Category Archives: Neighbourhood Watch: What’s happening in specific city districts

Will Bloor Street transformation project finally finish before June 16 “red carpet” opening party?

September 21 2008: A Bloor Street transformation project banner on security fencing along a construction area near the corner of Bloor & Church Street

May 13 2009: Sidewalk construction outside the Hudson’s Bay Centre

May 13 2009: Bloor Street traffic is squeezed down to two lanes during construction activity outside the Holt Renfrew Centre

November 22 2009: The transformed streetscape outside the Hudson’s Bay Centre

July 25 2010: Bloor Street East looks beautiful with new sidewalks, trees, lush plants and gorgeous flowers between Park Road and Church Street…

… but on the same day, it’s a different story west of Yonge Street, where there is still a huge construction zone in front of the Holt Renfrew Centre

October 3 2010: Construction between Bellair Street and Avenue Road

December 21 2010: This tongue-in-cheek sign at a tree planting location got only one thing right: The Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t make it to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But as of May 1, there still weren’t any new “leafs” on Bloor Street

April 30 2011: Trees should soon be planted outside the Manulife Centre

April 30 2011: The cheery spring flowers brighten the south side of Bloor between Yonge and Church, but some trees still haven’t been planted…

…while the long stretch of sidewalk adjacent to the site of the future One Bloor condo tower won’t be replaced until construction is finished. That means a few more years of waiting before the Bloor Street transformation is complete…

…but at least the long-overdue sidewalk replacement outside 120 Bloor Street East, seen here on May 1, will be finished soon

Mink Mile Makeover: After four long years of digging, delays and detours, controversy, cost-overruns and even courtroom drama, the $25 million Bloor Street Transformation Project is nearing completion. With luck, the Mink Mile will look marvellous during the big “red carpet” street party that the Bloor-Yorkville Business Improvement Area (BIA) will be throwing on June 19 to celebrate the new streetscape. I will be among countless Torontonians breathing a collective huge sigh of relief when the City and the BIA confirm that the project is finally finished. After all, it’s about time!

The upscale shopping section of Bloor Street has desperately needed a major makeover for years. The drab streetscape with its narrow white concrete curbs and pavement looked cheap, not chic, and totally lacked any sense of importance, elegance or sophistication — characteristics one would expect for an area that’s often described as Canada’s “premiere” shopping street. Its banal appearance didn’t complement the beautiful luxury goods and fashion boutiques lining both sides of the boulevard. And it certainly didn’t suggest that Toronto is the world-class city it constantly claims and aims to be. I almost felt embarrassed telling visitors from other countries that Bloor Street was the city’s go-to destination for Prada, Cartier, Louis Vuitton and other high-end luxury retail purveyors. Apart from the expensive shops, there was nothing noteworthy or special about Bloor — it was just a typical, tired-looking downtown Toronto street.

So I was thrilled when I heard that the City and the Bloor-Yorkville BIA were teaming up to revitalize part of the Bloor Street strip, and even happier to see the $20 million project break ground in July 2008. Designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance (in joint venture with Brown + Storey Architects), the two-year project promised to give the City a sophisticated streetscape that would finally match its Mink Mile moniker. I looked forward to seeing the wide granite sidewalks with raised planting beds for trees, flowers and shrubs, the new street furnishings and lighting, and the new public art. I felt it was just what Toronto needed to do to transform Bloor Street into a stylish shopping destination on par with high-end shopping districts in major cities around the world.

The project was scheduled for completion in phases over a two-and-a-half-year period, concluding by the end of 2010. However, in typical Toronto fashion, the transformation work got mired in delays, cost overruns and controversy. The project made headlines early on when several Bloor Street businesses launched a lawsuit against the City and the BIA, claiming in part that the project lacked proper prior community consultation and environment assessments. But as was reported in an October 30 2008 article on insidetoronto.com, the Ontario Divisional Court found no improprieties and ruled the project could proceed. Then construction delays started to drag things out considerably. As the Toronto Star reported on May 12 2010, “unforeseen construction problems” put the project months behind schedule and 23% over budget ($4.5 million). More than half of the cost overrun was blamed on Toronto Hydro, which encountered problems and delays burying hydro chambers under the street.

