Charles Street has become a hub of construction activity in recent years. Its proximity to Yorkville, one of Canada's top shopping districts, is attractive to buyers who want to be close to the action. When we last visited the bustling construction site of CHAZ Yorkville Condos, work was progressing on the 19th storey of this 47-storey tower by developer 45 Charles Ltd. and project manager Edenshaw Homes.
The five-storey podium of the building, which is now clad in a green shade of glass and contrasted by limestone panel accents, has significantly changed since the last visit. Recessed windows within the limestone provide shade for balconies while further emphasizing the bold limestone outline. The glass-clad floors above the square podium are octagonal, lending unique angles and impressive views of the Toronto skyline.
If you move around to the south side of the Page+Steele/IBI Group Architects-designed tower and look way up above the podium, you'll see the cantilevering CHAZ CLUB. This two-storey space 31 and 32 levels above grade is the star of the building.
When you are inside, the residents-only CHAZ CLUB is on the 36th and 37th floors, allowing for the skipping of the 13th floor and all the ends-in-4s. The CLUB consists of a lounge with a demonstration kitchen and dining area and a balcony overlooking the floor below and the views outside. From it the stunning views are instantly apparent, but there's also an open-air balcony to really drink in the drama of the skyline.
From the open-air balcony, the massive Aura at College Park dominates the southwards view. Also prominent is Five St. Joseph on Yonge Street, close to topping off and with glazing currently reaching about half way up the tower.
To the southeast, the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood dominates the view. Lake Ontario, mostly hidden by skyscrapers in the previous south view, now appears mostly unobstructed.
Turning a bit more to the east in the image below, construction work continues on the revitalization and new addition to 66 Isabella. The new towers of Regent Park can also be seen in the distance in the centre of the frame.
Straight to the east, X, Couture and the continuing construction of X2, now topping off, grab all the attention. In the left side of the image below, the trees of the Don Valley also begin to be seen.
Looking to the north, Toronto's large tree canopy, which is flourishing despite the December ice storm, becomes more evident. Peeking just into frame from below is the tower crane for Casa II Condos by Cresford Developments.
The image below offers a complete aerial view of the active construction site for the 56-storey Casa II Condos.
Moving over to the northwest, the Yorkville cluster becomes visible. Already an imposing structure, One Bloor East by Great Gulf Homes can be seen steadily rising.
The image below offers a closer look at One Bloor East.
The view directly to the west is obstructed by Casa Condos, but the image below depicts the hoist which safely moves workers up and down the building. Suites at the corners of CHAZ are angled so that they look past Casa to the northwest or southwest.
In addition to the collection of photos above, we also have a video, embedded below, which captures vertigo-inducing views looking over the balcony edges and down the sides of CHAZ.
Now that CHAZ's impressive views have been covered, we will be back with a better look at the inside of the building later this week. Be sure to return to see a tour of a near-complete suite and other construction activity on the site.
In the meantime, to find more information about the project including renderings and floorplans, visit the dataBase file linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum threads or voice your opinion in the comments section provided at the bottom of this page.