A couple of months since our last visit, HighPark Condominiums by The Daniels Corporation is suddenly making an impact on its surroundings as it begins to rise above the hoarding. Let's catch up with construction on this 14-storey structure-to-be.
Depending on where you are looking at the U-shaped Diamond Schmitt Architects-designed development, HighPark is now on it's second, third, or even fourth floor.
The middle of the U will face south, creating a sheltered courtyard on Bloor Street, with seating for a restaurant, landscaping, and the building's main entrance, all protected from cooler north winds. It's starting to take shape now, but difficult to make out owing to all of the wall forms currently stored in it.
Turning to the east (on our right), we can see one of the future retail spaces on Bloor. They are double-height spaces on both the east and west sides of the building, with this peek into the east space revealing its particularly high ceilings. As Bloor descends the hill, the floor drops with it, promising to create a very dramatic space here for a retailer someday.
Now on the floor above that space, we can look back down at the entry area at the back of the courtyard, and get a look at some of the forms in place to create future walls and floors here. You can tell from the worker pictured that this third floor is taller than normal too.
We've moved around the courtyard to the west now, and are looking back at the double-height retail space. Above it, a column form is being readied on the corner nearest High Park.
With rebar sticking out the top of it, the column form is nearly ready to be filled with concrete. Once the concrete is sufficiently cured, the form will be lifted off to be used again to take the building higher after the next floor has been formed as well.
Turning to the southwest we see what's happening on the other side of the courtyard. Here there will be two amenity roof decks at differing heights, with retail and a restaurant below. The closest roof deck will be outfitted with gardening plots for residents to grow their own vegetables, a feature that has proven very popular in other Daniels condominiums built around the GTA in the last few years. Behind it are the forms for another deck currently being poured.
In fact, when we visited on Friday, cement trucks were rolling into the site every few minutes, each with another 9 cubic meters of material needed for the pour. Below, one full bucket is being hoisted away by the crane, while an empty bucket is just starting to be filled.
Here's that full bucket—each holds 2 cubic metres—being emptied in scant seconds to continue the pour.
As soon as the empty bucket has been hoisted away, construction workers get busy on levelling the mix amongst the steel rebar mesh which structurally reinforces the concrete. This deck required a total of 200 cubic metres of cement mix and was completed over the course of one day. When the building is finished, this deck will feature an outdoor pilates area, a lounge area, a sun deck, a barbecue and outdoor dining area, and a picnic spot all with a view of High Park's oak savannah.
Turning to the northwest, we look over an area that will one day be the west arm of the U-shaped building. Right now though, workers are constructing fly forms which when finished will be hoisted from floor to floor by the crane as the building grows. One form has to be built to fit precisely between each set of supporting walls.
Having caught up with what's happening above, we are back down at ground level. Here on the north side of the building, we have a view of a ventilation shaft for the building's three storey underground garage. The Bloor-Danforth subway line runs a few metres to the north beside the lower garage floors. Now hidden below, the condominium's columns and walls sit on neoprene pads (they look like giant hockey pucks) which absorb the vibrations of the passing subway trains, keeping them from transferring into the new structure. It's pretty impressive when walking around the building: you would never know a live subway line was practically below your feet.
Here's a last look at the building for now, looking west along the north side. It's here where there is another residential entrance and where cars will pull up.
Want to know more about Daniels' HighPark Condominiums? Our dataBase for the building, with lots of renderings, facts, and links to the official website is linked below. Want to talk about the project? You can join in the conversation in the associated Forum threads, or add your comment in the space provided on this page.
Related Companies: | Diamond Schmitt Architects, Isotherm Engineering Ltd., Land Art Design Landscape Architects Inc, The Daniels Corporation |