Immdiately east of the newly completed Regent Park Athletic Grounds, Toronto's re-born Downtown neighbourhood is continuing to take shape, with an updated Site Plan Application (SPA) recently tabled to allow a market-rate rental tower, and an collection of townhouse condominiums, at Regent Park's Block 30.

As part of Phase 3 of the Daniels Corporation and City of Toronto's Regent Park Revitalization, the project would introduce a 28-storey tower and a three-storey townhouse complex to the northwest corner of River and Shuter. Bounded by new streets to the north and west, the site will front on the north-south Nicholas Avenue to the west, and Wyatt Avenue—where an apartment tower is now rising across the street—to the north. 

Aerial view of the site, looking south in late January, image by UT Forum contributor Jasonzed

Featuring 371 rental units, the Page + Steele / IBI Group-designed tower will reach a height of 28 storeys, while the three-storey townhouses to the north will house 24 condominium units. In total, the project's 395 units feature a unit mix of 51 bachelor (13%), 172 one-bedroom (43%), 117 two-bedroom (30%), and 55 three-bedroom (14%) suites. 

Looking northeast, image via submission to the City of Toronto

Rising from six- and four-storey podium volumes, the tower fronts River and Shuter streets with retail space. A total of seven units (which can likely be consolidated to accommodate larger tenants) line the south and east elevations, with 736 m² of retail space planned. Appointed by the project's landscape team—NAK Design Strategies—a small public space also lines the Shuter frontage, negotiating the street's curve with a triangular parkette. 

The site plan, image via submission to the City of Toronto

The building's lobby is located on Nicholas Avenue, with the podium's street frontage occupied by residential units to the north. Between the tower and the townhouses, an east-west laneway provides vehicle access to the two-level, 247-space underground garage. 215 parking spots would be dedicated to residents, with an 25 spots for residential visitors, and eight for retail uses. To the north, the two rows of townhouses run north-south, with a greenscaped pedestrian 'mews' space running between them.  

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

Following an initial SPA submission in late 2015, the project has now been resubmitted in response to input from City Planning and the Design Review Panel. While the general scope of the project is in keeping with the earlier proposal, a number of changes have been made, mostly focused on improving the street-level experience. 

A closer look at the podium levels, image via submission to the City of Toronto

Accomplished through a number of relatively small design revisions, what will hopefully prove a more animated public realm is now being planned. An additional retail has space has been provided at the corner of Nicholas and Shuter, with residential units replacing a planned amenity space further north on Nicholas. To the south, the Shuter Street parkette has also been altered to include bike share facilities, potentially enlivening the area with new pedestrians and cyclists. Similarly, the mews space between the townhouses has been reconsidered, with additional seating and more child-friendly spaces now planned.

The top of the tower was previously planned with a cantilever in lieu of the reveal, image via submission to the City of Toronto

Changes to the massing and architectural expression have also been made, with the height of the tower increased from 25 storeys. The three new levels—the uppermost of which is divided between mechanical uses and amenities—compensate for the GFA lost to a reduced podium. Originally planned as a seven-storey structure, the podium now features six- and four-storey volumes, transitioning in scale towards the three-storey townhouses. 

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

We will keep you updated as the project continues to advance through the planning process, and additional information becomes available. In the meantime, you can learn more by checking out our newly established dataBase file, linked below. Want to share your thoughts? Leave a comment on this page, or join the conversation in our Forum.