Clear Spirit Living Poll

[ShonTron]

I wanted to gauge the opinions over Clear Spirit Living, in the Distillery District.

Please just limit your comments to about the poll. Any discussion about the project itself should remain in the P&C thread here.

 

[EnviroTO]

I don't mind scale differences as long as the tall portion is set back, keeps ground level designed to fit in with the lower scale buildings, and the tower is highly reflective. If the tower was to be made of red brick and accents which mimick the distillery district then I think that would destroy the area far more.

 

[syn]

I think one option should have been "I'm not against development in the area but I don't feel these are appropriate". I don't hate the towers themselves, and I don't have a problem with development in the area. I do hate what the project will do to the Distillery and don't think it should be allowed.

 

[ShonTron]

That's what I tried to encompass in the second phase. Not against development (like the idea) but concerned about the scale or what it will do.

I guess it's hard to do a perfect poll.

 

[ganjavih]

I chose the second option. More residents in the neighbourhood is obviously a good thing but there are much better ways to do it.

 

[Bogtrotter]

I like the idea of residential development in the area, but I find the proximity of these towers to the distillery buildings a bit unsettling. I would have preferred low or midrise there, and indeed on any plot directly abutting the distillery property.

 

[Hydrogen]

I would agree!

 

[Martinsizon]

i like the idea of old and new together

 

[Zzzzzz]

Economy of scale

I chose the second option. More residents in the neighbourhood is obviously a good thing but there are much better ways to do it.

I'm interested in how you would propose to increase population density to the point where the area is economically viable?

 

[ganjavih]

Instead of two or three point towers, several midrise buildings. You don't need point towers to make a neighbourhood economically viable, and there is still plenty of land in the area to create smart urban neighbourhoods.

Some examples of appropriate developments:

 

[Urban Shocker]

Why would taking three point towers and squishing them down to form a lowrise mass of six to ten-storey buildings that - as your images suggest - would drastically reduce the amount of public space in this pedestrian district be considered "much better"?

 

[ganjavih]

Well, personally, I prefer streets lined with people-scaled buildings to large buildings surrounding by large "public spaces". Otherwise, wouldn't we all love the "tower in a park"? Lots of public space there.

 

[Urban Shocker]

But the lanes that will be created by this development are narrow, in character with the existing lanes there. Your proposed lowrise development would fill in much of that public space. aA's point towers with their podium buildings, and the "ribbon building", contribute to the pedestrian scale by expanding what's there by not filling in those spaces between buildings with a mass of lower structures.

 

[ShonTron]

Not this again.

Zzzzz, you've awaken a sleeping giant.

 

[Zzzzzz]

Not this again.

Zzzzz, you've awaken a sleeping giant.

Just helping out where I can

To put this into perspective, ganjavih, you're suggesting that it would look better visually to take the 3 narrow glass “point†towers, that have a relatively small foot print, and in my opinion are interesting, somewhat unique for Toronto and help to integrate old and new, and divide them up into 6 smaller fat blocks!

Which by the pics supplied and your description, we don't need to imagine or even look too far to see an example. Just look North to the brick clad behemoth buildings that were first developed on the North side of Mill Street.

Thankfully someone was paying attention and didn’t duplicate that decision!