September 29, 2018:
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Aura was great on paper. It's had all the potential in the world, it just stumbled and crashed before the finish line. The execution is painful in some places, and the underground is one of the worst urban experiences ever presented. Sometimes the initial promise of its greatness shines through, like in Razz's photos, but up close it's just a mess. Two banks on Yonge Street when there are three retuarants on Gerard is insulting to the public realm, especially since they expanded the sidewalk on Yonge.Say what you want about Aura and its shortfalls but I love its contribution to the skyline. The sloped roof and darker cladding give off a very cosmopolitan look. Thanks for the great set @Razz
50 floors of bad is a hell of a lot of bad lolThe curtianwall portions of Aura work, and work well, which means it looks fairly good on the skyline. It's the lower 50 floors or so which are so bad.
Agreed that the lower portion is terrible and the window wall is particularly jarring. I personally find the podium especially bad, having never been to the retail below. They keep trying to tack on LED screens thinking it would detract from the rest. I agree if they oriented the Scaddabush (and other restaurants) and their patios onto Yonge street, it would at least have added animation to what is currently just a glass expanse of services that close after 5pm.Aura was great on paper. It's had all the potential in the world, it just stumbled and crashed before the finish line. The execution is painful in some places, and the underground is one of the worst urban experiences ever presented. Sometimes the initial promise of its greatness shines through, like in Razz's photos, but up close it's just a mess. Two banks on Yonge Street when there are three retuarants on Gerard is insulting to the public realm, especially since they expanded the sidewalk on Yonge.
It's like the A+ student who failed to launch, everyone longs for what they could have been...