Tag Archives: Pier 27

A peek at the Pier 27 waterfront condos

August 19 2013 view of the two buildings on the east side of the Pier 27 Condos site

August 19 2013: Most windows have been installed on the two east buildings at The Residences of Pier 27 condo site, but installation hasn’t yet begun on the SkyBridge linking them. The steel frames for the SkyBridge were built a year ago.

 

Waterfront wonders: Judging by the positive reaction of passersby, The Residences of Pier 27 prove that imaginatively-designed midrise condo buildings can be just as attention-grabbing and impressive as soaring 70-storey skyscrapers.

I don’t get down to the lakefront as often as I would like to monitor progress on the Pier 27 project, but each time I do I’m amazed by the number of people who are captivated by the construction.

In particular, passersby are fascinated with the 3-storey-tall SkyBridges than span the tops of the four towers currently under construction on Queen’s Quay Boulevard East, near the foot of Yonge Street.

“Wow” is the most common comment, while many people say how much they would “love” to live in one of the lake-facing SkyBridge penthouses and enjoy the fabulous views of the Toronto Islands. People I chat with — many of whom are tourists — think the building design is striking, and a refreshing change from the skyscraper condos that have been rising throughout the downtown area. I can’t recall any negative or highly critical comments about the buildings, which were designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance.

The Residences of Pier 27 is a project of Cityzen Developments and Fernbrook Homes.

Below is a link to the Pier 27 Condos album from TheTorontoBlog’s Flickr page. It contains more than 60 recent pics of construction progress.

 

Above is a link to dozens of recent photos showing construction progress at The Residences of Pier 27 condo construction site. Click twice on the image to view the photos in full-size 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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Structure in place for first Pier 27 SkyBridge

The Residences of Pier 27

November 19 201: Construction is complete for the metal structure of the SkyBridge that links the two east buildings of the Residences at Pier 27  …

 

Residences at Pier 27

… while concrete columns indicate where the second SkyBridge will connect the two west condo buildings. Pier 27 is located on Queen’s Quay Boulevard East.

 

Linked up: When I last reported on construction progress for the Residences at Pier 27 project in my September 13 post, iron framework had just been installed for the SkyBridge linking the two east buildings. According to a November blog update by the developer, Cityzen Developments, the bridge is now “structurally complete with all the metal work finished.”

 

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First SkyBridge taking shape at Pier 27 condos

Pier 27 condos

September 11 2012: Iron framework for the SkyBridge span has been installed atop the two condo highrises on the eastern half of the Residences of Pier 27 construction site

 

Pier 27 condos

This artistic rendering, which appears on a marketing billboard outside the Pier 27 condo construction site, shows how the SkyBridge will appear when complete

 

Pier 27 condos

September 11 201: SkyBridge construction viewed from the public sidewalk along Queen’s Quay Blvd. on the north side of the building site

 

Bridge building: Construction activity at The Residences of Pier 27 has become considerably more fascinating to passersby now that a signature SkyBridge span is fast taking form atop the B1 and B2 buildings on the east half of the condo site.

The first time I noticed that SkyBridge construction had commenced was when I passed the site on August 22, and saw several beams jutting into the air from the west wall of one of the buildings. I couldn’t get back down to the area to take another look until September 3, by which point it appeared that work on the frame was complete.

 

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East waterfront skyline poised for profound change as Pier 27 condo construction reaches street level

Pier 27 condos on Toronto waterfront

September 13 2011: Construction crews arrange forms for first-floor walls at the northeast corner of The Residences of Pier 27 condo project site on Queen’s Quay East, just a stone’s throw from the Redpath Sugar Refinery

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 30 2011: A Toronto Islands view of four cranes towering above the Pier 27 condo building site and sales centre (white structure at bottom middle of photo). This view of the waterfront will look markedly different by this time next year …


Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

... once substantial progress has been made on construction of the East Bayfront condo complex’s distinctive design, seen in this artistic illustration …

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Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

… and in this video screen capture, both from the Pier 27 website

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Redpath’s neighbour ready to rise: Toronto’s eastern waterfront is about to get an exciting new look now that Phase 1 construction of The Residences of Pier 27 has reached grade along Queen’s Quay Boulevard East. The first condominium complex to be built on Toronto’s East Bayfront, Pier 27 will transform a prime piece of property at the foot of Yonge Street from a large dusty parking lot into a gleaming glass and steel midrise residential community with publicly-accessible waterfront green space and parkland. I’ll be thrilled to watch these condo buildings rise; their sleek modern architecture should vastly improve the appearance of what I consider to be one of downtown’s most dismal streets — a gritty stretch of landscape presently dominated by the huge, hulking Redpath Sugar Refinery.

