Toronto Union Park | 303.26m | 58s | Oxford Properties | Pelli Clarke Pelli

Can the City really absorb two 300m+ office buildings? I understand there's apparently a shortage, but this seems.... ambitious?

Obviously would be cool if it happens though. Would be nice getting some new additions to the skyline beyond blue/green glass point towers designed not to have much of a visual presence. The 'downtown' would get dragged westwards!


As I understand it, the two big east towers are both condo and office so the developer can decide how much cond and how much office as he gets closer to release date.
 
They remind me of the Hearst Tower in NYC. Two giant versions of it. Be a bit weird that we'd have two supertall twin towers on our skyline, but I think it would look absolutely amazing.


The Hearst Tower is one of my favourite buildings in the entire world. It's just as beautiful at night too! I would take something like the Hearst Tower over a mundane looking supertall any day. If the supertall looks anything like the Hearst Tower, that would be a bonus!!
 
Office demand in Toronto is set to far outpace the ability of even the biggest developers to construct space for the market in a timely manner.
When I read stuff like this I start to get dizzy. "If we drop below 50 mph the bus will explode"...
 
The Hearst Tower is one of my favourite buildings in the entire world. It's just as beautiful at night too! I would take something like the Hearst Tower over a mundane looking supertall any day. If the supertall looks anything like the Hearst Tower, that would be a bonus!!

i agree about Hearst. however, it's just the location of these towers that doesn't work with the design for me. (especially twin towers). it's gonna look like we have a modernized twin towers of the world trade center right next to the CN tower. awkward.

ex:
*interestingly enough, these first 2 photo proposals were designed by Foster (inspiration, no?)

wtc_replacement4.jpg


dn3203-1_370.jpg


new-world-trade-center-11.jpg
 
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I can't think of a tenant big enough to anchor two 1070 ft towers. With our demographic trends (dependent on immigration), technological gains (more + more automation/outsourcing), I'd love to know what type of jobs are being created here. FCP isn't even fully leased today. If they are able to find tenants it would probably take any hope away from development in downtown east. My guess is everything on East Bayfront will be postponed/cancelled if these megaprojects go through, with so much supply on market who would dare touch property in fringe areas in the next 60 years? It's sad because a new strip of low and mid-rise mixed use buildings on QQ would have brought a lot of much-needed life to the city.
 
I don't think there is any requirement for all the proposed towers to go up all at once - surely it can be a phased project just like most other office developments in the core? Besides, the signs point to 2 mixed use (office + residential) towers, so depending on the ratio, you might be looking at just one supertall worth of office space.

AoD
 
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I'm not the biggest fan of how close these towers will be to the CN Tower. So much for preserving any view corridors. It's getting hemmed in all around. There goes the classic Riverdale Park view.

Since it's unlikely that all the space withing these towers can be filled, maybe we can use some of that room as housing, to get all the bums off the street?
 
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G&M has just published this article with more information. They confirm that the Towers will be +1000 ft - also the twin towers will contain 40 floors of office each with the remaining residential.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...al-could-be-tallest-in-canada/article4671173/

Adam Vaughan had this to say:

“It’s insane,†he said. “It’s just the wrong project in the wrong part of the city. None of it is real. It’s a fantasy proposal designed to snare a casino.â€

Mr. Vaughan, whose ward includes the convention centre site, said the sheer size of the project will simply bring more people to an area that already has congestion problems "
 
Since it's unlikely that all the space withing these towers can be filled, maybe we can use some of that room as housing, to get all the bums off the street?
Oxford isn't going to give away space for free. If space is unlikely to be used, they will have a hard time to justify building it. Remember what happened to Olympia and York in Canary Wharf?

The sad fact is there will always be panhandlers are on the street, but you can't just sweep them into a corner and say everything is fixed. Many are opportunists. At a busy time of day, it's faster to beg for money to buy a meal at McDonalds than it is to wait in line at the soup kitchen. I don't think placing them gobsmack in the centre of the financial district will help them get off the street, it will just concentrate more of them there. The city needs more transitional housing but if taxpayers are footing the bill I think we can find a less expensive place to put it.
 
Adam Vaughan had this to say:

“It’s insane,” he said. “It’s just the wrong project in the wrong part of the city. None of it is real. It’s a fantasy proposal designed to snare a casino.”

Mr. Vaughan, whose ward includes the convention centre site, said the sheer size of the project will simply bring more people to an area that already has congestion problems "

Funny, he seems fine with the Mirvish/Gehry project, which is almost as huge and only a few blocks away. Sounds like grandstanding to me.
 
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Adam Vaughan needs to just go away. Nothing he says makes much sense to me. What part of the city should this go if not here? It's pretty much perfect for this spot.
 
Adam Vaughan needs to just go away. Nothing he says makes much sense to me. What part of the city should this go if not here? It's pretty much perfect for this spot.

I agree completely, a casino, an aquarium, a convention centre, a brewery, a tower, and a skydome all within a 5 minute walk.
 

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