Tucked between Clarence Square and Victoria Memorial Park, the Downtown Toronto stretch of Wellington Street could become home to an eye-catching architectsAlliance-designed tower. Incorporating a pair of existing heritage structures into the design, a proposal to fill in the narrow 1,359.5 m² site with a 23-storey tower has been submitted to the City of Toronto.

Wellington House, looking northwest, image via submission to the City of Toronto

Marketed as Wellington House, the Lamb Development Corp project would see the heritage properties at 422-424 Wellington moved south to accommodate the 129-unit condo. Lending the conjoined Victorian structures a more prominent presence as part of the urban streetwall, the tower's 520 m² floorplate stretches some 54 metres north of the street. Only 9.6 metres wide above the four-level podium, the glazed tower offers an uncommonly slender addition to the area skyline. 

The south elevation, image via submission to the City of Toronto

Behind the restored and relocated properties, a modern four-storey base structure will be mostly invisible from the street. Meanwhile, the tower above defers prominence to the heritage structures via a cantilevered overhang. Although the Victorian buildings take a central place at street-level, the tower's expansive window wall makes a more commanding statement along its east and west elevations. Looking west (below), the tower's east elevation highlights an elegantly minimalistic window-wall configuration.

The east elevation at night, image via submission to the City of Toronto

Overseen by Goldsmith Borgal and Company Architects, the heritage relocation will make the 1888-built structures a much more vital part of the street. Fronted by a 706 m² multi-level retail space, the restored structures are likely to foster an improved pedestrian experience. By filling a gap in the street wall and adding retail to an intermittently lively—and slightly awkward—stretch, the project seems poised to contribute to a more vibrant urban ambiance. 

The heritage structures will be moved forward to front the sidewalk, image via Google Maps

With retail fronting Wellington Street, the main residential entrance will be located to the north, with pedestrian access provided via a paved laneway fronting the tower's west elevation. Further north, a loading space is neighboured by a pair of vehicle access elevators, which are necessitated by the compact site. Below grade, 72 parking spots are spread out across three underground levels. 

The ground floor plan (click for a closer view), image via submission to the City of Toronto

Wellington House's 129 residences feature a total of 79 one-bedroom suites. 9 of these are classified as live-work units, with the flexible suites housed in alongside amenities and commercial space in the podium. The tower levels also house 49 two-bedroom suites, alongside a single three-bedroom unit. 

Looking northeast, image via submission to the City of Toronto

We will keep you updated as the project makes its way through the planning process, and more information becomes available. In the meantime, further details are provided through our dataBase file, linked below. Want to share your thoughts about the proposal? Leave a comment in the space below this page, or add your voice to the conversation in our Forum.