Toronto Rushden Station | 138.1m | 39s | Fitzrovia | bKL Architecture

On the Community Centre, from the Revision List:

The revised application has removed the Community Centre use at the City’s request and no longer integrates a Metrolinx GO station due to lack of agreement with Metrolinx on how to proceed. The Applicant has investigated a variety of other non-residential uses to be located on the lower floors of the podium, as requested, however the development’s proximity tothe rail corridor limits the typesof permitted non-residential uses. Note that office or studio spaces of all types and any use requiring a people to congregate for any length oftime would not be permitted in the Railway Safetysetback. As such, the Applicant has proposed a self-storage facility as an appropriate non-residential use for this particular site, located in the East Block podium.

I will then add; I don't know what the issue is w/the recreation centre; but I'm quite certain it will not move south.

The City considers that a different area and the tracks a material barrier to movement; it would be seen as withdrawing services from a high-needs community (Main Square) and shifting them to a low-needs community "Upper Beach".

Edit to add: If office/retail/residential uses are not permitted in the podium, would recreation have been feasible? The seeming requirement is to minimize the presence of people in case of a possible derailment. Recreation centres can be full of people.
 
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I'd have thought the safety setback could be addressed through engineering, instead of relying entirely on site programming. Wouldn't there be some thickness of reinforced concrete that would suitably mitigate the risk of derailment? Wasn't that the approach taken through the USRC with all of the adjacent developments?
 

Community meeting on updated plans for 6 Dawes Rd. development slated

January 29, 2021

The City of Toronto will host an online community consultation meeting for a development proposal at the foot of Dawes Road and the Danforth GO station area that is calling for the building of four residential towers ranging in height from 19 to 46 storeys.

The meeting will take place on Feb. 16 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and will discuss the updated plan for the development.

The January 2021 version of the proposal for 6 Dawes Rd. consists of three residential condominium buildings at 46, 44 and 37 storeys, and a rental apartment building at 19 storeys.

The proposal for the development of the area that runs from east to west between Dawes Road and Main Street, directly north of the railway tracks on land now occupied by a storage unit business, was first submitted to the city in November of 2019 by Bousfields Inc. on behalf of 6 Dawes Danforth Inc.

The 2019 proposal called for condo towers of 49, 46 and 40 storeys along with a six-storey building that would have included a community centre.

The new proposal for 6 Dawes Rd. does not include a community centre which would have been part of an integrated Metrolinx (Danforth GO) station.

Along with 1,467 residential units, the new proposal also includes 729 square metres of open space and a total of 2,351 square metres of outdoor amenity space and 3,517 square metres of indoor amenity space between the four buildings.

A total of 351 vehicle parking spaces and 1,469 bicycle parking spaces are included in the new proposal.

Also, 5,537 square metres of the proposal are set aside as non-residential space in the form of self-storage. The site at 6 Dawes Rd. is presently home to Apple Self Storage.

The Feb. 16 meeting will examine the differences between the November 2019 and the January 2021 proposal, and seek feedback from community members.

To take part in the meeting, which will be able to be done online or by phone, please go to http://www.toronto.ca/cpconsultations

For more information on the new proposal for 6 Dawes Rd., please visit https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/application-information-centre/ and type in the address 6 Dawes Rd.


 
It seems odd that they want to raze the current community centre - I think it's only 20 years old - and I'm concerned about the lack of info about its replacement.
 
It seems odd that they want to raze the current community centre - I think it's only 20 years old - and I'm concerned about the lack of info about its replacement.

The current community centre is relatively new.

It is also a single-storey (above grade) building that's more or less in the way of good development.

It's somewhat awkwardly located (set well back from Main Street).

It has a very nice pool; a tiny weight room/fitness room

But one very serious omission............no gymnasium!

The City should never have built it that way..............

Sigh.

However, while I generally think it's foolish to tear down a decent, young, structure; I'm not overly troubled by it here.

I would be troubled if it was not replaced within the immediate vicinity; retaining its current desirable features, and, adding a double-gym, and considerably larger weight/fitness and ancillary fitness facilities.

Edit to add:

This is the current Rec. Ctr as seen from Main Street on Streetview:

1613767987218.png
 
It seems odd that they want to raze the current community centre - I think it's only 20 years old - and I'm concerned about the lack of info about its replacement.
As today's front page story says, the community centre replacement has been removed from the 6 Dawes redevelopment proposal.

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The community centre thing is a letdown, but maybe with one less stakeholder in the mix, a reduced Danforth GO station could still be feasible - ideally with provisions for a connection to Line 2 but that's unlikely.
 
Also, prior to the current Main Street Community Centre, there was a different community centre at Main Square in the apartment complex. I recall seeing pictures of the abandoned pool on a long abandoned Urban Exploring board.
 
Also, prior to the current Main Street Community Centre, there was a different community centre at Main Square in the apartment complex. I recall seeing pictures of the abandoned pool on a long abandoned Urban Exploring board.

Couldn't find a pic of it, right away.

But from Streetview, this area where the parking is now was the original Community Centre.

1613846013380.png


It was 1-storey above grade, but had at least one level below.

That concrete to the rear hides a pit of sorts that let natural light into the lower level.

This is a (not very good) overhead view of the 'pit'

1613846156606.png
 
Thanks for digging this up! Given the size of the facility

No problem (on digging it up); you got me curious......it was a few minutes of google-fu.

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I imagine it was a private apartment fitness enter, not a city rec centre?

I'm not certain.

I think my memory of it was as some kind of hybrid; similar to Crescent Town Club today.

A facility tied to the complex, free to residents; but which the public could buy-into, and offered some City programs as well.

But don't hold me to that. I don't recall ever using the facility and never resided there.

But I remember going in once and I'm pretty sure it was when I was a kid and my parents were looking around for programs to enroll me in....
 
Video recording of the community consultation meeting from Feb 16th:


 

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