Executives dressed in crisp suits, beautiful sunshine, and the warmest day of the year so far made for a perfect backdrop to today's very important construction milestone for the Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences. Gathered this morning in the presentation centre on Scollard Street, attendees heard from Isadore Sharp, founder and chairman of the Four Seasons Hotel and Resorts. Issy recounted both the company's beginning and its rise to the global brand it has become, soon to feature its new landmark flagship hotel building befitting the city in which the company was founded in 1961.
Shortly after a few more words were spoken, executives and attendees made their way around the block to the South side of the tower to take the construction hoist elevator to the 46th storey where the ceremony would continue.
Perched high above the ground on a small aerial loading platform attached to the East side of the building, executives gathered for a few stunning photos with the city as the backdrop, immediately followed by the media who took every opportunity to photograph the city from high above Yorkville. These views will soon become the exclusive vantage points for those who bought one of the 100 residences in the building.
Not a moment was wasted, as the tower crane soon delivered a bucket of concrete to the platform, carefully lowering it down while shouldering most of its immense weight for the duration of the ceremony. According to a construction manager on site, the bucket contained approximately 2 meters of concrete, weighing in at a whopping 11,000 lbs.
Executives gathered for another round of photos, each with a Toonie in hand, followed by a ceremonial coin toss into the bucket for good luck. The bucket was than slowly hoisted back up the tower for what would be the final concrete pour of the project, bringing to completion the construction of the towers rooftop mechanical room.
Executives were available throughout the ceremony to answer questions, and plenty of time was given to snap photos and to take in the stunning views. Here is some more of what we saw from the 47th floor.
Following the ceremony we climbed up to the 52nd storey to experience the views from the penthouse suite. While the floor may not look like much right now, within the year this 9038 sq ft space will be transformed into one of the most luxurious residential estates in Toronto, along with its recently announced $28 Million purchase price that reflects both the towers location in the city and impact on the skyline. Here is what the view will look like when you step off the elevator and walk into the suites galleria.
The stunning views will only be matched by the luxurious interior when complete, but for now, this is what the suite looks like under construction.
When finished, it will look like the following renders provided by Four Seasons. The residence will have 12 to 14 foot ceilings, four corner terraces, three bedrooms, two study rooms, a theatre, as well as its own wine cellar.
Much work still has to be done before the complex is complete. Curtain wall glass has to be installed on the top 12 floors, the cladding around the base has to be finished, and interior fittings have to be installed and decorated. Four Seasons expects that around this time next year, the building will be ready for its grand opening and the beginning of a new chapter for the company in its home city.
The Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences is being developed by Menkes, Lifetime Developments, and Alcion Ventures, and was designed by architectsAlliance and Page + Steele Architects.
Technical note: We referred to the penthouse suite as being on the 52nd storey, which is true. That floor is numbered 55 however, due to the usual skipping of the 13th... but otherwise, we just are not sure which two other floor numbers are being skipped, or why. We will find out someday!
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Related Companies: | architects—Alliance, CCxA, L.A. Inc., Menkes Developments, o2 Planning and Design |