Category Archives: King Charlotte condos

King Charlotte condo’s ground level takes shape

King Charlotte condos

November 28 2013: Construction on the King Charlotte condo tower has climbed above the hoarding on Charlotte Street in the Entertainment District

 

 

Get stacking: The last time I passed by the King Charlotte condo tower construction site with a camera in hand was on a cold afternoon back in February. Work on the 32-storey tower was still in its early stages; in fact, the excavation for the building’s 13-meter-deep, 4-level underground parking garage was less than half complete.  The entire construction site was dusted with a light layer of fresh snow.

I saw the site a couple of times during the summer, while work on the parking garage was proceeding, but didn’t make to Charlotte Street with a camera until several days ago. This time I discovered that the building is now rising above ground, with construction well underway on the main floor, which will eventually house retail and commercial space.

Over the course of the next 8 months or so, it will be interesting to watch the construction progress and see how the Entertainment District’s newest point tower literally stacks up — Peter Clewes of architectsAlliance has designed the building as a vertical series of variously-sized boxes.

“The boxes stack upon each other, and not necessarily in a fashion that one might initially imagine,” Lamb Development Corp. president & CEO Brad J. Lamb notes in a project description on the King Charlotte condominium website.

“The retail box protrudes from the podium box, the tower box appears to teeter and overhang the podium box, and the oversized rooftop amenity box actually does overhang the tower box. It is all very playful, yet incredibly clean and crisp,” he writes.

 

King Charlotte condo rendering

The King Charlotte condominium tower was designed by Peter Clewes of architectsAlliance. This rendering appears on the King Charlotte project website.

 

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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.

 

Wrecking crews clearing sites for Casa 2, King+ and King Charlotte condo tower construction

42 Charles Street East

October 25 2012: Demolition crews are busy dismantling the 9-storey building at 42 Charles Street East that formerly housed offices for the Toronto YMCA…

 

39 Hayden Street

… as well as this 3-storey brick law office building right behind it, at 39 Hayden Street, to clear the site for the 56-storey Casa 2 Condominium tower

 

King Charlotte condo site

October 20 2012: Piles of rubble and metal are all that remain of the 3-storey warehouse building that once stood at 11 Charlotte Street …

 

11 Charlotte Street

… seen here on March 29 2011. It has been demolished to make way for the 32-storey King Charlotte condo tower. Click on the photo to view a larger image.

 

King+ Condos site

October 4 2012: Low-rise buildings that once stood at 37 Sherbourne Street have been razed to make room for the 17-storey King+ Condos

 

King+ Condos site

… which will incorporate into the new tower part of the facade of the historic National Hotel building at 251 King East, constructed in 1868

 

 

Getting wrecked: Demolition and other site preparation work is clearing the way for construction to commence on three condo tower projects in three different downtown neighbourhoods.

Two office buildings are being knocked down and ripped apart near Yonge & Bloor to make room for the 56-storey Casa 2 Condominium that will take their place. The 9-storey brick building at 42 Charles Street East formerly housed offices of the Toronto YMCA, while the 3-storey brick building to its north, at 39 Hayden Street, had previously been home to a law firm. (For more information on the Casa 2 project, see my September 17 2012 post.)

 

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Another 32-storey condo tower for Charlotte Street

King Charlotte condo tower rendering

A rendering, from the King Charlotte condo project website, of the 32-storey tower proposed for Charlotte Street in the Entertainment District.

 

Another jewel in Clewes’ crown: It’s only two blocks long, but Charlotte Street has been getting more than its share of attention from architects and condo developers. The little north-south street, which links Adelaide and King Street in the Entertainment District, already boasts two condo buildings — Glas Condominiums and The Charlotte — and is getting a third, with Charlie Condos currently under construction. The sales centre for a fourth — Langston Hall — has been open several years; however, that development seems to have stalled, with no signs that construction might start anytime soon. Now, Lamb Development Corp. and Niche Development have proposed a fifth condo project for the street — King Charlotte.

Designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance, King Charlotte would rise at 11 Charlotte Street, a three-storey brick warehouse building that has been converted into offices. A 32-storey point tower (including six-storey podium) soaring 114 metres high, King Charlotte would offer 232 residential units in 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom configurations, plus four levels of underground parking. Part of the ground-floor level would be used for “community space.” A 33rd floor rooftop terrace will be an “entertainment oasis” with an outdoor pool and all-day sun “that will blow your mind,” Lamb Development CEO Brad Lamb promises. The tower design is basically a series of different-sized boxes stacked playfully atop each other. “The retail box protrudes from the podium box, the tower box appears to teeter and overhang the podium box, and the oversized rooftop amenity box actually does overhang the tower box,” Lamb explains on the King Charlotte website.