In November 2010, word went out that the work on Bloor Street had finally finished. In a November 23 2010 story, the online publication Building said the transformation project had been finished just in time for the Christmas shopping season, while in a November 29 2010 press release published on its website, Tourism Toronto stated that “Bloor-Yorkville has enhanced its reputation as Canada’s premiere shopping district with the completion of the Bloor Street Transformation Project.” That news struck me as odd, since I had walked along Bloor Street several times in November and noticed that much work remained to be done. Tree and plant installation had not even started west of Yonge Street, and signs said that wouldn’t happen before spring 2011; meanwhile, a big unrenovated stretch of sidewalk remained as a tremendous eyesore outside the office building at 120 Bloor Street East.

It’s now spring 2011 and there are signs the long-awaited tree and flower planting west of Yonge Street will take place very soon; apparently the BIA is aiming to get all the greenery in the ground by the end of this month. And over at Bloor and Church, crews are finally tackling the ugly section of sidewalk that wasn’t renovated along with the rest of the block.

Though the June 26 street party might suggest the transformation is a done deal, it won’t truly be over for a long time yet. A long section of sidewalk at the southeast corner of Bloor and Yonge hasn’t been touched because that’s where construction is supposed to start sometime later this year or next on the One Bloor condo skyscraper. There’s no point renovating that sidewalk, I suppose, if it’s just going to be covered by hoarding for years and possibly even damaged by construction vehicles and equipment.

Notwithstanding that one missing piece, was the Bloor Street renovation effort really worth the time, trouble, aggravation and pricetag? While I’m sure many frustrated and construction-weary Bloor-Yorkville-area business owners and residents don’t believe so, I think the new streetscape is a wonderful civic investment that will eventually pay off many times over. And even though I don’t patronize those über-expensive designer boutiques, I love walking along the renovated street, and can’t wait to see how it looks and feels this summer once all the trees, plants and flowers are in full bloom.

The only thing I’m not happy to see is the abrupt end of the beautiful streetscape a few dozen meters east of the intersection of Bloor and Church Streets. From there to Jarvis Street and farther east to Sherbourne Street, the street looks dull and, in places, downright tawdry and tacky. The City replaced some dead and dying trees on the south side of Bloor Street with paving stones instead of replacement saplings, and though a few new park benches have been installed on the sidewalks between Church and Sherbourne, ugly and rusting metal planter boxes bring a trailer park trashiness to the eastern end of Bloor. The City should have extended the streetscape improvements all the way to Sherbourne; after all, that intersection is one of the gateways to the exclusive Rosedale residential district. But the City’s failure to do so is typical of its usual half-assed approach to civic improvement. I suppose we’re lucky we wound up with even just a few blocks of attractive, world-class streetscape. We could use a lot more, but this is Toronto, after all.

Below are several more recent photos of Bloor Street.

July 25 2010: Many Bloor Street merchants were furious with the construction delays, but at least Holt Renfrew took matters in stride.

May 13 2009: This photo shows how awful the sidewalk looked before renovations reached the north side of Bloor Street at Yonge Street, outside the CIBC tower.

November 22 2009: Only half of the block between Park Road and Church Street was renovated in 2009; the broken and missing paving stones were left untouched on this wide stretch of sidewalk outside 120 Bloor Street East

April 30 2011: At long last, the eyesore stretch of sidewalk outside 120 Bloor Street East has finally been ripped up, and will be replaced with granite pavers

May 1 2011: The Bloor Street transformation looks wonderful — except outside the Toronto Marriott Bloor-Yorkville Hotel at 90 Bloor East, where a long section of the old concrete sidewalk remains and completely spoils the new streetscape.

