tower where it meets the sky.” Different types of glass cladding were extensively researched and tested to see how they would relate to the sky; ultimately, an American-made high-performance glass with no tint was selected.

“We wanted something …. that would take on the character of the sky without being hyper-reflective,” Clewes said, adding that the glass helps the tower “just blend into the sky.”

 

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Florian condo and Four Seasons Toronto towers fast approaching podium finishes in Yorkville

Four Seasons Hotel Toronto

Exterior work on the new Four Seasons Hotel Toronto, seen here July 29 2012, is currently focussing on the base of the soaring 55-storey condo and hotel tower, as well as on the streetscape at the northwest corner of Bay Street and Yorkville Avenue.

 

Four Seasons Hotel Toronto

August 6 2012: In the courtyard on the east side of the Four Seasons tower, a driveway of elaborately patterned paving stones is being installed in front of the porte cochère …

 

Four Seasons Hotel Toronto

… while work is underway on the other half of the courtyard, where an urban garden will grace the street level in front of the 26-storey Four Seasons condo tower

 

The Florian condos in Yorkville Toronto

Meanwhile, just one block to the north, work is nearly finished on the podium of The Florian condo tower on Davenport Road at the top of Bay Street, seen July 29 2012

 

The Florian condos in Yorkville Toronto

Marble, glass and masonry accent provide strong angular accents to the long facade of The Florian’s podium, which gently follows the curve of Davenport Road

 

The Florian condos in Yorkville Toronto

Exterior finishing touches, including glass panel installation on podium-level balconies, were underway during the August holiday weekend …

 

The Florian condos in Yorkville Toronto

… while the revolving lobby entrance door and sheltered front driveway beneath the sharply pointed prow of the podium were in full view to passersby

 

Finishing touches: During the past three years, public attention on The Florian and the new Four Seasons Toronto condo towers in Yorkville has generally been focussed upward, as construction of the three highrise buildings climbed steadily higher. Now that wooden construction hoarding has been removed from the sidewalks outside both buildings, passersby are finally able to take a good look at architectural details closer to earth, including the exterior of the podiums and the streetscaping and landscaping elements of each project.

 

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Checking in on the new 5-star hotel/condo towers: the Four Seasons Toronto in Yorkville

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: The two Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto towers viewed from the northeast on Church Street near Yonge Street

 

Looking sharp: Glass cladding installation is nearly finished as construction of the Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto moves closer to completion.

Designed by Toronto’s architectsAlliance, the five-star hotel/condo project features two sleek and slender glass towers — one 26 storeys, the other 55 floors — that soar above Yorkville from the northeast corner of Bay Street and Yorkville Avenue.

The west tower firmly established itself as a new Yorkville landmark several months ago when it became the tallest building in the upscale shopping and residential neighbourhood. It will boast a lavish  253-suite Four Seasons Hotel in its shiny glass base, with posh condominiums rising from floor 24 to the 55th-floor penthouse, which recently sold for a record $28 million. The website shows six available floorplans, ranging in size from a spacious 1,956-square-foot 2-bedroom suite to a palatial 3,914-square-foot two-bedroom estate with two 12 x 12-foot terraces. Floorplans for the East Residence range from a 1,100-square foot 1-bedroom suite to an 1,815-square-foot 2-bedroom home. The towers’  204 condos were designed by Gluckstein Design Planning.

The east tower will be connected to the west by an elevated bridge, giving its privileged residents easy access to the hotel amenities. “They will enjoy a pampered lifestyle, with all the luxurious amenities of the hotel at their doorstep, including 24-hour concierge, doorman and valet parking,” the project website promises.

The hotel’s main entrance on Bay Street will open into a Grand Lobby extending the full width of the building (from Scollard Street south to Yorkville Avenue). The hotel will have a lobby bar, a second-floor restaurant, ballroom and banquet facilities, and a luxurious 28,000-square-foot spa with a fitness club, indoor lap pool, whirlpools and an outdoor terrace. The lobby and amenities areas were designed by Yabu Pushelberg, while a central landscaped courtyard park fronting onto Yorkville Avenue was designed by Claude Cormier

The Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto is a joint venture project of Menkes Developments Ltd. and Lifetime Developments.

Below is a series of photos I’ve shot of the Four Seasons complex over the course of the summer.

