Toronto One Bedford | ?m | 32s | Lanterra | KPMB

You can anoint as heritage-worthy ... and "ruin" ... just about any view - by moving around a bit on the ground and getting a different perspective, if you're creative enough. I'm sure One Bedford isn't the only building outside the Forbidden City that can be set up for a fall in this way.
 
buildup said:
In my view this is about maintaining some sense of history and permanence. We love new developments, but it is important to have certain parts of a city that are enduring, where site-lines are much as they were in earlier times. There are many views in & around of UoT that are roughly unchanged since WW1.

But i also agree with Shocker, its the enclosing effect of the residential towers ringing Central Park that define the Park. Otherwise its just a patch of grass with cosmetic enhancements a la Olmstead.
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I believe the Central Park analogy was my comparison.

Anyway... When people say things like the first part of your statement I always wonder why where one person draws the line, is any better than where someone else does... What I mean is: Why not preserve the sight lines that a returning WWII soldier would have enjoyed? Or perhaps the view that Lord John Graves Simcoe would have seen? Why is WWI an appropriate cutoff date? For that matter, why not preserve the view from the lake that an Iroquois traveler coming to the "Meeting Place" would have seen?

I still say, build it up and let the historians figure it out.

:)
 
Traynor said:
I believe the Central Park analogy was my comparison.

Anyway... When people say things like the first part of your statement I always wonder why where one person draws the line, is any better than where someone else does... What I mean is: Why not preserve the sight lines that a returning WWII soldier would have enjoyed? Or perhaps the view that Lord John Graves Simcoe would have seen? Why is WWI an appropriate cutoff date? For that matter, why not preserve the view from the lake that an Iroquois traveler coming to the "Meeting Place" would have seen?

I still say, build it up and let the historians figure it out.

:)
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Good point, its nice to have a variety of windows or timelines available to us. I suppose as one visual time-line becomes more rare, we have a stronger incentive to preserve it.
 
Urban Shocker said:
You can anoint as heritage-worthy ... and "ruin" ... just about any view - by moving around a bit on the ground and getting a different perspective, if you're creative enough. I'm sure One Bedford isn't the only building outside the Forbidden City that can be set up for a fall in this way.
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Yes, back to Manulife - good point. Fortunately, it is now partly obscured by a superior building, with more to come such as 77 Charles, U Condos etc.
 
I think of the University of Toronto precinct as a cultural city-within-a-city, more like Beijing's Forbidden City in relation to what surrounds it than the Central Park / Manhattan towers analogy. It is urban, but not built out with retail outlets, offices, and residential buildings that have nothing to do with academe, and linked to the surrounding city by streets and sidewalks. But there's a visual distinctiveness to it, since it is low-rise in nature.

It wouldn't say much for the U of T's regard for truth if they required buildings to be photoshopped out of existence for their promotional materials.
 
Traynor said:
I believe the Central Park analogy was my comparison.

Anyway... When people say things like the first part of your statement I always wonder why where one person draws the line, is any better than where someone else does... What I mean is: Why not preserve the sight lines that a returning WWII soldier would have enjoyed? Or perhaps the view that Lord John Graves Simcoe would have seen? Why is WWI an appropriate cutoff date? For that matter, why not preserve the view from the lake that an Iroquois traveler coming to the "Meeting Place" would have seen?

I still say, build it up and let the historians figure it out.

:)
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For me the issue runs deeper. That we would build blindly without an eye for context or a respect for the established natural and built form is what troubles me. Toronto is not a frontier town where haphazard development might actually be somewhat forgivable. I would have hoped that in this stage of our collective evolution we would see evidence of a more profoundly rooted appreciation, or discerning eye, for the value of design, aesthetics, urban planning and our shared cultural, historic and heritage assets. I'm not necessarily suggesting that One Bedford is inexcusable or that we should go to Parisian lengths in the tailoring of our city but only that I'd like to at least think we make some of these choices consciously. Central Park may offer a different solution but it offers a thoughtful one nonetheless.
 
I was on the 506 Carlton today and when we passed U of T I noted that One Bedford seems to have grown substantially since I last observed it back in mid-December but I don't think it has much more to go, 3 or 4 floors perhaps?
 
I disagree with the Central Park in New York comparison. The park has buildings, but we think of it as an open space surrounded by towers, which is beautiful. The University College issue is about an actual landmark and its single northward view corridor. The view east on King's College circle is beautiful with the continuous wall of towers in the distance, from downtown to midtown. But the uncluttered view of University College had a different beauty to it, because it allowed the 19th century proportions of the building to be best admired.
 
13 January 2010 photo update

I think One Bedford looks great (conservative for sure) especially from Bloor and Av area--makes the area look so much more happening and less hickville.

From the westside this afternoon, I'm wondering if 1 B will top out equal in height to 18 Yorkville? Notice how the crane from 4S is poking through (and the Florian far left), and how the Uptown is about to "break out." :)

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great shot! One Bedford really does have an edge here in terms of making its mark... Since its located further west of the whole cluster, it appears much taller in comparison with the other guys...

Four Seasons will dominate/look sweet!
Uptown will fill in the gap great!
Number 1 Bloor is still a mystery...

Keep it up :)!
 
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How far north do you take your pictures from? Dupont? It makes for an interesting perspective because it spreads out the towers a bit

There's also a strange effect in your picture, where the TD Waterhouse building looks like it's closer to the foreground than One Bedford. It may be the lighter colour that makes it appear that way (One St. Thomas always seems to pop, probably for the same reason)
 
whatever said:
How far north do you take your pictures from? Dupont? It makes for an interesting perspective because it spreads out the towers a bit

There's also a strange effect in your picture, where the TD Waterhouse building looks like it's closer to the foreground than One Bedford. It may be the lighter colour that makes it appear that way (One St. Thomas always seems to pop, probably for the same reason)
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Oh cool! i see what you mean...

I think its cause from a distance, the colours seem to merge together making it look more 2D.. so certain buildings look like they're right beside eachother when they're not... Also, 1 Bedford is really dark in that photo (it looks like its in some sort of shadow)... The lighter colours (One St. Thomas, TD Waterhouse, etc..) stand out much more in contrast to the darker ones so they "pop out" at you... cool :cool:
 
One Bedford IS the centre of attention and REALLY does dominate cause ITS SO UNOBSTRUCTED!!!

it's good for the building but this just shows how transparent this side of the skyline is! there are so little skyscrapers in this stretch :(

You can see from Dundas to Bloor with out any obstruction!

Photos taken from the AGO yesterday:

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