Toronto River City Condos Phases 1 & 2 | ?m | 16s | Urban Capital | ZAS Architects

Could you expand on your CoS comment?

What a Crock of Shit....:rolleyes::confused::rolleyes:

Slow condo sales may delay Queens Quay facelift

CITY HALL BUREAU CHIEF

A major makeover of Queens Quay Boulevard, an iconic project crucial to Toronto's waterfront renewal, may be slowed by the slump in the condo market.

Financing of the $192-million project depends, in part, on revenue from private-sector developments in proposed new waterfront neighbourhoods to supplement public investments by the city, the province and the federal government.

Despite uncertainty over how to pay for the overall project, the board of Waterfront Toronto yesterday agreed to pay for millions of dollars in design work over the next year, assuming expected environmental assessment approvals by the city and the province in the next few months.

"The [condo] market created a lot of uncertainty for us, particularly earlier this year," said Mark Wilson, chairman of the three-government agency set up to oversee waterfront renewal. "So the timing and pacing became a little less certain."

So far, Waterfront Toronto has negotiated a deal with one private-sector condo developer for a project in the West Don Lands. A phase-one sales office, delayed by the economic downturn, now is expected to open this fall.

The agency also has issued requests for proposals from private developers - likely to be named this fall - on two parcels of land in the new East Bayfront neighbourhood on the north side of Queens Quay.


Development revenues would help pay for the transformation of Queens Quay between Spadina and Parliament, with contributions from the three governments as well.

Despite the financial uncertainties, Mr. Wilson said the board understands the need to show tangible results.

"The central waterfront is what Torontonians view as their waterfront," he said. "They want to see progress there." That's why the board agreed to pay for design work to keep up momentum on a project that, on paper, would roll out over the next five years.

Mayor and waterfront board member David Miller said the goal is to turn Queens Quay into a "place for people, not a place that cars go through."

Amid signs of a rebound in the condo market, he hopes the project will pick up steam.

Its completion, he said, "is really one of timing of revenues ... the revenues will come in eventually but slower than originally predicted."

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...ay-delay-queens-quay-facelift/article1281686/

Which part are you taking issue with?
 
Now that the city has made land available to developers, let the market set the price. I swear to God, if the city lends any developers money to get this off the ground, i'll burn down city hall.

Developers just have to build something that people will want to buy. Sure it's not in some hip established neighbourhood so they better not price it like they are. Sell the condos at a resonable price for the average person and there shouldn't be a problem.
 
Keepin an eye on this project.. I have some money and a few years to wait for construction. Would this be a worthy investment? I'm a first time buyer
 
I think the project isn't too bad. They're going to build a large park there. But I prefer waterfront areas, so I would lean towards East Bayfront more :)
 
Keepin an eye on this project.. I have some money and a few years to wait for construction. Would this be a worthy investment? I'm a first time buyer

That would be a great question to ask in the real estate section.
Go start your first thread!
I'll visit :)
 
That would be a great question to ask in the real estate section.
Go start your first thread!
I'll visit :)

Now you will also know where to visit the Sales Office :)

Application: Building Additions/Alterations Status: Ready for Issuance

Location: 171 EASTERN AVE
TORONTO ON M5A 1H7

Ward 28: Toronto Centre-Rosedale

Application#: 09 174242 BLD 00 BA Accepted Date: Sep 30, 2009

Project: Office Interior Alterations

Description: Interior alterations for structural remedial work. River City Sales Office.
 
wd1.jpg


wd2.jpg
 
The top floors of the tower along the park will be a construction follower and rail fan's dream. A view of the park, all trains to and from the east, and a view of the entire transformation of the waterfront with views over the park to the redevelopment of the lower don river and port lands.
 
from today's Globe....

New condominiums will have Don River on the doorstep

Carolyn Ireland

From Friday's Globe and Mail
Published on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009 5:10PM EDT

Last updated on Friday, Oct. 23, 2009 3:14AM EDT


In some ways, it's unfortunate that the cement factory and the train shed were long ago demolished.

David Wex, a developer who will bring housing to the manufacturing wasteland of Toronto's West Don Lands, likely would have found a way to incorporate those industrial remnants into the neighbourhood that will rise up over the next few years.

As it is, the partner at Urban Capital Property Group will have to rely on a busy Don Valley Parkway overpass and the Adelaide Street ramps to provide the urban context for the towers and buildings of glass and metal.

Standing at the windblown apex of the overpass as cars whizzed by on a recent afternoon, Mr. Wex leaned over the railing and pointed out the progress that marks the desolate landscape below.

Behind the blue construction hoardings is the site of River City, which will one day combine lofts, condominium towers and townhouses in an area of parks, stores and cafés on the banks of the Don River.

