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Asserting itself as the tallest and most prominent office tower to be built in Downtown Toronto since the early 1990s, the 49-storey first phase of Ivanhoé Cambridge and Hines’ CIBC SQUARE office complex is rising quickly across from Scotiabank Arena at Bay and Lake Shore. We've been keeping a close eye on the construction of the WilkinsonEyre-designed complex's first tower at 81 Bay Street, which is quickly rising towards a height of 237.7 metres.
With one of the lower-rise elevator banks recently having completed its forming in the concrete core , the area of the core has been reduced to roughly 3/4 of its previous footprint, with faster forming to come. The concrete core's walls surpassed the 28-storey mark last week, and forming of the core is expected to continue at a rate of approximately 1.5 levels per week.
Structural steel installation continues to envelop the core, now as high as the 18th floor. Several floors below, steel pans follow the skeleton, and then concrete is poured for the floors. Sections of the tower where concrete pouring is ongoing or recently completed have been sheltered from the elements with white tarpaulins. Floors for 8 and 9 were poured last week.
To the east of the rising tower, a fourth crane was recently erected to support forming of the podium levels, which will eventually be home to the new Union GO Bus Terminal, with restaurants and sops above it. Operational since Friday, the crane will allow this portion of the project to progress more quickly.
Additional information and images can be found in our database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment in the field provided at the bottom of this page.
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