North Up Yonge Developments

[Archivist]

Here's a few snaps of photos today from Deer Park to North York Centre.

Clairmont

Less fussy than I imagined, I like the massing and setbacks of this building, and the fact that it takes up a relatively small portion of the Yonge Street frontage.

The Avenue

Panache

I think this building is a bit thoughtless in its design, but generally harmless to a not-very-delicate stretch of Eglinton.

Chateau Royale

Though I'm not a fan of the design of this building, in scale and uses it seems perfect for its location and is an example, I would think, of the city's move towards "avenues". Mount Pleasant in this area is already quite, well, pleasant, and this building will do it no harm.

900 Mt. Pleasant

I think this will be much less successful than the Chateau, despite the tower attached. The meeting of the street already seems awkward.

88 on Broadway

Minto Midtown

Love those windows.

Materials look quite nice.
This is just a great development, nice to see it coming along so well.

Platinum XO

Like a great big piece of shite falling from the sky. Ugh. So heavy.

Dia Condos

Best ever for North York, without question. This is a building that isn't dull from any side, and is continually able to surprise. It seems quite light, and though I'm not sure about the colour of red chosen, I like the materials used.

C-Condos / Continental

Whatever. More of the same for North York.

Meridian

First building is complete, the second is just above ground level. I actually like how dark the glass is on this building, though the Scarborough Centre-ish shape, with an ellipse moving into a square, is a bit odd I find. I also think it makes an effort to meet Finch, which is possibly more than that street deserves. The entrance is well away from Finch, which is good. But why, oh why, do they make ultramodern towers with ye-olde bases? Look at the entrance to this building. It's just silly.

Pulse

Luxe

 

[Observer Walt]

Thanks for the update. You got some good shots. I certainly agree with your comments regarding Dia. Boy, it's nice to see some red brick being used on a new building, instead of the same-old same-old poured concrete and glass. The design is good, and is respectful of the street and surroundings.

It contrasts to the Claremont building, shown in your first pictures. Why couldn't some brick have been used on this building, to blend it in a bit with the adjacent streetscape? Based on its size, it does not harmoniously blend with the rest of the block, but at least some brick on the first two or three levels would have mitigated its out-of-place look. In the upscale Deer Park neighbourhood, they surely could have done a little better.

 

[Ronald]

Dia condos looks great indeed!
Impressive developments in North York.

 

[scarberiankhatru]

I was surprised to see the terra cotta (?) panels (I haven't actually gone up and looked closely to see what they're made of) on Dia since cedar-ish or wood-ish *something* was rendered, but I think they've turned out well.

"Uptown" North York Centre is in the middle of a huge construction boom, following "Downtown" North York Centre's boom a few years ago. Expect Doris and Beecroft to be extended up to Finch very soon, which will really change the area's appearance.

Pulse seems to have no pulse...it's been stuck at that floor for the longest time. The Yonge frontage there is important, though - both the condos to the south at Kempford and the North American Life Centre to the north at Finch are legal and verified crapola at street level...one more block of junk will really hurt Yonge here and ensure that nothing but karoake joints will be viable. Next up for development in the area is almost everything on the west side of Yonge between Park Home and Horsham, so even more valuable Yonge frontage is up for grabs.

And Panache has no Panache, but Minto Midtown's towers are looking snazzy.

 

[Canuck]

Minto is looking fantastic. As for Dia, I'm not quite sold on the base yet. Maybe once complete I'll swing to the positive side.

 

[Edward Skira]

Spent a week back in the old hood in late May. I had a chance to take a large number of photos but you've beat me to the punch. Thanks for the update.

Expect Doris and Beecroft to be extended up to Finch very soon, which will really change the area's appearance.

Beecroft at Finch is pretty much done though not open as of a couple of weeks ago. Interchange do I get a reward for finding this for you?

I wonder if anybody cares that it will run through a park.

Luxe

That isn't a picture of Luxe. Luxe is north of the hydro fields on the east side of Yonge. They just tore down the building there and are preparing for excavation. My father-in-law used to patronize the Tim Horton's there daily. Within two days of his death the building was torn down. Karma or what?

Luxe site

Old Hydro building site now cleared. New sales centre being constructed. Anybody know what's coming here?

RIP JL

 

[scarberiankhatru]

Beecroft will soon be punched through to Lorraine but it still needs to go from Ellerslie to Kempford, almost none of which has been razed yet. I've seen plans, but I forget how much farther up Doris is going to go - Kenneth is already a de facto service road at Finch.

 

[Urban Shocker]

The striking articulation of the balconies at Dia, like at MoZo, turns everyday structures into playful decorative elements, without resorting to actual applied decoration.

 

[scarberiankhatru]

They're still applying decoration, though.

 

[Urban Shocker]

Where?

 

[scarberiankhatru]

There's decoration applied all over, it's just flat and smooth. There's no difference between pippypoo-shaped precast and flat terra cotta rectangles.

 

[alklay]

Thanks for the update (shame this is not in the development and construction section).

 

[Archivist]

Unsure

The Projects and Construction section seems entirely given over to single-building threads, I wasn't sure if an omnibus thread was welcome there and I wasn't about to create threads for each of the separate buildings. So I was unsure, and figured it could go here.

Re: Luxe. Thanks for pointing it out. I fixed it now, assuming that the parking lot across the street from the sales centre is where the buildings will go.

 

[Edward Skira]

Are you saying the sales centre for Luxe is being built on the west side of Yonge now that the one onsite is closing for construction?

 

[scarberiankhatru]

I thought they were putting up a rental building there, but I might be thinking of somewhere else...next time I go by during daylight I'll take a look-see.