As the vacancy rate for office property Downtown continues to be tight, developers are poised to get new office properties to construction throughout the core to keep up with the high demand. One project we've been keeping a close eye on is 100 Adelaide West, now to be known as the Ernst and Young Tower. Oxford Properties has announced the start of work to build a 40-storey state-of-the-art office building that will replace and in part incorporate the former Concourse Building. Only a reconstituted facade of that Art Deco heritage building will be retained, including its mosaics by Group of Seven artist J.E.H. Macdonald. This new build will become the third phase in the well established Richmond Adelaide Centre where lead tenants Ernst and Young and the TMX Group will join neighbours like TD Bank and Google via a PATH concourse connection.

Ernst and Young Tower, Image courtesy of Oxford Properties

The new building  is already 45% pre-leased. It will feature expansive 23,500 square foot average floor plates optimized for open and collaborative workspaces. 9'6" ceiling heights will showcase the floor to ceiling windows on each level. Architects Kohn Pederson and Fox along with locals WZMH are aiming to build a true 21st century office building through open concept design principles, focusing on natural light and enviromentally conscious design. The coveted LEED Platinum status is being targeted. Enviromental standards are a big part of this project where the building will not only feature on-demand fresh air, daylight and motion sensors, electric car parking, a high performance building envelope and mechanical systems, state of the art lighting controls, bicycle storage, change rooms, and it will even introduce something called a "Green Lease". A Green Lease stipulates how occupants manage, occupy, and operate the building in a long-term, sustainable way.

Ernst and Young Tower, Image courtesy of Oxford Properties

Oxford properties have released a video with some pretty cool 3D animations of the building for you to check out below!

In addition to the new public space and renovated entrance through the Concourse Building, the 900,000 sq ft tower will feature a 5,000 sq ft outdoor north terrace on the 6th floor. The 2.4 Million sq ft Richmond Adelaide Centre has seen its fair share of modernization lately including a complete renovation of 111 Richmond Street West for Google and an overhaul of its PATH and street level plaza areas. This new phase will not be ready for business untill some time in 2017, until then we will keep you updated as this new landmark rises. Here is a last look look at what we can expect from the full tower.

Ernst and Young Tower, Image courtesy of Oxford Properties

Want to know more about this project? Check out the dataBase listing below or join the discussion in our Forum!