Monthly Archives: July 2011

Keeping tabs on … below-grade building progress at the Infinity3 and ÏCE condo tower projects

July 1 2011: Looking down on the ÏCE Condos building site from the east side of Grand Trunk Crescent. I counted five below-ground floors under construction in the southwest corner (right) where a 57-storey tower is going up. Underground parking floors for its 67-storey sibling are taking shape in the foreground.

July 1 2011: Right next door to the ÏCE Condos site, the underground levels for the Infinity3 condo complex are gradually filling in. This is a view of the southwest corner of the property next to Lower Simcoe Street.

Big basements: The giant L-shaped excavation south of the railway tracks, between York and Lower Simcoe Streets, keeps filling in as construction proceeds on underground levels for the two condominium complexes that will tower above the Gardiner Expressway. The greatest progress appears to have been made in the middle of the site along the property line between the ÏCE Condos development to the east and the Infinity3 Condominium project to the west. There, construction work is visible for five underground levels for Phase I of the ICE Condos complex, a 55-storey cylindrical tower. Right next door, on the west side of the wall, at least three underground levels are in varied stages of construction for Infinity3, which is a project of Conservatory Group.

Meanwhile, since units in Phase I and the 65-storey Phase II tower have completely sold out, builder Lanterra Developments has demolished the ÏCE Condos sales centre that used to sit near the corner of York Street and Bremner Boulevard. A 31-storey office building is planned for the site, but a construction start date for that phase of the project has not been announced. Part of the property is now being used as a pay-and-display parking lot that’s proving to be popular with people driving to the area to attend concert and sports events at the nearby Rogers Centre and Air Canada Centre.

Below are photos showing construction progress on both projects in the last couple of weeks. Previous updates and pictures can be viewed in my April 23 2011 post and my February 25 2011 post.

June 20 2011: A red excavating machine (rear middle of photo) completes demolition work on the former ÏCE Condos sales centre. Units in the two-tower condo complex are completely sold out …

… so the site is now being used as a pay-and-display public parking area

June 20 2011: From Lower Simcoe Street, an eastward-looking view of the Infinity3 project (foreground) and the ICE Condos development (in the back below the blue, yellow and white construction trailers on York Street)

June 20 2011: The Infinity3 complex is going up directly across the street from Infinity1, a 35-storey condo at 30 Grand Trunk Crescent, and Infinity2, a 16-storey condo at 51 Lower Simcoe Street.

June 20 2011: Construction of Infinity3’s underground levels is more advanced on the east side of the property; the west half still has a long way to go to catch up.

June 20 2011: A view of work on two of Infinity3’s underground parking floors

June 20 2011: Progress on three levels is visible at the southwest corner

June 20 2011: A closer view of work on two of Infinity3’s underground floors

June 20 2011: Construction crews working on the ÏCE Condos project

June 20 2011: A worker stands in rebar rods set in place for a concrete pour

June 20 2011: Two Infinity3 construction workers stand on wall construction forms

June 20 2011: Two Infinity3 construction workers guide a bucket of concrete being lowered by one of the two construction cranes operating on the project

July 1 2011: A view of underground level construction toward the north end of the ÏCE Condos building site

July 1 2011: A southeasterly view across the ÏCE Condos site from the sidewalk along Grand Trunk Crescent

July 21 2011: A view of four floors at different stages of construction progress

June 20 2011: Rebar, wall forms and portable toilets on the ÏCE Condos site

June 20 2011: The southwest corner of the ÏCE Condos site is advancing at a significantly faster pace than elsewhere

July 1 2011: A view of the ÏCE Condos site, left, and the Infinity3 property, right

July 1 2011: A view of the western half of the Infinity3 construction site

July 1 2011: Overlooking the middle section of the Infinity3 construction site

July 1 2011: Infinity3 construction approaches street grade near the crane situated next to Grand Trunk Crescent