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

May 5 2011:  Construction of the 55-storey Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences west tower viewed from Church Street near Park Road

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

May 6 2011: Balmuto Street view of the Four Seasons towers rising above Yorkville

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

May 6 2011: West tower viewed from Bloor Street near Yonge Street

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto penthouse

June 22 2011: Fog surrounds the 55th floor $28 million penthouse

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011:  Four Seasons viewed from the SW corner of Bay & Yorkville

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011: The west tower’s ground floor and lower levels seen from the northeast corner of Bay Street and Yorkville Avenue

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011: The hotel spa, ballroom and banquet facilities are housed in this 8-storey wing at the corner of Bay and Scollard Streets

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

 July 13 2011: Bay Street view of the hotel section of the west tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011: Clouds reflect in the exterior of the hotel amenities wing

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011:  Ground-level view of the amenities wing at Bay & Scollard Streets

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011: Looking up from the NW corner of Bay Street and Yorkville Avenue

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

 July 13 2011: Cladding has been installed, but the balconies haven’t yet been completed on the East Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011: Looking up the northwest corner of the west tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011: The sleek glass midsection of the 55-storey west tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 13 2011:  Four Seasons towers viewed from the northwest on Davenport Road

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 24 2011: Roof fin installation underway on the west tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 24 2011: Balconies and construction elevator on the hotel tower’s SE corner

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 24 2011: Crane and upper six floors of the East Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 24 2011: The soaring west tower viewed from Bloor Street near Yonge Street

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 24 2011: West tower viewed from the University of Toronto campus

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

July 24 2011: Hotel tower penthouse floors viewed from the southwest

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011:  Yorkville Avenue view of the two towers

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

 August 6 2011: Looking up the south side of the East Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: A pedestrian bridge links the East Residence tower to the amenities wing of the hotel building

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: Reflections on windows of the East Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: The base of the East Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: This area will become a showpiece courtyard garden + hotel/condo entrance driveway designed by Claude Cormier

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: The hotel tower base at Yorkville Avenue & Bay Street

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: The hotel tower base awaits its exterior cladding

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 201: Yorkville Avenue view of what will become the driveway entrance to both the hotel and condo towers

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: The condo floors rise from the slightly broader hotel base

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: The Four Seasons west tower looks short from this angle, but actually rises high above the office towers at Yonge & Bloor Streets

 

Four Seasons Hotel + Private Residences Toronto

August 6 2011: Four Seasons complex viewed from Yonge Street

 

 

City Scene: Four new towers in north downtown

Skyscrapers in the Yonge & Bloor area

June 21 2011: A Broadview Avenue view of four new glass and steel towers that rise high in the Bloor-Yorkville area. At far left is Casa Condominium; in center are X Condos and James Cooper Mansion Condos; at far right with the construction crane is the Toronto Four Seasons Hotel & Residences.


Looking up at the new Four Seasons towers

Four Seasons Toronto Hotel + Residences tower

 

Tall, sleek & slender: It’s the tallest tower in Yorkville, yet the Four Seasons Hotel & Residences hasn’t even topped off at its full 55 floors yet. But the sleek glass skyscraper and its 26-storey condo sibling have literally brightened up the east block of Bay Street between Scollard Street and Yorkville Avenue. When sunshine glints off the curtain glass walls of the East and West Residence towers on a clear day, it’s almost blinding. And even though the two-tower construction site is still surrounded by hoarding and scaffolding, and covered in dust and grime, it feels like it has significantly classed-up the corner at Bay & Yorkville already. I’m loving the look of these shiny towers, from all angles, and think the complex will be a stunning addition to the streetscape once construction is complete.

The five-star Four Seasons Hotel & Residences was designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance, and is being built by Menkes Construction Ltd. The West Residence is a mixed-use tower featuring a 253-room Four Seasons Hotel on the first 20 floors, and 101 private condominium residences on the upper 35 storeys. The East Residence will have 103 condominiums, and is linked to the west tower by an elevated pedestrian walkway about eight floors above the ground.

I previously published photos of the Four Seasons construction in a January 26 post; below is a series of photos from February, March and today which show how much progress has been made since then.