Construction has made the most progress at the northeast corner of the Pier 27 property, right next to the refinery, where pedestrians and passing motorists can now see crews working at street level, just a few meters from the security fence running along the south side of Queen’s Quay Boulevard. In late July, you couldn’t see the workers unless you walked right up to the fence to peer into the giant excavation; at that time, the crews were still well below grade, gradually filling in the underground parking levels for the Phase 1 construction on the easterly half of the site. The Phase 2 construction zone to the west isn’t visible from the street at all, but work has been steadily progressing on the foundation there, and a fourth construction crane was erected on the site last month. According to a July 25 2011 post on the Cityzen Urban Lifestyle blog, crews had been pouring 3,000 cubic meters of concrete per month just for Phase 1 construction — that’s equivalent to the load carried by 333 concrete trucks. Once Phase 2 construction gets going full steam, the pour is expected to increase to 5,000 cubic meters (555 truckloads) per month, the Cityzen blog says.

A project of Cityzen Developments and Fernbrook Homes, The Residences of Pier 27 was designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance.

Below are some of my photos of Pier 27’s recent construction progress. Photos of earlier building activity can be viewed in my posts on July 21 2011, April 22 2011, February 18 2011, and January 4 2011.

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

July 17 2011: Underground level construction on the east side (Phase 1) of the Pier 27 site, seen through the security fence on Queen’s Quay Boulevard

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 17 2011: A construction crew works at street level at the northeast corner of the Pier 27 site, mere steps from the Queen’s Quay Boulevard sidewalk

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 17 2011: Pier 27’s midrise towers, each topped by a distinctive multi-level “SkyBridge,” are depicted on this promotional billboard outside the project sales centre on Queen’s Quay Boulevard

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 17 2011: Billboard illustration of the SkyBridge spanning the top of Pier 27’s Phase 1 towers on the east side of the project site

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 30 3011: A Toronto Islands view toward the Pier 27 site

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 30 3011: Toronto Islands view of cranes above the Pier 27 building site

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

August 30 3011: Ward’s Island ferry view of cranes at the Pier 27 site adjacent to the Redpath Sugar Refinery (right)

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

September 12 2011: Construction moves above street level as seen in this view of the Phase 1 site from the sidewalk on Queen’s Quay Boulevard

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

September 12 2011: Building forms along the eastern perimeter of the Pier 27 site, next to the Redpath Sugar Refinery

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

September 12 2011: Building forms begin to rise above street level next to the construction crane near the northeast corner of the Pier 27 site

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

September 12 2011: Three construction cranes are visible in this view of wall forms rising toward the center of the Pier 27 building site

 

Pier 27 waterfront condos Toronto

September 12 2011: Looking up at the four cranes working the Pier 27 project

 

 

 

Taking a peek at Pier 27’s construction progress

Pier 27 condos

From The Residences at Pier 27 project website, an illustration of the condo complex under construction on Queen’s Quay Blvd. E.


Pier 27 condo

This truck was pumping concrete into the Pier 27 excavation today


Crane coming?: Thanks to the spring-like thaw in the weather over the past couple of days, the excavation at the Pier 27 condo development on the waterfront has become one enormous muddy hole in the ground. But construction work continues nonetheless, and today I saw a concrete pumper truck at the northeastern end of the massive waterfront excavation. Since it looks to me — from the street and sales centre parking lot, at least — that the lion’s share of digging has been done,  I suspect that concrete was being poured to build the base on which a construction crane will be installed sometime very soon.

I hope my assumption is correct, because I’m eager to see this development shake up the shape of the city’s lacklustre Lake Ontario shoreline. Right now, the waterfront is crowded with far too many tall buildings that share an unfortunate but common character trait: disappointing, dull designs. Whether they’re shiny glass and steel cylinders, or glass and concrete or brick boxes, most are boring, bland buildings that look like something you’ve seen somewhere else many times before. Some are downright ugly. What’s worse: they’re clustered in pairs and threesomes of lookalike towers. Most of the harbourside highrises would look drab enough individually, but as a long line of homely twins and triplets, they collectively give the city skyline a repetitive cookie-cutter appearance from the water.