July 1 2011: Looking to the southeast across the Infinity3 construction zone

July 1 2011: Forms in place to build supporting walls for Infinity3

July 1 2011: Overlooking the eastern half of the Infinity3 construction zone

July 1 2011: Looking to the southeast behind one of the Infinity3 cranes

July 2 2011: Another view of Infinity3 from Grand Trunk Crescent

July 2 2011: There are several spots along Grand Trunk Crescent from which Infinity3 can be viewed through security fencing next to the public sidewalk

July 1 2011: The eastern section of Infinity3 next to the ÏCE Condos property

Classy curves rise above downtown U of T campus as 77 Charles West condo climbs past 10th floor

Leave a reply

July 3 2011: The gracefully curved southwest side of the 77 Charles condo midrise

July 3 2011: Construction progress viewed from the site’s southwest “corner”

June 21 2011: Two of the newly-constructed balconies on the southwest wall

From the 77 Charles website, a rendering of the building’s elegantly curved southwest side. The architect is Yann Weymouth of HOK.

Curves above the campus: The 77 Charles luxury condo midrise is roughly two-thirds of the way to its final 16-storey height with construction of the 11th floor well underway. The north side of the building now holds a commanding presence at the foot of St Thomas Street and has been stealing attention from One St Thomas Residences, its 29-storey black and white limestone condo tower neighbour on the north side of Charles Street.

77 Charles would be turning even more heads if it were situated on a busier street with two-way traffic where passersby could get a better look at its unique design. What I think is the building’s most appealing architectural feature is its distinctive southwest side, featuring gracefully curved glass walls and balconies overlooking the leafy University of Toronto campus. But you actually must be on the campus to take a close look, and the road with the best vantage point — St Mary Street — is a cul-de-sac terminating just a few dozen metres to the southwest of 77 Charles at the university’s Burwash Hall. Since St Mary is not heavily-travelled as a result, it will be mainly university students and staff who will get to admire 77 Charles’s curves — and even then many might not notice, unless they glance up the driveway between Rowell Jackman Hall and Loretto College on the north side of St Mary. The curves are obvious from Charles Street, too, but since it’s a westbound one-way road, only eastbound pedestrians will see them.

Below are photos I’ve taken in recent months of construction progress at 77 Charles. Earlier construction photos can be viewed in my April 7 2011 post and my February 15 2011 post, which also includes detailed information about the condo building’s neighbourhood. A project of Aspen Ridge Homes, 77 Charles was designed by Yann Weymouth of HOK Architects.

April 22 2011: 77 Charles rising at the south end of St Thomas Street

April 22 2011: Construction viewed from Charles Street, looking southeast

April 22 2011: The ground floor at 77 Charles. The first three floors will be the new home for Kintore College, a residence and cultural centre for female university students.

June 21 2011: 77 Charles now totally dominates the view down St Thomas Street

June 21 2011: Some suites are still available — for prices starting at $1.2 million

June 21 2011: Street-level view from the north side of Charles Street

June 21 2011: The curved southwest side as seen from St Mary Street, between U of T’s Rowell Jackman Hall (left) and Loretto College (right). The One St Thomas Residences condo tower rises to the northeast.

June 21 2011: St Mary Street view of the curves on 77 Charles

July 3 2011: Street-level view from the north side of Charles Street

July 3 2011: Looking up from the north side of Charles Street

July 3 2011: The curved wall viewed from the northwest on Charles Street

July 3 2011: A closer view of the building’s angles, seen from the northwest

July 3 2011: Lower levels on the south side of 77 Charles, behind Loretto College

July 3 2011: Looking up from the southwest corner of the building

July 3 2011: South view of condo floors above the 3-storey Kintore College podium

July 3 2011: Looking up at the southwest side of the building

July 3 2011: Another view of construction from behind Loretto College

July 3 2011: Curved balconies and upper floors on the building’s southwest side

July 3 2011: The walls and balconies will be sheathed in glass

July 3 2011: Another south view of the curves on 77 Charles. The brown brick wall at right is the west side of Loretto College.

