Toronto QRC West (Queen Richmond Centre West) | 71.93m | 17s | Allied | Sweeny &Co

They did a nice job at street level and restoring the old building. The glass monster they built on top however look ridiculous and completely out of place. This is a very good example of where trying to incorporate a new design with a historic one doesn't work. It's made even worse by that solid concrete wall down the middle which would put any brutalist 1960s tower to shame.
 
I think both old and new work quite well with each other here. Neither am I bothered by the exposed elevator core. Worst would be if they covered it with glass or painted metal spandrel. Brick veneer may work. Some finer metal claddings too or straight up leave it concrete.
 
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From today's Allied REIT Press Release - Allied will be moving its corporate head office into QRC West:

Having initially leased 15,000 square feet of GLA on the 14th floor, Givex has now expanded its requirement to include the entire 14th floor
(approximately 24,000 square feet of GLA). Sweeny &Co Architects has agreed to relocate from the 14th to the 16th floor and to expand its
requirement from 8,600 square feet to approximately 12,000 square feet of GLA. Allied will occupy the 17th floor (approximately 24,000 square feet of GLA) for use as its head office and as a marketing centre for its ongoing development projects. This brings the leased area in the new building to 93%. With the new building substantially leased, Allied has initiated the lease-up of the office and retail space in the restored Class I buildings. Allied does not expect to finalize the lease-up of the retail space until prospective tenants can view the space in relation to the extraordinary lobby area of QRC West. Allied believes this will enable it to secure the most suitable retail tenants on optimal financial terms.
 
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It is top heavy but i'm not sure it's necessarily a bad thing. The visuals are skewed a little by the hoarding too.
 
I'm so torn whether building a huge modern glass building over a small old brick building actually adds any architectural value to the city beyond the fact that at least the old building wasn't torn down.

Are these just Frankenstein structures? 100 years from now will they just be looked at as oddities?
 
Allied knows what they are doing. It's a classy glass box with an awesome atrium. The reflection of Picasso is pretty neat!
 
hawc said:
I'm so torn whether building a huge modern glass building over a small old brick building actually adds any architectural value to the city beyond the fact that at least the old building wasn't torn down.

Are these just Frankenstein structures? 100 years from now will they just be looked at as oddities?
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No. I see it as a very context-driven design response, and it is defining Toronto's built form. It's a context that is defined by a) the critical need for more density in a booming city and b) the desire to preserve the pre-existing fabric of what is largely low density heritage built form.

In fact, this is what will separate Toronto from other cities, more so than icons or starchitecture per se which can be found pretty much anywhere these days. Designing from context is what will make Toronto feel like Toronto (unlike City Place for example)... and in this case the unique experience of Toronto's urban realm will be that of a newer, taller, and higher density city rising from the foundations of an older one. The coexistence will be the new Toronto.

This is why M/G feels so perfect, or 5ive, or the Massey Tower, or the Distillery District...
 
Tewder said:
No. I see it as a very context-driven design response, and it is defining Toronto's built form. It's a context that is defined by a) the critical need for more density in a booming city and b) the desire to preserve the pre-existing fabric of what is largely low density heritage built form.

In fact, this is what will separate Toronto from other cities, more so than icons or starchitecture per se which can be found pretty much anywhere these days. Designing from context is what will make Toronto feel like Toronto (unlike City Place for example)... and in this case the unique experience of Toronto's urban realm will be that of a newer, taller, and higher density city rising from the foundations of an older one. The coexistence will be the new Toronto.

This is why M/G feels so perfect, or 5ive, or the Massey Tower, or the Distillery District...
Click to expand...

This is the kind of well written, positive and optimistic response that keeps me coming back to this forum. Thank you.
 
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