1 Bloor East, DEAD AND BURIED (Bazis, -2s, Varacalli)

[scarberiankhatru]

And with that, the design has devolved into looking exactly like pretty much every other building under construction downtown. Other than the Stegosaurus top, it's a bore.

 

[canarob]

I think it's a huge improvement! The balconies in the previous version made it look a bit cheap. This version will certainly fit in better with its surroundings, and it looks more sophisticated on the whole.

This also adds a bit more ammunition to the "Toronto style" argument. Aside from the Lightbox comparison, the hotel lobby looks very Four Seasons/Shangri-La/Ritz-y. I wonder what hotel will sign on? If it's something high-end, I bet the gentrification of Yonge near to Bloor will speed up rapidly.

 

[scarberiankhatru]

Too bad the Columbia Seafoam Center design was rejected.

 

[yyzer]

Thumbs down from me....either of the previous designs had an iconic look more appropriate for the "most important intersection in Canada". This new rendering IMO is a big step backward - to a generic Toronto-box condo look...this is the dumbing-down of 1 Bloor E, I am afraid

 

[Filip]

Thumbs down from me....either of the previous designs had an iconic look more appropriate for the "most important intersection in Canada". This new rendering IMO is a big step backward - to a generic Toronto-box condo look...this is the dumbing-down of 1 Bloor E, I am afraid

Ok so the tower isn't curvy anymore.. oh well, sadly this is Toronto and we do boxes better than anyone else on God's green Earth.

It still has the gigantic fins, and the retail sounds MORE than promising.. I think we'll be pleasantly surprised when we hear news of this.

 

[yyzer]

all right, I will try to keep an open mind......

 

[urbandreamer]

Wow much improved. While the old version looked like a tall version of a NYCC slab condo the new one looks like something that belongs downtown. Not perfect (cheesy winged crown on top will surely look like a huge mistake in 2020) but much more sophisticated.

It almost makes up for losing that nice old historic hall.

I can see Holt's moving in to the podium of 1BE then building a condo or two on the current HR site!

 

[Dan416]

Personally I like the stegosaurous top. Less boxy would have been nice though. But we can't get everything we like. A few more boxes won't hurt... It makes whatever's slightly LESS boxy stand out even more lol.

 

[adma]

One Astor Place has fins, yet it doesn't necessarily flatter Times Square

 

[Filip]

Wow much improved. While the old version looked like a tall version of a NYCC slab condo the new one looks like something that belongs downtown. Not perfect (cheesy winged crown on top will surely look like a huge mistake in 2020) but much more sophisticated.

It almost makes up for losing that nice old historic hall.

I can see Holt's moving in to the podium of 1BE then building a condo or two on the current HR site!

After all their renos and expansions I doubt Holts would just pack up and move (and I doubt there is enough space for them anyway!) It'd be a shame to see the entire podium go to Holts. I see a couple couture boutiques and one flagship higher end department store. Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus or Saks Fifth Avenue.

 

[casaguy]

Sleek and sexy. Much improved.

Although I loved the other render too... it just seemed like it would fit in more in Miami.

 

[syn]

I have to admit, I find this to be an improvement overall. I really like the base, although I hope it's a little more colourful and lively (signage should take of that).

 

[Sir Novelty Fashion]

I find it hard to tell much from the scanned render, given the low resolution and the usual vagaries of renderings. I see that it's not curved anymore (which is no doubt cheaper to build), but are there still balconies running the length of each floor?

 

[ganjavih]

I thought I would mourn the loss of the curves but this design is so elegant that I don't really care. It's more boxy but different enough from all the Clewesian towers going up around the city to still be interesting.

 

[Hydrogen]

The podium looks promising, being reasonably high and glassy, and with a retail presence on Bloor and Yonge.

The tower looks promising, and I look forward to seeing more detailed renderings.