Mississauga Absolute World | 169.77m | 56s | Cityzen | MAD architects

I love these buildings but what's up with that podium? At street level, it just doesn't match up. With buildings this awesome, you would think the podium would be just as nice.
 
I think this is the fatal error that's happening in Mississauga. With all the new condo towers going up, not much attention is being paid to creating interest at the street level. As a result, I think the efforts to make Mississauga more urban will fail.
 
ganjavih said:
I think this is the fatal error that's happening in Mississauga. With all the new condo towers going up, not much attention is being paid to creating interest at the street level. As a result, I think the efforts to make Mississauga more urban will fail.
Click to expand...

What do you mean? (serious question). Are you talking about the design properties or in regards to what the podiums are being used for?
 
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Both. The dinky podiums don't create a substantial streetwall, which creates a barren windswept feeling at street level. Also, from what I've seen, podiums are not being used for retail purposes, which again gives people less reason to walk the streets.

Here's an example:

20101006015.jpg

courtesy of Jasonzed

A rare example of a hefty streetwall created by these condos across the street from the new square. Now just imagine those podiums were filled with cafes, restaurants, gift shops, etc... how much more vibrant the potential for this new "downtown" would be. I think this is a hugely botched job and a missed opportunity to make Mississauga more lively and worth visiting.
 
Those condos are the Tridel Ovation buildings. They're horrible. EVerything about them is just sucky.
However, across the street is the Citygate project, and they have a cafe, market, and dentist or doctor, plus live/work units facing Burnhamthorpe. And the podium isn't "dinky" at all, it's massive.

However, I do agree that not enough attention is being paid to the street level. But this is not the thread for that. There is a Mississauga retail thread in the retail forum.
 
Agreed, Burnhamthorp is really a sad case in MCC, especially across from the new square like you said, but It's still a work in progress, so I still have hope, lol. Living arts drive has been done right, in my opinion though.
 
I think Absolute's podium will be okay. It is much better than the original plan with the townhouses, which didn't fit with the new towers at all. But the townhouses are gone and the new podium fits better and is taller too, as tall as 4 or 5 storeys equivalent. It also has retail space as well.

The renderings on the official website actually show the old podium design. I've seen an updated rendering somewhere, probably in this thread.
 
It's not really a podium, looks like a separate structure on the site. Some may forget that this is a huge housing complex and that the lofts are another element to the complex. It would be incorrect to say that this building is a "podium" for Absolute Towers 4 and 5. Personally, I think it's a pretty cool-looking structure and from Jasonzed's pictures, it looks like it would get confused for a podium as visually, it "ties" the two buildings together.
 
2nd row of balcony glass was going up today, one level above the previous.....
 
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