The Gupta Group has released plans for a tower a few blocks east of Toronto's Bloor-Yonge corner, complete with new details on what will ultimately become a mixed-used high-rise condo/hotel combination at 387-403 Bloor Street East. Within a minute's walk of Sherbourne subway station, the redesign by Page+Steele/IBI Group Architect for Rosedale on Bloor includes a 52-storey condo tower with frontage along Bloor, and an integrated mid-rise podium facing Selby Street to the south.

Rosedale on Bloor, rendering courtesy of Page+Steele

While early renderings of the project were met with a cool reception on our Forum, the latest images from the developer look more promising, the exterior design having evolved from its initial 2013 proposal (below). Most notable about the updated design are the absence of the overhanging roof cornice, a move away from east-west symmetry, and perhaps most significantly, the completely overhauled design of the podium as the programme of the building has changed somewhat. See both images below, for a direct comparison:

Rosedale on Bloor, early rendering from 2013, image courtesy of Page+Steele

Rosedale on Bloor, current rendering of podium level, image courtesy of Page+Steele

As seen above, the exterior of the tower has also been contemporized, thanks to a reduction in the surface area previously taken up by the glass curtain wall featured in the rendering from 2013. For the podium, much of the glass has given way to stone, with a lobby entrance on the west side of the building for a planned Canopy by Hilton hotel (a new lifestyle brand coming from the Hilton Hotels family, and to be operated by the Gupta's Easton's Group of Hotels), and retail and residential entries on the east side of the frontage along Bloor. 

Rosedale on Bloor, close-up of tower, image courtesy of Page+Steele

The 52-storey tower will reach a maximum height of 576 feet and 119 feet respectively, and will include a total of 487 suites with another 188 rooms dedicated to the hotel. The podium will house both the hotel and residential lobby spaces, and will be additionally shared with retail and other building amenities. 180 parking spots in a five-level underground garage will be accessed from Selby Street.

Rosedale on Bloor, cityscape context, image courtesy of Page+Steele

A sign of the times, the proposal will replace two single-storey retail stores dating back to the 1920s and a listed heritage structure—a converted Victorian home with a retail addition at grade—dating back to a time when Bloor and Sherbourne would have been virtually suburban. However the site develops from this point on will be of special concern to those interested in the continued evolution of Bloor Street East, in conjunction with the as of yet slow, but steady gentrification of what may one day become a contiguous continuation of Toronto's famous Mink Mile to the west.

387-403 Bloor St. E., one of the last single homes on Bloor to be demolished, image by Forum member dt_toronto_geek

Keep posted with UrbanToronto as developments on this site continue to progress. If you want to know more about the Rosedale on Bloor, can check out the dataBase file linked below, or choose the associated Forum thread if you want to get in on the discussion. You may always leave a comment in the space provide on this page.