Toronto One Bloor East | 257.24m | 76s | Great Gulf | Hariri Pontarini

urbandreamer said:
How about the two aA towers I propose (Ice-ish, 65+55) with a curving S alleyway (a fun take on Roy Square) between the two 8 story podiums, curving from Yonge NE towards the Xerox building/Bloor Street.
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Narrow streets/ alleyways are not lacking in this area.

An open-on-one-side public space is.

Sorry but your idea sounds entirely gratuitous and like an architect going on an ego trip.

"Look how much fun I can have designing this site at Yonge + Bloor!!!"

Instead, we need functionality and an excellent use of space at this corner. Or fifty years down the road, we will still be stuck with the same egotistical piece of crap, and won't be able to retrofit it or make it better.
 
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SP!RE said:
Instead, we need functionality and an excellent use of space at this corner. Or fifty years down the road, we will still be stuck with the same egotistical piece of crap, and won't be able to retrofit it or make it better.
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I agree, you dont have to look to far from this corner for evidence.
 
I love Rockefeller Plaza in NYC but I'm not sure about the idea of a public space, square or otherwise, for Yonge and Bloor. It just wouldn't have the same sort of scale and we probably wouldn't do it very well anyway. Also, Yorkville is but a hop, skip and jump away and there are lots of little parks and charming streets there to wile away time in. Big and bold for Yonge and Bloor does it for me. Nice big gorgeous towers and busy crowded streets of bustling people will suit just fine. To chime in though I would like to see something dramatically tall here and something a little apart from the typical Toronto box.... but 'tasteful' of course:)
 
One could argue that a tower that will 'fit in' at Yonge & Bloor will have to be something out of the ordinary.

I really hope it's a unique design.
 
Rockafeller square came to my mind as well when thinking about this space. I'm thinking mixed use but I'm debating where to place the office and the residential portions. Is an office tower more suitable fronting along Bloor or Yonge. The residential portion could probably be set back from the intersection towards the south east corner.

Also don't you think that the TTC/City should get involved in creating a second entrance to Bloor station as part of this project? As I recall the Yonge line pases right below the lot. A subway station in the mold of the bone station (I can't recall which station it is) in NY situated in the middle of a linear park parallel to Yonge would be awesome IMHO.
 
Do you think they already have the design in mind? I mean things could change, so far they have just given a basic idea of their plans. I don't understand why they would want to go shorter than 1 bloor, unless it has to do with credit not flowing like it did back in the day (pre 2008 crisis)
 
I'm so disappointed with this. The cancellation of 1 Bloor gave us new hope for something even better, but now it looks like the whole thing was a waste. I have no idea why Great Gulf Homes would even consider building a 'typical highrise' that 'fits in' with the rest of Yonge and Bloor. The fact that they use the word 'highrise' over the word 'skyscraper' concerns me as well.
 
Marcanadian said:
I'm so disappointed with this. The cancellation of 1 Bloor gave us new hope for something even better, but now it looks like the whole thing was a waste. I have no idea why Great Gulf Homes would even consider building a 'typical highrise' that 'fits in' with the rest of Yonge and Bloor. The fact that they use the word 'highrise' over the word 'skyscraper' concerns me as well.
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Typical :confused: Aprox. 45-50 Stories, Boxy, Blue/Green Glass, 2-3 Storey average podium.:mad:
 
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well it depends...


They know they have great potential in the site and that could put a huge tower up and many people will know them by that project.


However after the first fiasco, Great Gulf is being rather conservative. Canadian companies are rather conservative and that has been our weakness and our strength.

I doubt it will be anything under 52 stories.
 
Originally posted by Woodbrige_Heights
Also don't you think that the TTC/City should get involved in creating a second entrance to Bloor station as part of this project? As I recall the Yonge line pases right below the lot. A subway station in the mold of the bone station (I can't recall which station it is) in NY situated in the middle of a linear park parallel to Yonge would be awesome IMHO.
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I can't recall if there was a plan for subway access from 1 Bloor East, but there is already an entrance to the station in the Xerox building next door (with access from both Bloor and Hayden).
 
Guys sorry to bring 1BE back.:(

How the plan to build Canada's tallest condo fell apart
Triple-whammy felled original deal for 1 Bloor in Toronto's downtown core.

The chunk of downtown Toronto many call the best address in Canada – 1 Bloor – got a new owner this week as Bazis International handed the deed over to Great Gulf Homes. Behind that transaction is a tale of legal stick handling seldom (if ever) seen in Canadian real estate.

Bazis International
The original plan for 1 Bloor East, created for Bazis International.
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First, the 490 people who bought suites at 1 Bloor will get their deposits back, plus interest, the lawyers say. The paperwork has been mailed; most buyers have responded and cheques are being cut, they say.

Second, Bazis’ other projects are unaffected, say Mr. Margulies and Mr. Goodman. Crystal Blu on nearby Balmuto Street is nearing completion and Emerald Park at Yonge and Finch is 86 per cent sold and waiting for rezoning approval, a process delayed by the recent strike by City of Toronto employees.

While construction loan financing remains tight, the lawyers are confident Bazis will find a lender so it can proceed with Emerald Park.

Yes, Bazis has to swallow a hefty multimillion-dollar loss (some estimate it to be in the $30-million range) but the price paid by Great Gulf (according to the Ontario Land Registry Office it was $53-million, though none of the parties have made that public yet) clears the mortgage on the land plus a bit extra, the lawyers say, adding that Bazis also retains an unspecified participation in whatever Great Gulf builds on the site.
Great Gulf Homes now owns the site and is working on plans for a mixed use condo-commercial project.

And finally the trio of canny real-estate veterans Рmore on them later Рwho tried to snap up the site through the back door by buying the $45-million in mortgages on it from Soci̩t̩ G̩n̩ral of France are to get a cheque to pay off the loan plus $242,823 in interest arrears. (They asked for $2-million, but a judge dismissed that claim saying it would have represented a 35 per cent interest rate.)

That’s the situation now. Here’s the story of how the original plan to build an 80-storey condo tower at 1 Bloor came together – and fell apart.
More...........http://www.theglobeandmail.com/real...adas-tallest-condo-fell-apart/article1291333/
 
Bazis condominium site formally known as One Bloor, becomes Great Gulfs Number One Bloor... No idea how to post a picture, so here is the link to my blog showing the new signage.. here.

Their new website and registration, here.
 
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