Following a review of comments from Toronto's Planning Department and the City's Design Review Panel in particular, a revised proposal for a mixed-use tower at Yonge and Eglinton has been submitted to the City. The 65-storey 1 Eglinton East, designed by Hariri Pontarini Architects for Davpart, has been revised to address the many concerns raised since its late-2014 submission, and subsequent November 2015 re-submission which the Design Review Panel (DRP) critiqued in March 2016.

The latest August 2016 re-submission presents a number of design simplifications, minor massing changes, and public realm improvements while largely preserving the original scale of the proposal. Compared to the original proposal seeking 68 storeys, a gross floor area (GFA) of 56,697m2, and a floor space index (FSI) of 29.1, the latest submission seeks 65 storeys, a GFA of 54,790m2, and an FSI of 28.13.

Southeast view, 1 Eglinton East, image retrieved from submission to City of Toronto

In response to comments from the DRP, 1 Eglinton East's podium design has been simplified to improve its relationship with the building while placing more focus on the ground floor entrance. A change in cladding types follows a horizontal plane, rather than the diagonal seen on the previous iteration. This revision is interpreted as providing a clear marker of where the commercial/retail podium levels end and where the residential levels begin.

Live/work units in the building have been replaced with more traditional office space, now conforming with the office replacement policies set out in Toronto's Official Plan Amendment 231, alleviating a major concern from planning staff. The proposed 10,891.41m2 of office space in the revised proposal slightly exceeds that found in the existing 8-storey, 10,689.54m2 office building on-site. Other changes to the podium include the elimination of a standalone canopy at street level in favour of a smaller, integrated canopy, and the addition of several trees to the proposed Privately Owned Public Space (POPS) at grade.

Podium, 1 Eglinton East, image retrieved from submission to City of Toronto

The building's connection to Eglinton Station on the TTC's Line 1 and future Line 5 (Eglinton Crosstown) will be integrated into the office component's ground level lobby. Both the commercial entrance and TTC entrance have been enlarged compared to the initial submissions, affording high visibility from the POPS and the corner of Yonge and Eglinton.

The tower's design has also been revised to address DRP comments. Projecting geometric volumes containing the tower balconies have been simplified with the removal of 50m2 of diagonal framing elements. Aside from the major podium revisions, changes to the lower tower levels and diagonal expression, the tower's pitched roofline and overall materials appear unchanged in the latest revision, though the developers are suggesting that minor revisions may be presented when the building advances to the Site Plan Approval stage.

Skyline, 1 Eglinton East, image retrieved from submission to City of Toronto

A number of minor changes to the massing have been made, most notably at street level along Eglinton. Following multiple failed attempts to purchase the abutting property to facilitate the shifting of the tower to the south—a suggestion made by Toronto’s City Planning department last year— the revised proposal seeks a compromise with an increased ground-level setback from the property line along Eglinton Avenue to 2.5 metres, creating a 7.395-metre pedestrian realm along that frontage. Similarly, a staircase at the northeast corner of the podium has been removed in response to City concerns, in aid of fostering a better pedestrian experience while also improving sightlines for vehicles using the porte cochère located on Cowbell Lane.

We will be sure to keep an eye out for new information as this project continues through the planning and approvals process. In the meanwhile, you can review the current and previous iterations of the project by visiting our dataBase file, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum threads or leave a comment using the field provided at the bottom of this page.