Toronto Ripley's Aquarium of Canada | 13.11m | 2s | Ripley Entertainment | B+H

savevp said:
Walking by this site yesterday after the Jays' game, I really felt that this area has immense tourist potential. Right there you have the CN Tower, Rogers Centre, Air Canada Centre, Roundhouse (with the new rail museum), MTCC and the new aquarium of course. Plus it is a minyte from the waterfront. I am excited because there is so much potential here. Great job Toronto!
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Which is why the big (50 floors 175m) hotel project planned for just west of 18 York makes good financial sense to me.
 
cfloryan said:
This nascent area's still very rough around the edges but you're absolutely right, it screams of potential. Once its basic urban form takes shape (buildings around the ACC - Ice, 18 York - are done), this place is going to need a lot of refining, like those ass nasty gardens by Convention Center South
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Convention Centre South is pretty ass nasty too. In fact, the whole convention centre needs a complete redo. This to me is another crucial element in realizing the area's full potential.
 
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I can see them someday building an office tower on top of / where the main south convention centre entrance is located on Bremner.
 
SP!RE said:
I can see them someday building an office tower on top of / where the main south convention centre entrance is located on Bremner.
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Is that even possible? Wouldn't they have had to plan for that when they put, what, 4 or 5 floors of convention space down there? I think it is what it is and will stay that way!
 
TOareaFan said:
Is that even possible? Wouldn't they have had to plan for that when they put, what, 4 or 5 floors of convention space down there? I think it is what it is and will stay that way!
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Yea, any additions up top will require them to shut down the entire south building of the convention centre. Pretty sure the land is zoned as open space anyway, meaning office towers or residential cannot be built here without rezoning.
 
I think the convention centre is fine, but I'd like to see the garden/square on the corner of Bremner and Simcoe become more of a destination. Either through the creation of a monument, or making it more attractive to people to sit and hang out. Something along the lines of what is at Bloor/Spadina wouldn't be bad.

I'd like to see the parking lot and the parking ramp/loading for the dome/Enwave building developed. Obviously you don't want to take away from the view of the dome from the lake, but even a 4-6 storey building on both sites would be adequate. Even something like a theatre would be great. Those two sites and the parking lot at Rees/Queens Quay could be huge in creating a really amazing tourism/entertainment area. You'd have a complete link from Union to the waterfront, which goes a step beyond the original goal of just linking the Tower to the waterfront.
 
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I really don't understand the obsession of having this aquarium in a downtown location and not on the waterfront. Look at Chicago, the Shedd Aquarium is not downtown, there's not much foot traffic unless you wann go to the waterfront or to the aquarium or to the planetarium.
Why not build it next to ontario place, build a museum as well, a hotel, some restos.
The idea of having it on dundas square has to be the silliest development idea i have ever heard. The CN tower idea is better. However, an aquarium BELONGS by the water.
 
While having an aquarium by the water makes sense aesthetically... and if the city/province, Feds or some rich philanthropists were chipping in the money to build a proper facility as Toronto deserves I think it WOULD have been on the waterfront.
However this proposal is by a private developer whose interest is in having year round traffic into their facility, therefore beside the CN Tower is much better for their profits.
 
Thanos said:
I really don't understand the obsession of having this aquarium in a downtown location and not on the waterfront. Look at Chicago, the Shedd Aquarium is not downtown, there's not much foot traffic unless you wann go to the waterfront or to the aquarium or to the planetarium.
Why not build it next to ontario place, build a museum as well, a hotel, some restos.
The idea of having it on dundas square has to be the silliest development idea i have ever heard. The CN tower idea is better. However, an aquarium BELONGS by the water.
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Seems Ripley's agrees.
 
from today's Daily Commercial News.....

AQUARIUM Proj: 9111851-2

Toronto, Metro Toronto Reg ON PREPARING PLANS

Front St, John St W, west of the CN Tower, M5V
$70,000,000 est

Note: Detailed design is underway. Developer is seeking City Council rezoning approvals. Approvals are anticipated late 2010. Schedules for design, tender and construction are undetermined pending the Owner's decision to proceed. Further update Fall/Winter, 2010.

Project: proposed proposed construction of an Aquarium at the base of the CN Tower. The project will include construction of three levels below grade with one level above grade for a 100,000 square foot base building to house aquarium and spectator space in Phase One. Phase Two proposes construction of a 50,000 sq ft extension to the building. Phase Three will include construction of a 50,000 sq ft retail and restaurant complex on the east side of the tower.

Scope: 300,000 square feet; 1 storey; 3 storeys below grade; 3 structures; 5 acres
Development: New
Category: Public bldgs; Retail, wholesale services
 
For those who didn't like the look of the initial rendering, good news from the Star:

What’s going on with 10 major projects around the GTA

RIPLEY’S AQUARIUM

PROJECT: A proposal for a 14,000 square-metre Ripley’s Aquarium at the base of the CN Tower is going ahead.

UPDATE: The city’s planning department is hopeful that final approval from city council will come in August. At issue is a technicality with the bylaw that pertains to the land, which currently does not specify it can be zoned for an aquarium. Several other changes to Ripley’s original proposal, such as the shape and exact positioning of the structure, will also need to be made.

“We’re quite happy with the work (Ripley’s) has been doing to meet our requests,†says Linda Macdonald, a planning manager with the City of Toronto. As for changes to the bylaw, “it’s not a huge change in terms of what could have been built there; we just want the language to specifically state that it could be zoned for an aquarium and the location will be moved just a little bit to the east at the base of the CN Tower. We will report to the full council for the August meeting so we can get approval before the fall electionâ€
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CML said:
For those who didn't like the look of the initial rendering, good news from the Star:
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Other than some minor tweaks to the siting of the building on the property I wouldn't expect anything substantially different from what has already been shown.
 
The Community Council Meeting to review OP & zoning by-law amendment for this application to be held on June 22 at 10:00am Committee Room 1, 2nd Floor City Hall.
 
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