Sunnybrook Plaza was the first of many suburban strip plazas built in Toronto in the mid-20th century. The plaza opened in 1952 at the northeast corner of Bayview and Eglinton, and has been home to many retailers and businesses over the decades since that. In January 2015 we learned that owner RioCan had redevelopment plans for the plaza, and we are now have the development proposal designed by Turner Fleischer Architects to take a look at.

Looking northeast at 660 Eglinton Avenue East by Turner Fleischer Architects for RioCan

The proposed development would feature 13 and 19-storey towers with a combined 426 residential units, made up of 71 one-bedroom, 201 one-bedroom plus dens, 56 two-bedroom and 98 two-bedroom plus dens. Rising to respective heights of 216.5 feet and 164 feet, the two towers would step back from a base building with a predominant height of eight storeys, articulated with stepbacks and setbacks at various heights. The base building would contain residential units on floors 2-8, second floor green roofs flanking a 707 square-metre outdoor amenity area and a 1,014 square-metre indoor amenity space on levels 2 and 3.

South elevation, 660 Eglinton Avenue East by Turner Fleischer Architects

At ground level 24,929 square feet (2,316 m2) of commercial retail space would address the Eglinton Avenue and Bayview Avenue frontages. Midway along the Eglinton frontage a sheltered walkway 5.49 metres wide would provide pedestrian access through the building to the north side of the development where vehicular access and the residential lobbies are located.

West elevation, 660 Eglinton Avenue East by Turner Fleischer Architects

The intersection is the location of the future Bayview Station on the Crosstown LRT, the main entrance to which would be located across the street at the southeast corner of the intersection, currently the site of a McDonald's restaurant. The improved transit service is driving intensification plans along the Crosstown route, especially in the immediate vicinity of planned stations, with denser developments such as this one proposed to replace existing low density structures.

Aerial view of the 660 Eglinton Avenue East site

City Planning will be scheduling a first community consultation in upcoming weeks, with a final report and public meeting targeted for the fourth quarter of 2015. 

We will return with additional information as it becomes available. In the meantime, you can check out images of the proposed development in our new dataBase file for the project. Want to get involved in the discussion? Visit the associated Forum threads, or leave a comment using the space provided at the bottom of this page.