Development in the Yonge-St. Clair neighbourhood has been ramping up in recent years, and a previously stalled proposal for the southeast block of the intersection is now re-joining several other nearby developments working their way through the Toronto planning pipeline. Located one property south of St. Clair, 1421 Yonge is a 34-storey condo tower proposed by Great Gulf and Terracap which features a bold design from Hariri Pontarini Architects (HPA).

Rendering of the west facade, image courtesy of Great Gulf and Terracap.

First proposed in 2014, the development has had a tumultuous journey. The first iteration from Terracap and Wallman Architects was rejected by City Council, and the project subsequently entered into the lengthy OMB appeals process. Several designs went by, rising as high as 46 storeys, before HPA was enlisted as designers and a settlement was reached in 2017 for a 34-storey tower in the form that you see here.

Rendering of the podium along Yonge, image courtesy of Great Gulf and Terracap.

Not much has happened since the project received approval for rezoning after the OMB settlement until recently, when it was finally submitted to the City for Site Plan Approval last week. Not a whole lot has changed in the design of the building since 2017, but with the new documents, we now know much more detail about the development.

The building will replace 8 existing 2-3 storey buildings stretching from 1415 to 1431 Yonge, running the distance between the two existing buildings to remain at the corners of St. Clair Avenue and Pleasant Boulevard. Rising a total height of 126.9 m (416 ft), the tower will house a total of 177 residential units, a decrease from the 220 units approved at the rezoning phase. Included in this total are 14 rental replacement units, while the remaining 163 dwellings will be condos. 

Site plan, image courtesy of Great Gulf and Terracap.

The tower sits atop a 2-storey podium, which will contain two double-height floors of retail spaces totalling 1,955 m² (21,045 ft²) of gross floor area. Two residential lobbies provide access to two separate elevator banks serving the residential floors. The 14 rental units are located on the second floor and second floor mezzanine levels on the east side of the building.

Rendering of the east elevation, image courtesy of Great Gulf and Terracap.

The rectilinear tower is wrapped in curving, cloud-like balcony forms that give the building a unique appearance while also providing generously-sized outdoor terraces for some of the units. The tower is clad with a glazed curtain wall, while the balcony edges are defined with coloured precast concrete panels. The curvaceous tower ends on the boxy podium, which will be clad with glass and bronze metal accents.

Rendering of 1421 Yonge, image courtesy of Great Gulf and Terracap.

1421 Yonge joins a quickly densifying Yonge-St. Clair neighbourhood, which could become a hotbed of architectural design if everything proposed is built out. The unique forms of 1421 Yonge will provide a counterpoint to Studio Gang's One Delisle, located one block north, while Wittington Properties looks to redevelop northeast of the intersection, and Slate Asset Management's makeover of several buildings around the Yonge-St. Clair intersection has begun to beautify what had become a rather forgettable crossroads.

Rendering of One Delisle, image courtesy of Slate Asset Management.

We will keep you updated as 1421 Yonge continues its progress through the planning process, but in the meantime, 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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