May 1 2011: This strip of sidewalk outside the Bloor Street Marriott hotel is a prime example of the City of Toronto’s half-assed approach to civic improvement

April 30 2011: Yellow pansies brighten the southeast corner of Bloor and Church Streets, but the street transformation ends here. From just a few meters past this planter box all the way to Sherbourne Street, the east end of Bloor looks blah.

May 1 2011: Sidewalk renovations didn’t continue along the south side of Bloor Street to either Jarvis or Sherbourne Streets. Instead, the city merely uprooted some dead and dying trees and replaced them with paving bricks, like those seen here outside St. Paul’s Bloor Street Anglican Church at 227 Bloor East.

May 1 2011: A rusting metal planter box on the south side of Bloor Street near Jarvis Street contrasts sharply with the gorgeous granite planters two blocks west

Public urged to pressure politicians to create park on Wellesley St. site of stalled apartment project

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April 19 2011: A southwest view of hoarding around 11 Wellesley St. W., between Yonge & Bay Streets. Behind are the Murano condo towers (left), the Opera Place condos (center) and The Bay Club apartments (right), all on Bay St.

April 9 2011: A northwest view of 11 Wellesley Street West from the corner of Breadalbane St and St Luke Lane. A half-dozen highrise apartment and condo towers, and the Sutton Place Hotel (center), overlook the site.

Potential parkland: Could a big piece of prime downtown real estate become a public park instead of the apartment complex that a developer had planned to build on the site? Apparently so — if enough people can convince city and provincial politicians to make it happen.

The land in question has a municipal address of 11 Wellesley Street West, and occupies the eastern half of the city block bounded by Wellesley to the north, St. Luke Lane to the east, Breadalbane Street to the south, and Bay street to the west. Over the past two decades, it has earned notoriety as a site where ambitious development plans fail to materialize.

Back in the late 1980s, the provincial government donated the entire block of land for construction of a new ballet/opera house. Various levels of government pledged tens of millions of dollars toward the project, and construction of a spectacular building designed by architect Moshe Safdie was supposed to start early in 1991. However, with Ontario in the throes of a recession and facing a $2.5 billion budget deficit, the province’s newly-elected NDP government withdrew its $65 million cash pledge. In turn, the federal government and Metro Toronto cancelled their pledges for $88 million and $20 million, respectively, and the project was cancelled.

A skateboard park occupied the site for a few years until a developer acquired the western half of the property and built the Allegro at Opera Place condo tower and The Bay Club rental apartment building along Bay Street. The developer, Morguard, planned to build two more apartment buildings, 9 and 10 storeys tall, on the 11 Wellesley West site, along with a recreational amenities facility for the use of residents in all of the buildings (including two more Opera Place condo towers previously constructed one block south on Bay Street, between Breadalbane and Grosvenor Streets). However, shovels never got in the ground for the final phase of construction, and the property has sat vacant behind hoarding ever since — an eyesore that annoys hundreds of residents in the condos and apartments overlooking the site, not to mention passersby on Wellesley and Breadalbane.

I have long wondered why Morguard wanted to build only low-rise apartments on a location ideal for highrise development — to me, tall condo towers would suit the space better, and might even be substantially more profitable. I have also wondered why it has been taking so long for the final phase of Opera Place construction to commence. Last month, a city planning department official told a community meeting I attended that the site has sat empty for years because the developer and the Ontario Government have been embroiled in litigation over the property. No further details were provided about the nature of the dispute, but the planner said the parties are close to signing a settlement under which the province could re-acquire the land. If that does happen, the province apparently has indicated that it would be willing to give the property to the city for use as a community park — if that’s what people want.

