Toronto King + Condos | 53.03m | 17s | King Plus | TACT Architecture

[interchange42]

There's nothing specifically suburban about podiums at all. One of the main purposes of podiums is to stop wind that's heading down the side of a building from hitting the sidewalk: the wind gets deflected at the step back, leaving streets more walkable. I don't want to see podiums everywhere, but they are useful.

42

 

[salsa]

There's nothing specifically suburban about podiums at all. One of the main purposes of podiums is to stop wind that's heading down the side of a building from hitting the sidewalk: the wind gets deflected at the step back, leaving streets more walkable. I don't want to see podiums everywhere, but they are useful.

42

But as someone mentioned in another thread, wind doesn't seem to be much of a problem in Manhattan where vertical street canyons are plentiful.

 

[interchange42]

That's one person's anecdotal evidence, and it doesn't hold water. It's been a problem there for years.

http://www.nytimes.com/1983/12/08/nyregion/with-skyscrapers-a-windy-day-is-windier.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/25/nyregion/25blocks.html
http://www.walkingoffthebigapple.com/2009/02/insane-wind-wind-tunnel-effect-in-new.html

42

 

[Miscreant]

There's nothing specifically suburban about podiums at all. One of the main purposes of podiums is to stop wind that's heading down the side of a building from hitting the sidewalk: the wind gets deflected at the step back, leaving streets more walkable. I don't want to see podiums everywhere, but they are useful.

42

I think the idea I and some others in the other thread were picking up on was that podiums are suburban because they're a less integrated form of city building. Using the John/Adelaide intersection as an example, the three towers on the s/w lot add density but their podiums also make the lot appear divided into individual lots, much like any highly planned suburban neighborhood.

So in that respect, I think podiums are suburban. I suppose the question is whether their effect on reducing wind gusts on the street level makes them less suburban. I don't see that it does, with the exception that wind gusts are a distinctively urban problem, and hence any design features that limit them are driven by non-suburban considerations.

I think that's a rather indirect connection between podiums and city building, though. Either way, we might be speaking past each other insofar as I was evaluating podiums from a more aesthetic perspective, and you and others from more of a functional perspective.

From an urban density nerd's perspective, I'd take sweet streetwall canyons over wind gusts though.

 

[Razz]

January 2, 2015:

 

[maestro]

But as someone mentioned in another thread, wind doesn't seem to be much of a problem in Manhattan where vertical street canyons are plentiful.

Podiums are pretty much a product of Manhattan which regulated tall buildings adhere to wedding cake designs after the first big high rise push. Empire State sits on a four storey podium. Chrysler's is about 15 storeys.

 

[Roundabout]

January 9, 2015 update:

 

[Edward Skira]

From the northeast.

 

[Roundabout]

 

[CityPlaceN1]

Looks to be topping off.

 

[Roundabout]

February 6th update:

 

[Miscreant]

Hmm. Brick work on the south face is starting to look pretty good.

 

[DSC]

Hmm. Brick work on the south face is starting to look pretty good.

It's really NOT so good when seen up close 'in person". It looks like rather poor pre-cast - which it is.

 

[slicecom]

It's really NOT so good when seen up close 'in person". It looks like rather poor pre-cast - which it is.

Yeah, it looks absolutely terrible. I would have preferred just a stucco finish to the horribly fake looking pre-cast bricks. The pictures really don't show how bad they look in reality. The pre-cast sections don't even match each other properly, you can see the variance in the photos if you look closely.

 

[Miscreant]

It's really NOT so good when seen up close 'in person". It looks like rather poor pre-cast - which it is.

Ah right, pre-cast; I was searching for the word. Yeah, that's too bad. I'll have to check it out myself. In those pics it looks pretty clean and consistent, but I know that in person that look can come across has downright cheap.