Category Archives: Architecture & Construction

Aura condo construction climbs to 60 storeys

Aura condo tower

June 20 2013: The west side of the Aura condo tower as seen from Gerrard Street near University Avenue, at sunset last evening

 

Sweet 60: Construction has commenced on the 60th floor of the Aura condo tower at College Park.

That leaves 18 more residential levels to be built, plus the tower’s mechanical penthouse.

If you have roughly a million bucks to spare, you can still buy in the building. According to a listing on the project website, 7 “executive suites” are available on the 75th floor, at prices ranging from a low of $994,500 for a 1,090-square-foot unit, to a high of $1,454,800 for a 1,630-square-foot residence.

If you’d prefer to live higher up, four penthouse suites are still available, too —  at prices ranging from $2,349,500 for 2,335 square feet to $3,559,000 for 2,961 square feet.

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Off for a change of architectural scenery

Temple of Olympian Zeus

The Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens

 

Spring break: Regular readers of TheTorontoBlog.com may have noticed that I haven’t posted many updates during the past several weeks. As many of you know, this website is a personal hobby I work on in my spare time — and that’s something I haven’t had much of lately. Regrettably, I don’t have the resources to employ staff or freelance contributors to provide content updates when I’m busy with my day job.

Just wanted to advise that my reporting hiatus will continue for a couple more weeks. I’m taking a break from tracking downtown Toronto tower construction so I can enjoy a change of architectural scenery with a holiday in Greece.

Regular postings will resume in June.

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The intriguing top of The L Tower

The L Tower

I often hear people comment about how much they like the distinctive big bend on the upper north face of The L Tower at Yonge & The Esplanade …

 

 

The L Tower

… the 58-storey condo tower designed by architect Daniel Libeskind in conjunction with Toronto’s Page + Steele/IBI Group Architects

 

 

The L Tower

… but I’m equally fascinated by the interesting shape and layout for the tower’s mechanical penthouse levels …

 

 

The mechanical penthouse levels of The L Tower take shape

… seen in this telephoto view from the northeast along Church Street near King Street East. Below are more photos of The L Tower, one of my favourite new skyscraper additions to the city skyline.  The L Tower is a project of Fernbrook Homes, Cityzen Real Estate Group and Castlepoint Realty Partners.

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X2 Condos turning heads at Jarvis & Charles

X2 Condos

April 17 2013: Construction of the X2 Condominium tower has climbed 5 floors on the way to 49, as seen in this view from the northwest on Charles Street. Click on the picture to view a larger-size image.

 

 

Eye catcher: When 2012 drew to a close, construction of the X2 Condos at the southwest corner of Jarvis & Charles Streets was just beginning to rise above the hoarding that blocked most of the site from the view of passing motorists and pedestrians. As New Year’s approached, a couple of support columns for the 49-storey tower’s ground floor were taking shape near the west end of the building site — the first signs of construction progress visible from street level.

With construction now up to five floors, passersby can’t help but notice the building — and get an early sense of the tremendous visual impact it will have in the Bloor-Jarvis neighbourhood once construction is complete.

I have walked past the X2 Condos site three times in the past two weeks, and on each occasion have noticed that the building is commanding considerable attention from people passing by both on foot and in vehicles. I saw pedestrians pause to watch the construction work, and noticed dozens of vehicle drivers and passengers checking out the site while waiting for traffic lights to change at the busy Jarvis-Charles-Mt Pleasant intersection.

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Theatre Park condo tower construction begins to climb above heritage neighbours on King Street

Theatre Park condo

April 17 2013: With the concrete frame for its podium in place, construction of the Theatre Park condo tower is set to rise above the neighbouring heritage buildings on King Street West, including the Royal Alexandra Theatre at 260 King West, left, and the Nicholls Building at 220 King West, right

 

 

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Pit stop at The Mercer condo construction site

 The Mercer condo

April 3 2013: The excavation for The Mercer condo tower, as seen from Mercer Street at the southwest corner of the construction site. Below are several more excavation photos that I shot earlier this month.

 

 

 

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Construction views from Roundhouse Park

 

Constantly changing scenery: The Rogers Centre, the CN Tower and the skyscrapers of the Financial District once dominated the north and east views from Roundhouse Park on Bremner Boulevard. But a slew of nearby construction projects is giving park visitors new views that change by the day. Above is a video I shot from the park yesterday, showing building activity at five major construction sites nearby: Infinity3, the final phase of the Infinity condo complex between Bremner and Lake Shore Boulevard; the two ICE Condos towers at York Centre on the east side of the Infinity buildings; the Delta Toronto hotel and Bremner office tower at Southcore Financial Centre; the Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada approaching the end of construction at the foot of the CN Tower; and the Three Hundred Front Street West condo tower to the northwest.

 

 

Ground floor construction underway at 210 Simcoe condo highrise near Queen West & University Ave

210 Simcoe Street condo

April 4 2013: Construction crews assemble forms into which concrete will be poured to build ground-floor walls and support structures for the No 210 Residences on Simcoe condo highrise

 

210 Simcoe condo

This artistic illustration depicts a view of the 210 Simcoe condo building from street level at the corner of Simcoe Street and Michael Sweet Avenue. The rendering appears on the website for Toronto developer Diamondcorp, which has partnered with Sorbara Development Group on the project.

 

210 Simcoe Street

This was how the condo site looked in July 2011, viewed from the same perspective as the rendering above.

 

 

Ready to rise: Construction of a new condo tower in the AGO-Grange District near Queen Street West & University Avenue will soon climb as high as the ugly low-rise parking garage that formerly occupied the narrow, block-long property.

Work on the No 210 Residences on Simcoe has reached street level, and yesterday construction crews were assembling building forms for the building’s ground floor walls and supports.

A joint project of Diamondcorp and Sorbara Development Group, No 210 Simcoe Residences will rise 25 storeys when finished, and contain 290 condo units. The building was designed by Sol Wassermuhl of Page + Steele/IBI Group Architects.

 

 

 

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South downtown skyscraper construction offers soaring backdrop for Toronto’s new aquarium

Ripley's Aquarium of Canada and tower construction projects  in Toronto's south downtown area

April 4 2013: Construction is proceeding on schedule for a summer opening of the Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada (foreground), located on Bremner Boulevard at the foot of the CN Tower.  The new aquarium is one of eight different buildings seen at various stages of construction in this photo shot from the pedestrian walkway on the east side of the Rogers Centre. Rising behind the aquarium are, from left, The L Tower, the Delta Toronto Hotel and Bremner Tower office building at Southcore Financial Centre, the two cylindrical ÏCE Condos skyscrapers, and the two towers of the Infinity3 Condominiums. Click on the photo to view it in a larger format.

 

 

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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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.