Yonge & Rich Condos (25 Richmond St E, Great Gulf, 22-50s, aA)

[AndreaPalladio]

Somethings doing at the parking lot on the Southeast corner of Richmond & Victoria. I noticed on my way to the office this morning that they were taking down the billboards. Tonight the lot is completely fenced in, lights have been put up and there are what appear to be truck gates on both Victoria and Richmond.

I don't recall ever seeing a planning notice here? Any one know what's going on?

[urbandreamer]

Teeple's TCHC building perhaps? 60 Richmond St East: http://www.urbandb.com/canada/ontari...richmond_east/

[AndreaPalladio]

No, that's further East. They're still doing demo on that site.

[Edward Skira]

Interesting. Though fenced off it was still used as a parking lot on the weekend. Certainly one lot I'd like to see go.

[AndreaPalladio]

And again this morning, partially. It would be a good spot for apartments. I think they are doing something with the restaurant next door too.

[maestro]

Surprise lies beneath this surface lot

- rip the roof off the underground parkade, fill it in, and top it off with a freshly paved suface lot. AFAIK, the city wasn't too keen on approving the necessary permits. Why? I don't know but it is to remain a surface parking lot not to mention a cheap ass solution to a parkade with issues

[AndreaPalladio]

huh?

[Observer Walt]

Indeed, huh? Whose parkade is it, and what issues are there?

I looked for the ownership, the property is owned by a numbered company apparently registered in New Brunswick, who have had it for a number of years. No useful info there.

[jaborandi]

huh?

exactly

[Electricitypants]

This site is part of a larger site that has been owned for more than a decade by a Hong Kong investor. The previous owners had at one time received approval for a two tower condo complex back in the 1980s, I think. The site includes the L-shaped parking lot fronting on Richmond, Victoria and Lombard, as well as the former Milwaukee's pool hall/Zasu restaurant building on the north side of Lombard that is now falling into disrepair.

The north part of the site, on which the work is now proceeding, is actually a buried underground parking garage (the entrance ramp is/was, I recall, just north of the building at the northeast corner of Victoria and Lombard - not part of the site, by the way). It's not used, and I guess the owner is now demolishing the garage by filling it in, leaving only a surface lot. The underground part hasn't been used for many years, although I don't know if that is because of the zoning laws or it was condemned.

[ShonTron]

Welcome!

Thanks for the explanation - it seems to make sense now.

[AndreaPalladio]

Wow! I had no idea.

[Observer Walt]

Electricitypants, welcome to the forum and thank you for the information.

It would be good to see some form of development on that site, but apparently there are no such plans at present.

[AndreaPalladio]

I'd be happy if they got the restaurant opened again, even though that location may well be one of those cursed restaurant locations were nothing succeeds.

[RJR123]

While I agree that it's good to have that restaurant re-opened, the name of the new establishment that is going in there is "Da Factory." I can't imagine it's a place I would want to visit given the name.