 

Four Seasons tower viewed from Yonge Street near Roxborough Street

February 10 2011: Construction of the Four Seasons towers (and, to the right, the Florian condo tower) viewed from Yonge St. near Roxborough St. in Rosedale

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto

February 23 2011: East view of the towers from Yorkville Avenue

 

Four Seasons East Residence tower

February 23 2011: Southwest view of the East Residence condo tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto towers

February 23 2011: Yorkville Avenue view of the two towers

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence tower

February 23 2011: Looking way up the south side of the West Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence tower

February 23 2011: The southeast corner of the West Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences West Residence tower

February 23 2011: Construction elevator on the West Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto towers

March 16 2011: The Four Seasons Hotel & Residences complex viewed from the northwest corner of Bay and Scollard Streets

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto towers

March 16 2011: A health club, spa, swimming pool, ballroom and conference centre will be situated in this eight-storey wing at the corner of Bay and Scollard Streets

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto

March 16 2011: The Four Seasons complex shines in the late afternoon sunshine

 

Four Seasons Toronto West Residence tower

March 16 2011: The West Residence tower viewed from Bay Street

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence tower

March 16 2011: Looking up the West Residence tower from Bay Street

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence Tower

March 16 2011: The southwest corner of the West Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence Tower

March 16 2011: The south side of the West Residence Tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto towers

March 24 2011: The towers viewed from Hazelton Avenue at Scollard Street

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto towers

March 24 2011: The towers viewed from Hazelton Avenue at Scollard Street

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto towers

March 24 2011: From Avenue Road, a view of the “old” Four Seasons Hotel, right, and the new tower rising two blocks to the east on Yorkville Avenue.

 

Four Seasons West Residence tower

March 24 2011: The West Residence tower rises on the Yorkville skyline in this view from the intersection of Yonge and Wellesley Streets

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence

April 1 2011: Southwest view of the West Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence

April 1 2011: Bay Street view of the West Residence tower

 

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto West Residence tower

April 1 2011: A construction elevator rises up the side of the West Residence

Four Seasons Hotel & Residences Toronto

April 1 2011: The West Residence tower seen from Avenue Road near the Museum subway station entrance outside the Royal Ontario Museum

 

City Scene: Yorkville’s highrise building boom

Yorkville condo and hotel towers

Davenport Road (near Bay Street) view of new towers being built in Yorkville


Growing up: Construction activity is apparent in practically every corner of downtown, and the Yorkville neighbourhood is no exception.

Pedestrians and drivers approaching Bay Street along Davenport Road are greeted by this view of three highrise towers currently under construction: The Florian condo building (left) and the two towers of the new Four Seasons Toronto Hotel and Private Residences.

Meanwhile, just beyond the bend in the road, east of Bay, there’s more construction in progress.  Excavation is underway for the Milan condominium tower on Church near Yonge, while in a few years’ time there could be as many as three towers rising right behind The Florian on McMurrich Street.

 

Four Seasons Toronto hotel & condominium towers establish a new landmark for Yorkville district

Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons towers rising above the Yorkville Ave. fire station and library

Rapid rise: Even though it’s still under construction, the Four Seasons Hotel & Private Residences Toronto has already become a new  landmark for the Yorkville neighbourhood. You can’t miss it as you approach the Yonge Street Canadian Tire store from Church Street. It’s obvious from the Annex and from many places along Avenue Road, Bay and Yonge Streets. You can even see it from the south side of Bloor across from Holt Renfrew. That’s no small achievement considering that views toward Yorkville are blocked by some of the area’s oldest skyscrapers (the Manulife Centre and the two bank towers at Yonge & Bloor) as well as several new towers (18 Yorkville, Crystal Blu and Uptown Residences, to name but three). It certainly will make it easy to help guide tourists to Yorkville (I won’t have to point at the CIBC tower at 2 Bloor West anymore and say “go there; Yorkville’s right behind it;” I’ll be able to point out the Four Seasons instead. Designed by hotshot Toronto firm architectsAlliance, the two-tower complex is a project of Menkes Developments. Below is an architectural rendering of the property, along with some pics I recently took of the Four Seasons complex from several different perspectives in and around Yorkville. You can view even more photos of construction progress on the blog’s Photo Sets page (just click on the red tab at the top of this page and scroll down to the Four Seasons album).

Four Seasons Toronto

Architects’ rendering of the new Four Seasons Toronto hotel + condo complex


Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons Toronto seen from Scollard Street January 9


Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons Toronto seen from Church near Yonge on January 9


Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons Toronto from Avenue Rd at Yorkville Avenue on January 9


Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons Toronto seen from Bloor Street opposite Holts on January 9


Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons Toronto seen from Scollard Street on January 9


Four Seasons Toronto

Four Seasons Toronto seen from Bay Street at Davenport Road on January 9