Full details of the proposed project are provided in a February 28 2011 city planning department preliminary report which recommended a community consultation meeting be held to gather local input. That recommendation was approved in a March 22 2011 motion by the Toronto and East York Community Council; that public meeting should take place sometime later this spring. (Local councillor Adam Vaughan has already held one constituency meeting, in January, to discuss the project with area residents.) If approved by the City (which appears highly likely), King Charlotte would match Charlie Condos in floor count (32) and tower above the street’s existing condo buildings: Glas, a 16-storey midrise at 25 Oxley Street on the southwest corner of Oxley and Charlotte, and The Charlotte,  a 14-storey condo completed in 2002 on the northwest corner of Oxley and Charlotte. (If Langston Hall ever proceeds, it will have 12 storeys plus a penthouse.)

Meanwhile, the King Charlotte website has been launched, signs advertising the project have been affixed to the exterior of 11 Charlotte, and a marketing sales campaign is in full swing. A “coming soon to King & Spadina” King Charlotte Condos flyer I received in the mail this week says prices start at $241,900 for a 1-bedroom unit, $327,900 for a 1-bedroom with den, $435,900 for a 2-bedroom, and $558,900 for a 3-bedroom suite.

Looks to me like Lamb and Clewes have another winner on their hands. Charlotte Street is an in-demand area for condo buyers (a friend of mine sold his condo on the street in mere days, for a hefty profit), and I’m sure this project will be another Entertainment District sales success. Below are photos, taken at various times over the past three years, of the King Charlotte site and its neighbours.

King Charlotte Condos development proposal sign

King Charlotte Condos development proposal sign

 

King Charlotte Condos website architectural rendering of 33rd floor amenities area

King Charlotte Condos website rendering of the outdoor swimming pool and terrace on the tower’s 33rd floor amenities area

 

King Charlotte condo tower site at 11 Charlotte Street

November 29 2010: A view of 11 Charlotte Street; the CN Tower and the new condo M5V condo tower stand in the background. The King Charlotte building would, of course, block this Charlotte Street view of the CN Tower.

 

King Charlotte Condos development site at 11 Charlotte Street

March 29 2011: A view of 11 Charlotte from the west side of the street

 

Mountain Equipment Co-Op on King Street West

March 29 2011: The Mountain Equipment Co-Op store on King Street West will be King Charlotte’s next-door neighbour to the south.

 

King Charlotte condo development site on Charlotte Street

March 29 2011: King Street view of the 11 Charlotte Street condo development site; the Mountain Equipment Co-Op store on King is the brick building at right.

 

King Street West at Charlotte Street

March 11 2010: King Street West view toward Charlotte Street. The King Charlotte condo site is the white building with the turquoise sign on its roof (in the middle of the photo). The construction crane is building Charlie Condos at the corner of Charlotte and King; the Glas condominium midrise stands to its immediate north.


Charlie Condos and Glas Condos

November 23 2010: Charlie Condos construction site and Glas Condos

 

West side of Charlotte Street north of King Street

March 29 2011: The Charlie Condos construction site, left, Glas condos, center, and The Charlotte condos on the west side of Charlotte Street north of King.

Charlotte Street looking north toward Adelaide Street

March 29 2011: Looking north on Charlotte Street toward Adelaide Street from outside the King Charlotte condo development site (right).

 

Langston Hall condo sales centre

September 26 2008: The Langston Hall condo sales centre at the northwest corner of Charlotte Street and Adelaide Street West

 

Langston Hall condo sales centre

September 26 2008: Adelaide Street West view down Charlotte Street towards the Langston Hall condo sales centre, The Charlotte Condos, and Glas Condos.

 

The Capitol Building at 366 Adelaide Street West

March 29 2011: The Capitol Building at 366 Adelaide Street West (also known as the Hobberlin Building, from 1920) faces directly down Charlotte Street.

 

View south on Charlotte Street from Adelaide Street West

March 29 2011: Adelaide Street view of the east side of Charlotte Street.  The 8-storey brick building at left is the MacLean Building at 345 Adelaide Street West, a city-listed heritage property dating from 1914.

19 Charlotte Street Toronto

March 29 2011: This 4-storey brick warehouse building sits at 19 Charlotte, next to the King Charlotte site. It’s home to a billiard hall, restaurant and offices.

 

King Charlotte Condos development site at 11 Charlotte Street

March 29 2011: 19 and 11 Charlotte Street, viewed from across the road

 

King Charlotte development site at 11 Charlotte Street

March 29 2011: Front view of the King Charlotte development site

 

King Charlotte development site at 11 Charlotte Street

March 29 2011: South side of the King Charlotte development site. A laneway runs between the building and the Mountain Equipment Co-Op store to the south.