Now, at least one neighbourhood group is encouraging residents to write to their city councillor and their MPP to say they want 11 Wellesley West turned into parkland. A page on the Bay Cloverhill Community Association website urges residents to contact City Councillor Kristyn Wong-tam and MPP Glen Murray to show their support for the creation of a new park. Will it happen? Perhaps, if enough Toronto residents put pressure on the local politicians.Personally, I favour turning the site into public green space; even though I didn’t skateboard, I still remember enjoying the wide open space along Wellesley before the skateboard park was closed off. The empty land and the unsightly hoarding have been a blight on the neighbourhood ever since, and it’s high time something creative is done to enhance the property and surrounding streetscapes. At the same time, I’m skeptical that we’ll see a new park on Wellesley anytime soon. Empty land in downtown Toronto rarely gets repurposed as parkland; inevitably, it attracts the attention of developers, and winds up sprouting condo towers instead of trees. Moreover, this particular piece of land seems to have been jinxed since the opera house plan fell apart. I hope I’m wrong. I’d really love to see trees along Wellesley.

The 11 Wellesley Street West site appears as an empty white space in the center of this aerial image from Google Maps. The Sutton Place hotel is at top left, while the downtown YMCA is near the bottom right.

September 28 2008: Breadalbane Street view of weeds and rubble on the 11 Wellesley Street West site

September 28 2008: Northeast view from Breadalbane Street

December 5 2008: East view from outside the Sutton Place Hotel

December 5 2008: East view from Breadalbane Street

April 17 2009: Northeast view from Breadalbane Street. The Casa condo tower is seen under construction on Charles Street to the north.

March 11 2010: North view from Breadalbane Street

March 11 2010: Breadalbane Street view of 11 Wellesley Street West. From time to time, someone rips out weeds and clears rubbish from the site.

March 11 2010: Although there are dumpsters and construction trailers on the property, I’ve never seen anyone on it.

March 16 2011: Southwest view of 11 Wellesley Street West from the corner of Wellesley and St Nicholas Streets. The property is virtually surrounded by highrise condo and apartment buildings.

March 27 2011: Looking north at the big empty lot. At left is the Sutton Place Hotel; at center is the Century Plaza condo tower at 24 Wellesley St. W.

March 27 2011: A view toward the northeast corner of the lot

March 27 2011: The property is less than half a block from Yonge Street and just a short walk from the Wellesley subway station.

April 1 2011: South view of 11 Wellesley Street West from St Nicholas Street

April 9 2011: Now that it’s spring, weeds will once again flourish on the lot

April 9 2011: This north view will change in a few years during construction of the 45-storey Five Condos, which will rise behind the brown building at upper left.

April 9 2011: Residents of the condo and apartment towers have looked down on this eyesore for more than a decade

April 9 2011: West view of hoarding along Breadalbane Street

April 9 2011: North view of the hoarding along St Luke Lane

April 9 2011: Breadalbane Street view of the towers to the north and west

April 9 2011: South view of the hoarding along St Luke Lane

April 9 2011: Looking west along Wellesley from the corner of St Luke Lane

April 17 2011: More rubbish, rubble and weeds await a spring cleanup

Condo highrise expected for former gas station and donut shop site at Wellesley-Sherbourne corner

Ripe for redevelopment: What’s Lanterra going to do with the 501 block on Yonge Street?

Neighbourhood Watch: Developer asks city for 6-month hold on 25-storey Church St condo plan

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Artistic illustration, from a former website for Church 18 Holdings, of the condo development proposed for the Church Street block between Gloucester and Dundonald Streets, now occupied by apartments, restaurants and a day spa.

A Dec. 21 2010 view of the Church Street block proposed for redevelopment

6-month wait: A developer has asked the City for a six-month hold on its controversial application to redevelop a block of property in the Church Wellesley Village.

Just under one year ago, a developer sought City approval to redevelop properties it owns along the west side of Church Street, between Gloucester and Dundonald Streets. The properties include several low-rise apartment buildings as well as two brick mansions, one built in 1878, which currently are home to two popular Village restaurants and a day spa.