The way the buildings are designed, he explains, it's almost as if the cars travelling over the ramps will be running through the complex.

“The ramps are both very interesting and also a challenge.”

Mr. Wex handed that challenge to Montreal-based architectural firm Saucier + Perrotte and, with his Urban Capital partner Mark Reeve, submitted their design to an international competition run by Waterfront Toronto.

“I think the thing that won it for us is we understand the beauty of industry and nature,” he said.

Mr. Wex pointed to a bulldozer crawling over a massive mound of earth. That berm will protect the finished dwellings from the river, should it ever swell beyond its banks. Dodging six lanes of traffic, Mr. Wex reaches the opposite side of the overpass and points out the sites for two more phases.

A park created in the underpass will connect the buildings.

The site where Peter's Taxi Ltd. and a gravel parking lot now stand will eventually become part of the new neighbourhood. The Victorian-era smokestacks of the Distillery District are just down the road.

Cities around the world are grappling with brownfield redevelopment. Mr. Wex points to the remarkable result at Duisburg-Nord Landscape Park in Germany, which has become the prototype for architects and planners who aim to rejuvenate the abandoned yards and rusting factories that exist in many cities.

In Duisburg, architect Peter Latz and his colleagues allowed nature to reclaim the industrial land surrounding a decommissioned metal works.

Visitors now climb Blast Furnace No. 5. for a panoramic view. Cooling tanks, railway tracks and slag heaps have all become part of the landscape.

“It's a gloriously beautiful park,” Mr. Wex says. “They didn't take any of the industry down. There's this hard infrastructure and then parkland and prairie.”

Some proponents of similar plans in other cities have had trouble selling the schemes to local politicians.

Mr. Wex says the design he presented had to meet the environmental and community goals of Waterfront Toronto. Many of the units will be family-friendly.

Waterfront Toronto chief executive John Campbell says his team was looking for a developer who wouldn't churn out the “same old sausages” for the West Don Lands renewal.

“We're not peddling real estate: We're here to build a community.”

He says the Saucier + Perrotte design addressed that vision with units that can accommodate families as well as young singles.

“They really impressed us with the thinking they put into this design.”

The development, which will have four phases, will comprise 900 loft-style condominiums, penthouses and townhouses.

rivercity23re01_292201artw.jpg


In Phase 1, a five-storey building will hold about 100 units. Phase 2 will be a 14-storey building with about 230 units, and a food store below. The second structure will be connected to the first by a three-storey, industrial-looking glass bridge.

Phase 3 will consist of four glass mini-towers that combine to make an 11-storey building sharing a courtyard with Phase 1. Phases 4 and 5 will be towers of 24 and 10 storeys with boutiques and restaurants at their bases.

Work will start next spring, with the first residents able to move their furniture in 2012 if the current schedule holds.

Mr. Wex says the Saucier + Perrotte design emphasizes the interplay between light and dark with expanses of glass and metal panels.

“They're very much about drama.”

At the same time, the industrial aesthetic of the buildings will contrast with the soft land forms and gardens, he says.

The team led by Gilles Saucier and Andr̩ Perrotte Рwhose firm was honoured this year for architectural excellence by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada Рhas undertaken designs in Nigeria, Japan, China and the Middle East, including Mecca.

The firm has experience with preserving the cultural heritage of cities: Their plan for refurbishing the Port of Montreal and Silo No. 5 is not a break with the past, they explain, but a recognition of the way industrial labour has enriched the area.

At West Don Lands, Mr. Wex is also overseeing the renovation of an old foundry that will hold a model suite. He has no plans to clean up the grimy bricks of the building's exterior.

The developer, who lives in Toronto's Beaconsfield neighbourhood, says this type of infill project is a niche for Urban Capital, which has built condos and lofts in such previously undeveloped areas as Ottawa's Byward Market and Montreal's industrial areas.

River City will help connect disparate neighbourhoods in downtown Toronto.

“This is stitching the city together from really strong areas like Leslieville through to the Distillery and Corktown.”

The builder says cities are finding new ways to combine industry with housing and parklands.

“I'm not a fan of sprawl,” Mr. Wex says. “The way we develop cities is important for our environment and our economy. We've been bad at it for 30 years.”
 
Original rendering:
river-city-condos.jpg


VS.



Mostly minimal design changes, but the odd and wonderful shape of the west tower has changed-- the odd form to the top of the tower is gone. :( Damnit!

I prefer the slanted roofline. Looks much cleaner.
 
If only the Don River was that clean that the buildings would be reflected on it.

I like the new rendering. I am looking forward to seeing a more detailed site plan of each of the River City phases.
 

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