City Scene: A proud architectural icon

Leave a reply

July 3 2011: The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) on Bloor Street sports a giant rainbow flag to celebrate Toronto Pride

City Scene: Reflections of the CN Tower

Leave a reply

July 1 2011: Toronto’s iconic CN Tower reflects in windows on the west side of the new 26-storey PwC office building at 18 York Street.

Demolition of former retail plaza underway at Jarvis/Dundas site for 46-storey Pace condo tower

2 Replies

July 1 2011: A view of the southwest corner of Jarvis and Dundas Streets …

… where half of the small strip plaza that once occupied the site has been demolished to make way for construction of the 46-storey Pace Condos tower

March 22 2011: This is what the plaza looked like before demolition started

Strong sales: There isn’t much left of the small retail plaza that formerly sat at the southwest corner of Dundas and Jarvis Streets, home to a convenience store, coin laundry and restaurants until late last year. This week, a demolition machine began to destroy the single-storey structures that used to occupy the property on which developer Great Gulf Homes plans to construct Pace Condos. According to the rezoning application that Great Gulf filed with the city in March, the proposed 46-storey tower will have a 10-storey podium and five underground levels, and will contain 417 condominium suites. The Pace Condos website indicates that 27 different floor plans are available for units ranging from small studios to 1- and 2-bedroom apartments, along with “family suites” offering 3, 3.5 or 4 bedrooms. Design-wise, Pace Condos will be “a paragon of architectural brilliance,” the website gushes. “Pace is a shimmering glass tower artfully placed on a podium comprised of dark charcoal-coloured bricks. This is urban elegance at its best. This is eye-catching, eye candy design the likes of which the city has never seen,” it adds. Curiously, the website doesn’t credit Toronto’s Diamond + Schmitt Architects, the firm behind the tower design it lauds so highly, although it does mention that “custom kitchens” will be designed by Ciccone Simone.

When I first wrote about the Pace Condos project in my March 22 2011 post, I noted that the building location is a seedy area on the edge of one of Canada’s poorest residential districts. While I personally wouldn’t want to live in the neighbourhood, nor would any of the friends with whom I have discussed the condo project, I did acknowledge that Great Gulf would probably find plenty of eager buyers willing to pay to live there. It looks like that has indeed been the case: According to the project website, 14 of the condo’s 27 floorplans have already sold out.

Below is a screenshot — from the Pace Condos website — showing how the proposed tower will look, along with several more photos I took today of demolition progress on the building site.

From the Pace Condos website, an architectural illustration of the glass tower and its 10-storey dark charcoal-coloured brick podium

July 1 2011: A view of the Pace Condos site from outside the Hilton Garden Inn Toronto/City Centre on the northeast corner of Dundas & Jarvis

July 1 2011: The former convenience store building has been reduced to rubble

July 1 2011: Only the south wall of the former retail businesses is left standing

July 1 2011: The former coin laundry building is partially demolished

July 1 2011: A view of the Pace Condos site from the north side of Dundas Street. The Grand Hotel & Suites Toronto is the tower at left, while the highrise at right rear is a condominium; both are located on Jarvis Street just south of Dundas.

July 1 2011: Another view of the site from the north side of Dundas Street

July 1 2011: Demolition will resume after the Canada Day holiday weekend

July 1 2011: A view of the site from Jarvis Street, looking west

Tracking Downtown Toronto's Amazing
Building Boom.

www.TheTorontoBlog.com

Tracking Downtown Toronto's Amazing Building Boom.

Monthly Archives: July 2011

Keeping tabs on … below-grade building progress at the Infinity3 and ÏCE condo tower projects

Classy curves rise above downtown U of T campus as 77 Charles West condo climbs past 10th floor

City Scene: A proud architectural icon

City Scene: Reflections of the CN Tower

Demolition of former retail plaza underway at Jarvis/Dundas site for 46-storey Pace condo tower

Tracking Downtown Toronto's AmazingBuilding Boom.

Tracking Downtown Toronto's Amazing
Building Boom.