In the midst of a building boom where giants of glass and steel are popping up chockablock, we often don't see the building material that built our great city. Like the flatiron shaped Gooderham Building, many of the structures of Old Toronto were built with red brick, formed from the dense clay quarried from the Don River Valley. Several of these modest brick buildings live on today, in what has since become known as the St. Lawrence neighbourhood.

The Berczy and its surroundings from above, image by SkyJacked

For developer Concert Properties and architects Young + Wright / IBI Group and ERA, the historic appeal and charming aesthetic of the area were impossible to ignore when designing The Berczy. Now halfway through construction, the 13-storey condominium project is starting to reveal some of its finer details, including the rebuilt façade of the historic Greey’s Factory Building. The century old four-storey warehouse at 6 Church Street was demolished in 2011 to make way for the site excavation. Almost two years later, a nearly identical façade stands in its place.

Rebuilt façade of Greey's Factory building, image by Jack Landau

Rebuilt façade of Greey's Factory building, image by Jack Landau

Close-up of rebuilt façade, image by Jack Landau

The façade, visible in the above images, was reconstructed using the original bricks, providing a tangible connection between the new condo and the neighbouring heritage stock. The Berczy’s terraced design sets the top floors back above the fourth floor, reflecting the heights of neighbouring structures. Other contextual considerations include the use of red brick for the rest of the building's lower floors (all new brick), as well as the prominent cornices leading to the main setback.

Rendering of The Berczy, image courtesy of Concert Properties

Over the past few months we have also seen the installation of the impressive dark black window frames, which will contrast nicely with the surrounding red brick.

Dark black cladding on The Berczy's north façade, image by Jack Landau

Dark black cladding on The Berczy's east façade, image by Jack Landau

Once completed, the development will bring 161 condominium units to the historic St. Lawrence Neighbourhood, and is sure to make a few appearances on future postcards featuring the classic “Flatiron angle”.

The Berczy rising next to the 1892 Gooderham Building, image by Jack Landau

For additional information and renderings, visit the dataBase page listed below.  Want to get involved in the discussion?  Check out the related forum thread, here.

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