Toronto Burke Condominiums | 163.4m | 53s | Concert | Arcadis

AlvinofDiaspar said:
If a smaller scaled project couldn't sellout in this environment, what makes you think a bigger one would?

AoD
Click to expand...

It's not that a smaller project wouldn't sell out - I'm just not convinced that the obstructive city planners and politicians are going to approve the resubmitted plans without further changes and by the time anything gets approved the market conditions may have softened so much that the project gets shelved. Had the original proposal been approved in a timely manner these towers would have been sold out by now and construction well under way. I doubt that the developer chose to cut 600 units from the original proposal because he/she didn't think they would sell.
 
If they are so confident about their proposal, surely they can move to the marketing phase without city approval. That's hardly an unknown move in Toronto.

AoD
 
This plan is a huge improvement.

Block 1
Retail is being added on Howard Street and will balance the retail on the southside and improve its village feel. The podium here with the alternating brick and two story windows looks fantastic. Best aA podium yet?

The tower reminds me of Festival Tower. Not a bad thing, I suppose.

The heritage home on the corner at 603 Sherbourne is being restored. This is great because it acts as a really nice gateway to the street paired with the beauty on the southside of Howard. The 605 & 607 pair next to it will only have their facades kept though. From looking at the (very detailed) plans, I'm guessing it is because they need to space under it for the parking ramp. It's too bad, but it is better planning to have the garage and loading dock off of Red Rocket Lane.

Block 2
The townhomes on Red Rocket Lane look sharp and appropriately sized for the street. I like this. The restoration of the Glen Road homes is also really, really good news. The homes are a nod to the neighbourhoods past and will help balance the new towers and the rest of St. Jamestown.

Block 3
It appears there is large enough retail here for a grocery store. The retail opens onto Howard. This is much better than having it on Bloor. Again, continues the village feel of Howard and from a pedestrian's standpoint it will be much more accessible especially for St. Jamestown residents. The Bloor side of the main level appears to be amenities.

The parkette looks good. A nice size. From my walks through it, I believe there is ample playground equipment in St. Jamestown at the moment. Probably not necessary here.

I like the strong vertical lines of the shorter towers. It contrasts well with the horizontal lines of the curvy eastern one. It's good to see a flatiron here when the property provides for it.
 
I'm pouring all over these plans and diagrams and renderings and trying to make sense of this big development!

I like what I see though, and there is certainly lots of improvement from earlier iterations. I'm particularly enthralled about the inclusion/restoration of several older houses/townhouses and the new little parkettes being created.

The shapes/geometries at work in the architecture are subdued yet interesting, and it seems to make a positive contribution overall.
 
For further visualization, here are two images from the wind studies; the buildings look a little plumper since the balconies are filled in but it gives you a sense of the overall massing:

ScreenShot2013-02-19at90117PM_zps73500392.png


ScreenShot2013-02-19at90236PM_zps1cae19de.png
 
A new front page story digests the plans, and a new dataBase page (linked from the front page story) spits out some large-scale renderings.

42
 
I still think they're trying to jam too much onto the property. At least they're doing their darndest to arrange it well. I wish it was more of a 'step down' from St. Jamestown's rigour.

I'm also thinking the appeal of that greenspace wasn't that it was a manicured park - it was that it was disorderly, somewhat wild area of loose, barely checked growth. With the occasional homey brick building sitting here and there in the thicket, It was about as opposite from the horribly ordered lines and blocks of St. Jamestown as you could get. All the gardens aA can add won't replace that funky feeling, and no matter how pristine the additions are, they are in spirit, if not in letter, an extension of what's immediately south.

Now we just need to start going south, examining the situation block by block, and heavily reworking sections of St. Jamestown. Bring back the through streets, and do some heavy, heavy work. Bring in townhomes, buildings to the sidewalk, some better-designed new towers in place of some of the old hulking ones, and new amenities.
 
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Moved into a place on Edgedale yesterday, so looking at this thread for the status of the surrounding project. I'm just a roomer, on a very short term agreement. Friends want to redeem the place, but I'm skeptical. I'm willing to go ahead little by little to see how it goes. Plenty of character in the house, but with an absentee landlord I don't know where the money will come from for even minor upgrades. And there are layers of grime here.

(I just returned from a summer in Montreal, I'm not the "young professional or student" that everyone wants to rent shared accommodation to, and I needed somewhere to go, so...)

As a watcher of Toronto development, I'd think it interesting to be here while the changes happen. I'd think there's promise in any development that restores the surrounding old vacant buildings before they further rot. But I'm just floating through, not someone already adapted to the neighbourhood or invested here. I'd probably find mid-rise plans more appealing, but that seems to be my preference in almost all development. Given present market conditions and the politics of building on this patch of land, does this look good to go forward or is it destined to miss Toronto's boom period?
 
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Identical apps. in for 24,26,28 & 30 Howard.


Application: Zoning Review Status: Not Started

Location: 9 GLEN RD
TORONTO ON M4X 1M4

Ward 28: Toronto Centre-Rosedale

Application#: 13 247120 ZPR 00 ZR Accepted Date: Oct 7, 2013

Project: House Other Proposal

Description: Proposal to replace the existing rental units for the Bloor Parliament Site with a new, purpose built low rise rental apartment building located on the western part of the vacant portion of the subject property. The William Whithead House (heritage property) is proposed to be relocated from its current location at 76 Howard St to the eastern part of the vacant portion of the subject property. Existing building at 9 Glen Road (converted house with 4 dwelling units) will not be altered however will reinstate the lot lines which existed prior to consolidation. See related 13-247149 ZPR and 13-247142 ZPR)
 
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Application: Zoning Review Status: Not Started

Location: 28 HOWARD ST
TORONTO ON

Ward 28: Toronto Centre-Rosedale

Application#: 13 281032 ZPR 00 ZR Accepted Date: Dec 23, 2013

Project: House Other Proposal

Description: To relocate a Heritage Building located at 76 Howard St to the subject site 28 and 30 Howard St.
 
Application: Zoning Review Status: Not Started

Location: 24 HOWARD ST
TORONTO ON

Ward 28: Toronto Centre-Rosedale

Application#: 13 281046 ZPR 00 ZR Accepted Date: Dec 23, 2013

Project: Apartment Building New Building

Description: To construct a three-storey apartment building containing 8 rental units.
 
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