750 Lake Shore Blvd. E. (Urbacon, 1s, ?) COMPLETE

[casaguy]

I've been watching this construction site with interest and now I keep admiring the finished product more and more each time I go by.

I thought this commercial development was worthy of some praise from UT. I'm having a bit of trouble though finding out who's behind this sexy looking addition to the Lakeshore (one block east of Cinespace Studios).

Edit: I guess it's not completely done yet. I came across this render on a rental site:

 

[TOinTO]

Is it office space? It looks like it could go either to offices or retail.

Also, is this an entirely new building? I have the impression that it's a substantial reno of an existing building.

 

[casaguy]

Hmm. Good question. It could very well be a reno. I just remember this as a construction site for the longest time.

 

[casaguy]

It's still not entirely clear if it's retail, office or both, but the project does now seem to be complete. (Except, I hope, for the horrendous paving job in front.)

 

[maestro]

It's Lake Shore. That may help.

 

[casaguy]

Yes! You're right. Too funny. I've never noticed it was Lake Shore and not Lakeshore. They just seem like they belong together.

 

[marcus_a_j]

What is funny is that it does change to Lakeshore in Mississauga.

 

[casaguy]

Even funnier is they've given themselves the wrong address on their address plaque.

 

[Skeezix]

Urbacon lists this address as its Toronto offices.

 

[Archivist]

There's also a Lakeshore Avenue on the Toronto Islands.

I am considering forming a Committee to Standardize Lakeshore Names in Toronto (CSLNT). First item of business: "Lakeshore" or "Lake Shore"?

 

[Johnny Kay]

I was under the impression it was becoming a food court / cafeteria type environment for the film crews? I have no credible source, but that's what "I heard".

 

[Riverdale Rink Rat]

Lots o' confusion over this one, eh?

750 Lake Shore was the old Brinks warehouse. Brinks moved out and there wasn't much happening for a while, then this Urbacon group renovated the building (as pointed out above, beautiful reno but terrible job on the parking lot -- they just dropped asphalt without grading the site at all, it seems.) Urbacon looks like its a general contractor of a decent size:

http://www.urbacon.net/

They've got a decent size piece of the building that they're looking to lease -- the eastern edge, which would be along Logan, I think. The rest is their new headquarters -- their old address comes up on Google as Lower Sherbourne, so they may have had to make way for the new park construction.

 

[street meet]

It is a pretty facade, but this building isn't very urban. Low rise, Scarborough style front yard parking...
Is this the kind of thing we have to look forward to along our "grand boulevard", as they tear down the Gardiner?

 

[Riverdale Rink Rat]

It's a reno.

It is a pretty facade, but this building isn't very urban. Low rise, Scarborough style front yard parking...
Is this the kind of thing we have to look forward to along our "grand boulevard", as they tear down the Gardiner?

Seriously... tearing down the Gardiner and building out East Bayfront/Lower Don Lands cannot be compared to the destruction of the Leslie stub. While there were some new plantings and the better bike paths, there were no changes to buildings at all (with the exception of the LCBO warehouse being razed in favour of the Canadian Tire.) Even the old TFS still sits due to the opposition to more retail next to the Price Chopper.

This is a very solid renovation of an existing one story building. No more, no less. It has zero impact on any future planning on Booth or Logan, much less farther west.

 

[street meet]

I do hope you're right, and the horrible state of Lake Shore blvd out there doesn't infect the East Bay Front, and other developments happening to the west.