1.8K 
UrbanToronto recently got a chance to tour Burano, Lanterra Developments' towering new 50-storey condo project on Bay, with lots of interesting stops along the way. On the day of our visit the clouds were just clearing up, so we'll start with a couple shots by other Forum members to remind you of how the sleek architectsAlliance-designed project looks from the south along Bay Street.
So let's go inside.
The lobby areas include a number of free-form pillars, alternately bulging and pinched. Interior designers Munge Leung will be applying the decorative surfaces and finishing touches in coming weeks. Below; elevators up.
The second floor of the complex features loft suites with 10 foot high ceilings, and recreated heritage windows facing Bay Street. The original windows simply were not up to code, but preservation architects E.R.A. did an amazing job spec'ing out the replacements: double-pane, and with working centre openings, they look just like the originals. Finishing work has just started in this suite.
Below, our host Sara peers out onto Bay Street.
Let's go up a floor to the top of the podium where the building's common amenities are located.
Above, we are looking through areas where the substrate for the floor of the lounge and dining rooms is just being finished. Below, across the hall we see work underway in the men's changeroom: two cutouts in a marble counter will hold sinks.
Connected to the changerooms is the fitness centre, where the workout machines have already arrived.
Down the hall, the building's new home theatre is just starting to take shape.
Outside the home theatre will be an internet lounge which overlooks Bay Street and the podium terrace. The canted windows – which can be glimpsed partially from Bay Street – can be seen fully here.
Outside, the terrace faces south, looking down the growing Bay Street canyon. Ahead of us are four giant planters with enough earth in them to support quite large trees. To the right is a temporary tarp structure hiding the pool while it is finished.
Finials running along the podium's parapet wall are visible. A glass screen will bring keep terrace users back from the edge.
We head a couple of floors up now, taking a peek at what some of the suite balconies look like facing Bay Street.
Above, one really feels part of action on Bay Street on the lower floors. Below; the curve on Bay just north of College provides a direct view south to the financial core.
Below, we ride the mid-rise elevators to the top, and pop out to inspect a suite. PDIs are taking place for some suites on lower floors, and the first occupancies are expected mid-June. (The suite pictured below is not ready for its PDI yet.)
Time to take the high-rise elevators all the way to the top. Things aren't quite so complete on the 50th floor.
Images above and below show that there is still much more work to be done at the top of the building. The views are good to go though…
The railings on the projecting ends of the balconies up and down the northwest and (here) southeast corners of the building have yet to be completed. The engineering of these portions is especially robust owing to their exposure, so they will be finished together in one sweep up each elevation. If we could have gotten closer to the edge to give you a view from that perch we would have, but safety concerns say otherwise until the railing and glazing is in!
Time to climb again - where few will get to. Welcome to the roof, and Burano's mechanical penthouse.
Above: the southern half is exposed to the elements, while you can see the north end screening at left.
Anchors are in place around the perimeter to allow window washing units to be suspended around the building's façades.
The north half of the mechanical penthouse is screened by glazing. Below we see the bottom of an evaporator unit, part of the HVAC system, hidden behind the screen. The units rest on springs which isolate vibrations from the floors below.
Materials await installation behind the screen.
And the views from up here? The north, dominated by the Manulife Centre and the new Four Seasons Hotel and Residences behind it.
Dramatic skies to the west enhance a view over University Avenue to Humber Bay and beyond.
To the south, the Residences of College Park dominate the foreground while the financial core makes an impressive backdrop.
Located on Bay just north of College it's no surprise that there is so much to see out the windows of Burano…
…but there's starting to be something to see much farther down in the building too, and I think I've saved the best for last.
Back at ground level Burano's north end consists of a huge glass atrium extending beyond the heritage podium, which presents a modern face to the corner of Bay and Grosvenor. Some UrbanToronto members have noticed work underway inside the atrium recently, and those familiar with the renderings of the project (which can be found on UrbanToronto's dataBase page for the project, linked at the bottom) know that a huge artwork is now being installed. Milan-based Sandro Martini is the artist in question, and behind the scaffolding below a huge fresco is now being installed. With base layers already painted in Milan, the work will be finished here over the next couple of months. It's huge, and we have a peek of it for you another shot down.
The scope of Martini's work is barely hinted at in this photo: more layers of paint must still be applied, and naturally we are only showing you a small portion of it. The work will be specially lit, and the room will become – hopefully – a bistro, or similar, featuring one of the most engaging artworks in the city. Once all is complete the corner of Bay and Grosvenor will be floodlit at night by this energetic and exciting work, bringing a lot of life to a spot that has needed an injection of it.
We will be back to look at progress on this major new public artwork to give you a much fuller idea of Martini's plan for it, and his methods.
In the meantime, whatever else you might want to know about Burano can likely be found by clicking on the links below. The dataBase link will take you to all of the renderings and all of the pertinent facts, while the Forum thread links will take you to the discussions of this standout structure. Let us know what you think of it all: comment here on in the threads!
| Related Companies: | architects—Alliance, Baker Real Estate Incorporated, Isotherm Engineering Ltd., Janet Rosenberg & Studio |
