Construction is now in full swing for St Thomas Developments' 88 North. Located at Mutual and Shuter streets on the east side of Downtown Toronto, 88 North is the first phase of a large multi-tower/mixed use community coming to 88 Queen East. The development is replacing one of Downtown Toronto's last large parking lots, a land use which has scarred the area for a few decades. The Page+Steele/IBI Group-designed first building is set to rise 29 storeys (91 metres) high over Shuter Street, at the north end of the former parking lot.

Excavation being done by RONI Excavating Ltd, image by Stefan Novakovic

Recent images show excavation work by RONI, as pile-and-lagging shoring walls grow taller as the pit grows deeper. 

Excavation work seen from Dalhousie Street, image by Stefan Novakovic

As currently proposed, the 88 Queen East community is planned to have another three buildings (27, 28 and 57 storeys) to be built in the coming years. 

Rendering of 88 North, image by St. Thomas Development

With more land available here than at most Downtown high-rise sites, here the retail and pedestrian focus will be inwards looking, animating a pedestrian mews between the four towers to create market-like corridors. The large site and the quiet side streets are the key factors that enable this approach here. Shops, restaurants, and green spaces will bring life to a block of the city that has been the domain of parked cars for the years.

Ground Plan of site, highlighting landscaping and retail locations, image via submission to City of Toronto

In the coming months we will return with updates as construction progresses. in the meantime, further information about 88 North and 88 Queen is available in the dataBase files, linked below. Want to talk about the development? Leave a comment in the space provided on this page, or join the conversation in our associated Forum threads.

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