A site plan approval application has been submitted to the City or Toronto by Core Development Group for a 3.5-storey (45 foot high) townhouse complex in the Birch Cliff area of southwest Scarborough. Located on Kingston Road a couple blocks west of Birchmount Road, the complex will replace an existing 2-storey semi-detached home pair, three 2-storey single detached houses, and a 2-storey municipal homeless shelter (to be relocated in 2018), with 52 condominium units. The RAW Design complex is conceived as a collection of units to form a single building, the 52 units will form a U-shape around a central courtyard and outdoor amenity space for the residents. Overall, the project will contain a total of 69,825 sq. ft. of residential space with an FSR or 2.2. 

Rendering of 1665 Kingston Road looking Southeast, image courtesy of RAW Design

The plan involves the stacking of four levels above a parking garage, with each unit having two levels. The complex is thus separated into upper units taking the top two levels and lower units taking the bottom two levels. The lowest level is slightly below grade meaning that both the first and second levels of the lower units are accessible from ground level. This also means the lowest level has access to light and air rather than acting as a basement, and the project can maintain a moderate height. The upper units are then accessible via walkways and staircases from the main level.

East courtyard elevation of the complex diagraming the cladding materials, image courtesy of RAW Design

In the entire complex there will be 3 one bedroom units, 47 two bedroom units with a typical unit size of 1,345 square feet , and 2 three or more bedroom units.  In addition to the courtyard, all of the upper units as well as five lower units will also have access to their own private terraces, and the upper units which are not fronting Kingston Road will have balconies. The lower units fronting Birchcliff Avenue will also have balconies on their upper level as the grade change creates enough of a space to do so. 

The below grade parking structure will be constructed with access via the south end of the site off of Birchcliff Avenue, creating 53 resident spaces and 8 visitor spaces for a total of 61 spaces. The below grade parking structure will also include 24 bicycle parking spaces for residents, and 6 spaces at grade will also be provided for visitors. 

Current condition of the site, image via Google

The building itself will be clad in a number of different materials giving it an unique appearance among the surrounding buildings. The dominant material will be a Gold cement board siding lining the upper units with dark grey brick detailing in areas such as the balcony insets and the lower unit walls. Finer details such as metal spandrel panels and wood fences will carry the colours established by the brick throughout. 

Aerial View of the Site, image via Google

As this project progresses through the City's planning process we will keep you updated on further details that emerge. In the meantime, additional information and images can be found in the 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:  Live Patrol Inc., RAW Design, STS Renewables , U31