The Pinnacle on Adelaide, at the southwest corner of John Street and Adelaide Street, has almost completed its 46-storey vertical stretch. The development by Vancouver-based developer Pinnacle International is another major project in Toronto's Entertainment District, joining neighbouring mega-projects Festival Tower and Cinema Tower. Once a low-rise commercial/industrial district, the Pinnacle on Adelaide will add 564 more units to this burgeoning and lively mixed-use, high-rise community on the western fringe of the downtown core.

The Pinnacle's upper levels near completion, image by MafaldaBoy

There has been a lot of construction progress in the intervening months since our last update. Moreover, an additional three storeys were approved by Toronto's Committee of Adjustments, and the Pinnacle on Adelaide will rise to 46 storeys, beyond its initial 43-storey plan. Lest the added density frighten this city's vertical-phobic, the development is contributing high quality features to the public realm along John Street.

A new public square fronting John Street will be enveloped by the Pinnacle's L-shaped, 10-storey podium to the north and west, and the recently moved heritage Richard West House to the south. The mid-19th century Richard West House, most recently a Fox and Fiddle pub, was moved to make way for the Pinnacle on Adelaide from its original location at the southwest corner of John and Adelaide streets, after a brief re-location in the parking lot across the street. Now settled into its final resting place adjacent to the former Duke of Argyle Pub (currently Daniels' Cinema Tower construction office), it will be integrated into the new complex and restored to serve as a retail space or restaurant. 

A new public plaza will be surrounded by the Pinnacle's 10-storey podium and heritage structures, image courtesy of Pinnacle

The Pinnacle's well defined public plaza should be quite a lively setting for the next Toronto International Film Festival. It will also contribute to the city's efforts on a revitalization of John Street which will see high quality paving surfaces, trees, wider sidewalks and frequent pedestrianization among other flexible uses. The street's revitalization and Pinnacle's public plaza will be part of John Street's rebirth as a cultural corridor for Toronto, stretching from the AGO, past the CTV/Bell Media Buildings, the NFB, the TIFF Bell Lightbox, and toward the Rogers Centre, CN Tower, Ripley's Aquarium, and Roundhouse Park. Harbourfront is a short walk south from there.

The John Street Revitalization will see new trees, high quality pavings and flexible uses, image courtesy of the City of Toronto

The Pinnacle's location, marked P, along the John Street cultural corridor, image courtesy of the Entertainment District BIA

UrbanToronto members MafaldaBoy, IndridCold and kram74 have contributed great photos in our Forum of the construction progress at Pinnacle on Adelaide. Long shots of the Pinnacle from a distance show its inclusion within the coherent trio of towers that now rise high above 19th century warehouses on this block of the Entertainment District. 

The Pinnacle on Adelaide joins the Festival Tower and Cinema Tower in the Entertainment District, image by Indrid Cold

The Pinnacle rises above the warehouses along Adelaide Street, image by MafaldaBoy

The Pinnacle joins neighbouring high-rise the Festival Tower, image by MafaldaBoy

Closer photos reveal the slate gray brick cladding of the Pinnacle's now completed 10-storey podium. The distinct geometric interplay between its glass windows, balconies and support structures brings a human scale to the towering structure's podium, and will provide an excellent background to public plaza. The slate-coloured finishing of Pinnacle's podium contrasts nicely with the warm terra cotta of Cinema Tower's podium to the west. 

The Pinnacle's 10-storey podium joins heritage Richard West house and former Duke of Argyle pub fronting John, image by Kram74

The black brick finishings of the Pinnacle's podium contrast with the terra cotta hues of Cinema Tower, image by MafaldaBoy

The Pinnacle's 10-storey podium is enveloped by its tower, image by MafaldaBoy

Other shots show the glass tower reaching toward the sky, revealing Hariri Pontarini Architects' use of a clean, simple rectilinear form adorned with a high-quality blue-tinted curtainwall glazing. 

The Pinnacle rises to its 46-storey height, image by MafaldaBoy

The Pinnacle joins the high-rise Cinema Tower in height and density, image by Indrid Cold

For additional information including building facts, renderings and floorplans, please visit our dataBase file, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out one of the associated Forum threads, or voice your opinion in the comments section provided below.