Toronto 365 Church Condos | 102.1m | 31s | Menkes | Wallman Architects

Will this building be the ugliest building in the Boom era?
What a complete waste of space with a GIANT Gray box....
 
It's a good thing Montreal developers used better quality materials. The designs around the Bell Centre leave a lot to be desired and than ... you have Griffintown. It gets even worse as you leave the core.
 
On a side note, that's a super cool and unique angle of the city!
 
Just walked by this Boîte de Merde and experienced the full effect of the odd little reno to the north of 365...Sorry, what was the point of this again? The 'renovated' former Bulldog Building/sandwich shop is somehow worse than the sad, neglected Victorian storefront that was there before. I especially love the Toronto-style garbage windows...and the masonry is pure genius! The overall effect is c1979 Thunder Bay MTO office. Hopefully, they've somehow pissed away the patio license as well! Time to finish building my time machine so I can try and un-make this block of trash.
 
I was just in Montreal and the stuff going up in Griffintown reminds me more of the King east area around George Brown, not great but at least some semblance of effort for aesthetic appeal and some incorporating brick. The new towers near the Bell Centre are nothing special but they are not spandrelized and cluttered looking, a couple of them actually look pretty sharp. I have to say I didn't encounter anything as ugly and cheap looking as 365 Church or 300 Front, at least around the downtown anyway. However there is not nearly the same level of construction there so if there was perhaps there would be more lower grade buildings.
 
Dare I say I don’t mind this building so much? Although it does have some negative elements—the all spandrel block on the lower north side, the brick colour, and the street-level on Church—is the tower that bad? The pattern set out by the balconies gives it some visual interest, and now that it is lived in, the open and closed blinds add some tonal variety to the greyness.

Does it really deserve all of the hate it continues to get on UT threads? Or am I just delusional in thinking that it doesn’t totally suck?

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111 said:
Does it really deserve all of the hate it continues to get on UT threads? Or am I just delusional in thinking that it doesn’t totally suck?
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Yeah these wannabe architects cant find anything good about it, many also don't like the developer and decide to slam the project
Anyways, the building is fine and a great addition to that area.....nice pics
 
Bogtrotter said:
I was just in Montreal and........However there is not nearly the same level of construction there so if there was perhaps there would be more lower grade buildings.
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If you look at some of the projects going up now...the Montreal Canadiens buildings are looking pretty sad, which are being by the great Candarel....no surprise there. Their is another tower which I won't name which looks absolutely disgusting in renders.....on George street or something. Nevertheless, a lot of new construction in Montreal is alright, but whenever I see a skyline photo it now looks a bit too blue/similar with the new towers going up. Not hating on Montreal, but I just noticed that recently on SSP and such.
 
The reno projects and intensification with low-mid rise buildings excite me more in Montreal. A couple of the point towers around the Bell centre could have been plucked out of Cityplace- pretty derivative stuff.
 
Automation Gallery said:
Yeah these wannabe architects cant find anything good about it, many also don't like the developer and decide to slam the project
Anyways, the building is fine and a great addition to that area.....nice pics
Click to expand...

I don't want to be an architect, but I do think this building is atrocious. It is essentially one large spandrel exhibition sitting atop a terribly cheap faux brick precast blob.

"Not being able to find anything good about it" in this case has everything to do with the fact that there's next-to-nothing good to be found in it, and nothing to do with a very peculiar slight you're attempting.

"It's added density so we should be happy" is the perfect recipe for mediocrity, and I for one have no interest in propagating that odd defense.
 
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