Though they are basically just pairs of mid-rise glass and steel boxes themselves, it’s the dramatic rooftop “skybridges” linking the 12-storey Pier 27 condo buildings that will give this project an interesting flair and unique bold style that should finally break the decades-old pattern of architectural monotony along Queen’s Quay boulevard.

I also like the refreshing low scale of the development, which thankfully won’t create another wide, tall wall blocking the rest of the city from the water, like so many of the condos built in the last 30 years.

A project of Fernbrook Homes and Cityzen Developments, The Residences of Pier 27 were designed by Peter Clewes of Toronto’s architectsAlliance.

Below are photos I have taken of the condo sales office and excavation, along with several artistic building renderings that appear on the project’s website. (Some pics I’ve published previously can be viewed in this construction progress post from early January.)

Additional renderings and six construction photos, along with an animated project video, can be viewed at the Pier 27 website.

 

The Residences at Pier 27

From the Pier 27 website, an aerial lake-view illustration of the condo complex


The Residences at Pier 27

From the website, an artistic waterside view of one of the condo buildings


The Residences at Pier 27

Side view rendering of one of the condo buildings and its rooftop “skybridge”


The Residences at Pier 27

Pier 27 sales office next to the construction site


The Residences at Pier 27

Another view of the Pier 27 sales centre


the Residences at Pier 27

The southwest side of the Pier 27 excavation on February 18 2011


the Residences at Pier 27

Another view of the west end of the giant excavation


the Residences at Pier 27

Break time? Idle earth movers at the top of the excavation


the Residences at Pier 27

Several huge mounds of dirt still must be removed


the Residences at Pier 27

Pier 27 residents with east-facing units will get to enjoy this view of the Redpath sugar refinery (along with the peculiar, syrupy odour that permeates the air)


the Residences at Pier 27

Concrete pumper working at the Pier 27 site February 18 2011


the Residences at Pier 27

A solitary excavating machine digs away at the south side of the enormous hole


the Residences at Pier 27

This is the east side of the excavation, next to the Redpath property


the Residences at Pier 27

On the edge: the concrete truck pumps away


the Residences at Pier 27

Another view of the concrete pumper truck



New year, new construction milestones

2011 is getting off to a foggy, soggy start in Toronto (it’s 10 degrees Celsius and pouring rain as I write), but the wet weather won’t put a damper on the frenetic pace of building activity across the downtown area. When construction gets back to full speed next week once the holiday season has wound down, numerous projects will start, approach or reach significant stages of construction. At least five towers will make a major mark on the city skyline soon. In Yorkville, The Four Seasons Private Residences and Museum House on Bloor, both of which already have a substantial streetscape presence, will be pouring their top floors during the winter. Several blocks south, on Bay Street, the Burano condo tower is quickly climbing high, while the Living Shangri-La Torontoand Trump International Toronto hotel/condo skyscrapers are adding excitement to the Financial District skyline. Market Wharf is doing the same for the St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood. In the next few weeks, streetscapes in several different areas will transform as construction climbs above ground level at 77 Charles Westin Yorkville, The L Tower on Yonge Street, Charlie Condos in the Entertainment District, The Modern at Sherbourne and Richmond, and the Clear Spirit tower in the Distillery District. Not too far behind are Aura at College Park on Yonge Street, Cinema Tower on Adelaide Street West, Three Hundred Front Street West, The Residences of Pier 27 on the waterfront, ICE Condos and Infinity3 Condos in the South Financial District, and Couture Condos on Jarvis Street; foundation work and underground levels are progressing fast at all seven sites. In the area bounded by Bloor, Bay, Wellesley and Jarvis Streets, demolition and excavation work should soon get in full swing for five key developments: U Condos, Five Condos, Nicholas Residences, X2 Condos, and the long-awaited One Bloor tower. Digging will get underway in earnest for the Ryerson University Student Learning Centre at Yonge and Gould Streets, and for the Delta Toronto hotel and Bremner Tower office complex in the South Financial District. Meanwhile, construction should soon conclude at the Sherbourne Common park at the waterfront, as well as for the 18 York office tower and seven major residential structures: the Ritz-Carlton Toronto, Crystal Blu Condos, Uptown Residences, James Cooper Mansion, Lumiere Condos, M5V Condos, and the YWCA Elm Centre. I’ll be taking a closer look at each of the above-mentioned projects — and many more hot construction spots — in the weeks ahead.

77 Charles Street


18 York