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Liberty Village is a hit and miss in my opinion. Nothing can be forgiven for those bland boxes that went up there.
 
tkip said:
Liberty Village is a hit and miss in my opinion. Nothing can be forgiven for those bland boxes that went up there.
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I actually completely wrote it off at first. To be fair some of the new condos aren't so bad. From the ground they're are OK actually.

But I took a recent stroll through it, there was a lot more retail then I imagined. Not in the condos but in just west of the metro. Some nice converted lofts and what not.
Looked to be a lot of space still available for lease so hopefully over time it gets all full, it makes the area seem more vibrant.

The other improvement to the area is King W it self ... as new condos bring retail and more life. It's too early but overall it isn't bad.

I would have much preferred a downtown Markham sort of approach though really in some ways this is downtown markham with less retail and less office space (though there is some of both).
 
The new condos in Liberty Village add nothing to the neighbourhood. In fact, they make it worse. Thank god for the older warehouses or that neighbourhood would be a total disaster. The developers (and architects) should be ashamed of themselves, for ruining what should have been a spectacular area. I seriously don't know how these people can be proud of what they build. Then again, Torontonians are just as to blame for buying them. I guess it's mainly investors but it's still sad.
 
Torontovibe said:
The new condos in Liberty Village add nothing to the neighbourhood. In fact, they make it worse. Thank god for the older warehouses or that neighbourhood would be a total disaster. The developers (and architects) should be ashamed of themselves, for ruining what should have been a spectacular area. I seriously don't know how these people can be proud of what they build. Then again, Torontonians are just as to blame for buying them. I guess it's mainly investors but it's still sad.
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I've always criticized Liberty Village for this very reason. Most of the architecture there is pretty crappy. There are some decent buildings but they're mostly the converted warehouses. Majority of the new build stuff is crummy. I would have loved for someone like Freed to develop this area. A bunch of nicely designed lofts that fit in with the old warehouses.

With that said, LV was a complete dump and what is there now is much better than what was there. Missed opportunity IMO.
 
The suburban-style Metro and strip mall at Liberty Village are rock bottom. Most of the new development is very boring. Bay and Gable historicist rowhouses undermine the industrial history of the area. The condo towers aren't very bland or architecturally offensive, but don't really enliven the sidewalks since they often lack space for retail. And yet, the warehouse and factory conversions tend to be quite meticulous.
 
I'll put another spin. The architecture is bland yes, but in general they meet the ground well, it's pretty much for nothing though as there's just about no retail.

Now I don't think I would mind this as much but the real problem is all the condos are on the east side, and the retail (west of the metro) where it's a little interesting is further west. The metro is temporary anyway so no biggie there really.
 
taal said:
I'll put another spin. The architecture is bland yes, but in general they meet the ground well, it's pretty much for nothing though as there's just about no retail.

Now I don't think I would mind this as much but the real problem is all the condos are on the east side, and the retail (west of the metro) where it's a little interesting is further west. The metro is temporary anyway so no biggie there really.
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If true, that's excellent news. That strip mall is so NOT urban.
 
Torontovibe said:
If true, that's excellent news. That strip mall is so NOT urban.
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Long term yea, I believe so, it was mentioned on another form somewhere.

Anyway, has of one month ago I thought nothing of this area, walking through it once and stoping at the metro I thought the new condos were OK, comparable to cityplace expect the towers are blander. But on a more recent strol through the western end there are some really interesting retail projects located here. Take the goodlife, I can't for the life me remember the old building that was converted that now has a goodlife / lcbo / offices. A little east there's quite a bit of retail now beside the metro.


Some pictures:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto&aq=&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=32.685451,93.076172&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.639585,-79.420359&spn=0.008929,0.022724&z=16&layer=c&cbll=43.639614,-79.420227&panoid=sgrV6qT-5GHDV3cjnBzHxQ&cbp=12,47.15,,0,0.69


Interesting retail in the market building, i'd say about 30% of it is for lease though (the retail):
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto&aq=&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=32.685451,93.076172&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.638731,-79.417763&spn=0.008929,0.022724&z=16&layer=c&cbll=43.638717,-79.417611&panoid=RnxO557QascC7dr0kQB56g&cbp=12,252.48,,0,-5.27

Some of the parking lots just south of metro are now developed. Unfortunately they're not buildings but standalone stores but they fit the area:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Toronto&aq=&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=32.685451,93.076172&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Toronto,+Toronto+Division,+Ontario&ll=43.638762,-79.418085&spn=0.008929,0.022724&z=16&layer=c&cbll=43.638761,-79.417937&panoid=eUCUWy0aef33B0rCjqMpHA&cbp=12,354.28,,0,-7.05

Lastly the building from the east are finally approaching the metro site, kind of finishing off the area making it a lot more complete.

Some of the new developments directly on King (though some rather ugly) added a lot of needed retail as well.

All in all it's a lot better then I thought it was. I'm even willing to say it's not a missed opportunity at all yet. If the entire metro and it's parking lot raised and a ton of retail added (something that even makes it a destination). There's nothing wrong with having a somewhat sleepy neighborhood just to the east. Again they street scape is actually nice, the architecture is safe and dull though.

What gives this area even more character are the beautiful old warehouses west of the pictures I included above, some converted to office space.
 
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Without any real redevelopment proposal, the Metro and strip mall may be around for decades. It'll be making good money in a dense area and redevelopment will merely be a fanciful proposition. I'm reminded of the likes of the Dundas and Bloor plaza with Zellers and Loblaws. It's completely suburban in design with most of the site being surface parking. In spite of being a minute away from a major transit node, Dundas West subway station, it's been around for some 40 years.
 
junctionist said:
Without any real redevelopment proposal, the Metro and strip mall may be around for decades. It'll be making good money in a dense area and redevelopment will merely be a fanciful proposition. I'm reminded of the likes of the Dundas and Bloor plaza with Zellers and Loblaws. It's completely suburban in design with most of the site being surface parking. In spite of being a minute away from a major transit node, Dundas West subway station, it's been around for some 40 years.
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Yea but none of the sourrnging area has been around for 40 years ;)

You're right though I wouldn't be supprised if it takes a long while.
 
From the island ferry this weekend, pretty hazy day..

410n.jpg


426cd.jpg

All photos by me.
 
Nice. That second shot really shows how far apart these towers are. The bridge is going to make these towers iconic within the skyline. And Canoe Park and the railway should keep a few view corridors open to see them from many view points around the city.
Thanks for the pics Architect.
 
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