The developer proposed to demolish some of the rental buildings and one of the mansions, constructing in their place a 25-storey condo tower atop a seven-storey podium. 35 replacement apartments would be built in the podium, while an additional 158 residences would be included in the condo complex.

The proposal drew considerable criticism and negative feedback at a community consultation meeting attended by more than 150 people in early December. A city planner drew cheers and applause from the audience when he told the meeting that the city did not support the application because of serious concerns with the project’s proposed height and density, among other issues.

According to the Church Wellesley Neighbourhood Association (CWNA), the developer recently requested a delay in the development application process. In a message to members of its Facebook page, the CWNA said the developer asked the city, at the end of February, to place a six-month hold on its application.

The CWNA message says the developer “has indicated that in 6 months time they will likely come back to the city with one of the following options: 1) withdrawing the application, 2) reducing the height on their revised option, 3) pursuing a totally different design scheme for the property, or 4) hiring a new team for a different design.” City planning rules specify that files can be put on hold for a maximum of six months. At that time, planners would have to advise the developer to either re-submit the application, or withdraw it. If the developer does nothing at that point, then the city could close the application.”

Below is a screenshot, from the CWNA website, of a building rendering and project details that city planners showed the audience at the December community meeting. There’s also a series of photos I’ve taken at various times of the properties involved in the redevelopment plan.

Condo development proposal sign posted on one of the Church Street properties

Project details and an artistic illustration of the proposed condo complex, from a city planning department presentation to a community meeting held in December to provide neighbourhood feedback on the developer’s plan.

67 Gloucester Street apartment building on December 21 2010. According to the developer, the building would be retained as part of the new condo complex.

71 Gloucester Street apartment building on December 21 2010

71 Gloucester Street at the corner of Church & Gloucester Street. Under the developer’s proposal, this building would be demolished and replaced by a 25-storey condo highrise with a 7-storey podium.

December 21 2010 view of 71 Gloucester Street and 67 Gloucester Street

Another view of the 71 Gloucester Street apartment buildings

November 1 2010 corner view of the Gloucester Mansions apartment building

Church Street view of the 596 Church Street Gloucester Mansions apartment building on December 21 2010

The Gloucester Mansions on November 1 2010

A November 1 2010 view of the 584 Church St. Salon & Spa, left, and one of the Gloucester Mansions apartments. Under the development plan, the spa mansion would be demolished and replaced with the main entrance to the condo, while the facade and part of the Gloucester Mansions building would be saved.

This elegant mansion at 580 – 582 Church Street was built in 1878. Much of the building, including the facade, would be incorporated into the condo development. The building currently is home to two restaurants: Fuzion, left, and Voglie.

Fuzion restaurant at 580 Church Street on December 21 2010. In summer, its patio is one of the most pleasant dining terraces in downtown Toronto.

November 1 2010 view of Fuzion on the corner of Church & Dundonald Streets

Fuzion restaurant building viewed from Dundonald Street on February 15 2011

Dundonald Street view of the Fuzion restaurant building on February 15 2011

A November 1 2010 view of the proposed condo development site

Regent Park revitalization creates massive construction zone on Dundas Street East

Will Chaz and a proposed new 64-storey tower turn Charles Street East into a condo canyon?

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West view down Charles Street from Church Street on February 23 2011. The Casa condo (rear left, 46 floors) and the Bloor Street Neighbourhood (BSN) condo (right, 32 storeys) soar high above all other buildings on the block.

A developer purportedly has plans to build a 64-storey condo tower on this location at 42 Charles Street East, currently a YMCA child care centre.

