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Amongst the crush of new development applications that were submitted to the City of Toronto in the final days of 2016, an application was received for a rezoning and an official plan amendment seeking redevelopment of a rental housing site in North York. Submitted on behalf of property owner Greatwise Developments, the proposal for 325 Bogert Avenue is an evolution of a long-shelved plan for the site, approved by the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) in June 2000. Now, almost 17 years later, the proposal has been thoroughly reimagined by Core Architects, with the plan now seeking additional density in response to current planning policies and the upward trend in density in the Greater Toronto Area.
Constructed in 1969, the current low-rise apartment buildings at 325 Bogert Avenue provide 415 rental units spread across 10 interconnected blocks. The subject site also includes a group of single-family homes to the east of the rental complex. The original OMB ruling of 2000 granted approval for demolition of all existing rental units on the site, allowing for a mix of townhouses and apartment buildings up to 19 storeys high with a total of 1,032 residential units. A new 0.21 hectare park would have been included along the site's Easton Road frontage where it meets the existing neighbourhood, while extending both Bogert and Poyntz Avenues to the west. The plan proposed the replacement of just 60% of the site's existing rental unit count, or 249 units.
Evolved from the initial 2000 ruling, the late-2016 proposal retains approved elements such as the extension of Bogert Avenue, the dedication of a new public park along Easton Road, and provisional pedestrian access to the Don Valley park system along the west edge of the site. There are changes though, and plans now call for the demolition of a number of single detached homes at 314-317 Bogert Avenue and 305-308 Poyntz Avenue, but only seven out of the ten existing rental blocks.
Along the east edge of the site, the single detached homes would be replaced by a 2,045 square metre public park with frontages along Easton Road, Bogert Avenue and Poyntz Avenue. The remainder of the east portion of the site would be built out with new stacked townhome blocks fronting onto both Bogert Avenue and Poyntz Avenue. Three of the ten apartment blocks—situated at the south end of the subject site (Blocks 1 through 3)—would be retained, but with new three-storey additions proposed on top.
The remaining 7 apartment blocks would be demolished and redeveloped with 6 new towers, heights ranging between 21 and 27 storeys. Unlike the previous OMB-approved plan which only included a 60% rental replacement rate, the revised proposal aims for full replacement of rental units. In an effort to minimize resident displacement during construction, the planned extension of Poyntz Avenue has been eliminated from the proposal, removing the need to demolish the three southern apartment blocks.
On the northeast quadrant of the parcel, two 21-storey towers would rise to heights of 68.8 metres, joined at the base by an eight-storey podium structure fronting onto Sheppard Avenue West. To the west would be another 21-storey, 68.8 metre-high tower. Three additional towers would rise to the south, with 21 and 25-storey towers rising from a shared 10-storey podium, reaching respective heights of 68 metres and 80 metres. Finally, a 27-storey, 86.8-metre high tower would rise at the west end of the site, overlooking Earl Bales Park and the West Don River valley.
With 148 retained rental units and 1,617 new units (including 269 rental replacement units), the total unit count for the site would reach 1,765 units. Preliminary plans call for the 1,348 new units to include a mix of market units, 104 of them market rental units, 1,204 of them market condominium or rental units, and 40 of them stacked townhomes fronting onto Easton Road.
In addition to the major boost in residential density, the redevelopment would introduce new retail to the community, offering six different retail units fronting onto both Sheppard Avenue West and Bogert Avenue. In total, the retail spaces would contribute a combined 25,864 ft² of space.
We will return with updates as more information about the project emerges. In the meantime, you can review project facts and renderings by visiting the project's 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.
| Related Companies: | Core Architects |