Too many towers? According to an old proverb, March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. That’s supposed to describe the weather for a month that begins in the dead of winter but ends with the welcome arrival of spring. According to some Toronto real estate agents, however, there won’t be anything sheepish about this month at all. They’re fully expecting March to come in with a giant roar and keep on roaring — all the way through spring and for many months beyond. But the king of beasts whose arrival they are anxiously anticipating isn’t an animal, and doesn’t have anything to do with stormy weather. Instead, it’s a highrise building project for which the realtors are forecasting a fast and fierce storm of sales to condo-craving buyers eager to pounce on what’s being aggressively promoted as an incredible not-to-be-missed investment opportunity.

The project: a 64-storey condo tower that’s supposed to launch sometime early this month with spectacular gala preview sales events for VIP purchasers. The location: 42 Charles Street East, a property occupied by a nine-storey office building currently home to a YMCA child care (some years ago, it was more famous as the location of CTV headquarters and broadcasting facilities; back in the 1990s a developer — Harry Stinson, if I recall correctly — even proposed converting the building into condos, but that project never got off the ground). The developer: Cresford Developments, already a highly familiar presence on this block, having just recently built the Bloor Street Neighbourhood condo tower right next door at 38 Charles St. E. as well as the critically-acclaimed Casa Residenza Condominio tower across the street at 33 Charles East.

Interestingly, the city hasn’t approved a 64-storey tower for the site; in fact, as of this morning, the city’s development application and planning website didn’t even show any listings for 42 Charles East. But residents of Casa and Bloor Street Neighbourhood (BSN) have been buzzing about the condo tower project for weeks — especially BSN owners with east-facing suites who are pissed at the prospect of losing their views if a skyscraper gets built right next door. And dozens of “in the know” real estate agents have been hyping the project on their blogs and websites and even in videos posted on youtube.com, urging interested buyers to contact them ASAP for “exclusive” invitations to upcoming “preconstruction” VIP sales extravaganzas. Those agents have been quick to point out that units in Chaz on Charles, a 39-storey condo tower that’s going to be built directly across the road at 45 Charles East (currently the site of an eight-storey office building), have been selling briskly, and already earning impressive investment returns for their buyers. That’s great news for those agents and their lucky clients, of course. But is a 64-storey tower on the north side of the block, along with the new Chaz highrise on the south, going to be good for Charles Street, too? Will four towers crowded so close together in the middle of the block improve the immediate neighbourhood and nearby streets? Or could they encourage even more tower proposals for elsewhere on the block, ultimately creating a condo canyon on Charles?

I admit I’m not happy that Charles Street will be developed more densely. Although I’m not fond of BSN’s design, I’m glad it’s an L-shape that accommodates the charming Charles Court apartment building below it. On the other hand, I love Casa; it’s been one of my favourite downtown condo towers since it started construction in 2007 and then opened for occupancy last year. Its striking design is simple yet sophisticated, and I find it fascinating to watch how its streamlined windows and glass balconies change colour and texture under different sunlight and sunset conditions. But those two towers are enough for this block of Charles Street. Two more will be too many. Frankly, I’m not looking forward to seeing Chaz become Casa’s neighbour because I believe its close proximity will detract from Casa’s appearance, and I’m even more dismayed by the prospect of an even taller tower rising right behind them. Although the skyscraper cluster would undoubtedly create an impressive skyline, I fear a row of tall towers will spoil the streetscape and ruin what is presently a pleasant downtown residential street.

Since BSN and Casa were built, I’ve noticed a sharp increase in the volume of pedestrians and vehicles on the one-way road; the street feels particularly congested around the two condos because of the additional traffic from service, delivery, resident and visitor vehicles. Even the sidewalks feel too narrow. The tight feeling will only get worse once Chaz is built because its podium, regrettably, has been designed to “synch” with Casa’s, “adding significantly to the street wall,” to quote from the Chaz project website.

“Street wall?” Ugh. Sounds as bad as it will probably look and feel once it’s constructed. One of the redeeming features of the office building that Chaz will replace is its generous setback from the street; a taller new building with a podium closer to the sidewalk will likely make strolling down Charles Street as appealing as walking down Bay Street in the heart of the Financial District; in other words, not something you’d really want to do unless you had to do it. The skyscraper planned for 42 Charles will only make things worse. And if other developers jump on the “let’s build Charles Street” bandwagon, I think the low-rise apartment buildings and post office on the eastern half of the block will become targets for future highrise development. Last thing the neighbourhood needs is for Charles Street to become a busy, narrow and shadowy wind tunnel. Below are some of my photos of 42 Charles East and its neighbours which, I think, will help put the proposed developments and my comments about them in context. What do you think?

The Bloor-Yorkville skyline on April 4 2010. The Casa condo tower — still under construction, with the developer’s Cresford.com banner on its east penthouse level — already dominates the area. The BSN condo building stands at Casa’s right, blocking most views of The Bay office tower at Yonge & Bloor.

On this photo, shot today, I’ve marked my “guesstimate” of where Chaz and the 64-floor tower proposed for 42 Charles St. E. will stand on the skyline.

February 23 2011: This view from Charles Street West shows BSN and Casa towering above Charles Street just east of Yonge Street. The tower at center rear is the X Condo building at the northeast corner of Jarvis and Charles.

December 3 2010: Charles Street view of the south and west sides of BSN

November 1 2010: A west view of BSN and the YMCA building at 42 Charles Street East. If the rumoured 64-storey skyscraper goes up, it will soar high above BSN.

February 28 2011: Charles Court apartments and Bloor Street Neighbourhood

January 9 2011: BSN’s streetscape presence

February 12 2011: BSN and 42 Charles Street East

February 12 2011: 42 Charles Street East

December 3 2010: Looking up Casa’s sleek 46 storeys

December 21 2010: Southwest view of BSN and Casa

November 1 2010: BSN’s image reflects off Casa’s lobby facade

November 1 2010: Northwest view of Casa’s podium and the brick building that houses the Sanctuary Toronto ministry, to its immediate west

November 1 2010: Casa’s glass facade along Charles street, looking west

April 19 2010: A sidewalk-level perspective of Casa’s presence on Charles St.

November 1 2010: BSN reflects in Casa’s main entrance

October 3 2010: Casa’s facade reflects images of 42 Charles and BSN

August 29 2010: Another Casa reflection of 42 Charles and the BSN condos

February 28 2011: 42 Charles Street East

February 28 2011: Charles Street postal station next to 42 Charles St. E.

February 12 2011: Northwest view of the proposed condo tower site

February 23 2011: Hayden Street view of the rear of 42 Charles Street East and the east side of BSN. I don’t know if this parking area, used by the postal station next door, is part of the property on which the 64-storey tower may be built.

Another Hayden Street view of the rear of 42 Charles & BSN

February 23 2011: This brick house on Hayden Street sits in the northwest corner of the lot directly behind 42 Charles Street East and BSN.

January 10 2011: Hayden Street view of Casa, left, and BSN. Part of the building at 42 Charles is visible in the bottom left corner of the photo.

February 28 2011: The Chaz on Charles condo site at 45 Charles Street East

Another view of the Chaz site at 45 Charles Street East

January 29 2011: Isabella Street view of the Chaz condo site at 45 Charles St. E.

The 39-storey Chaz on Charles will tower above The Bromley apartment building on Isabella Street, seen here January 29 2011

February 28 2011: The Charlesview apartment building next door to the Chaz site

February 28 2011: An apartment building next door to the Charlesview

February 28 2011: The heritage houses at 62 and 64 Charles Street East

February 28 2011: The house at 66 Charles St. E., left, dates from the late 1880s

February 28 2011: The Manhattan apartments at the corner of Charles and Church

February 23 2011: Looking west on Charles Street from outside the Town Inn Suites at the southwest corner of Charles & Church

February 23 2011: This middle section of the block could become a virtual condo canyon once the Chaz on Charles condo highrise is constructed on the left, followed by another tower where the YMCA building sits on the right.

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