Markham Shoppes on Steeles Redevelopment | 198.35m | 59s | Minett Capital | Arcadis

Not a lot of information. But, the ESSO gas station at Don Mills and Steeles has been demolished for a month? Quite surprising to demolish a gas station unless somethings close to happening.
 
Not a lot of information. But, the ESSO gas station at Don Mills and Steeles has been demolished for a month? Quite surprising to demolish a gas station unless somethings close to happening.

I can't seem to dig up anything new since the info on the preceding page.
 
The Gas Station is not being demolished due to impending construction of new towers,.... So what's really going on with the Gas Station? First, due to environmental laws all gas stations are required to change their gas storage tanks about every 20 years or so,... which usually result in rebuild of entire Gas Station. Another possibility is,... Gas Station realizing they won't be here long term, decides not to renew lease when due,....

Here, my understanding is the Esso Gas Station will be rebuilt here.
 
Thanks, some pictures I took today if you're interested. Maybe they already excavated a big hole and then already filled it up?

Also a picture of the for lease sign, there's also copies of this sign around other parts of the mall.

ESSO signage has been taken down and also the convenience store boarded up.

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Thanks, some pictures I took today if you're interested. Maybe they already excavated a big hole and then already filled it up?

Also a picture of the for lease sign, there's also copies of this sign around other parts of the mall.

ESSO signage has been taken down and also the convenience store boarded up.

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Good update, thanks!

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Funny though, the leasing sign had me look this up on CBRE. The listing on their site reads a bit differently.


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Industrial? Also 145,000ft2 is the entire built-out site as is, so far as I know.

Not sure where the 72,000ft2 comes from unless that's the old Sears, maybe?
 
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Some updates.

The old Sears location has been leased by a weekend flea market that has been open for a couple months.

The gas station has been completely demolished and is now fenced off.

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The Esso station might have disappeared first because the underground fuel storage tanks have to be replaced every so often - I don't know the exact schedule though. That's usually when the stations -- which have to close during that time -- typically get a makeover. Given the long-term viability of the site, Esso might have just decided it wasn't worth re-opening.

So I wouldn't necessarily see it as a sign of imminent development.
 
Well, we have big news about this site on our front page!! New database file attached atop this page too.

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Good update in the story noted above.

First, let me add a link to said story:


Let me then bring the remaining new renders forward:

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Site Plan:

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And the Ground Floor Plan:

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Comments:

The park is wrong, they've divided into two with a road down the middle, that completely limits the programmability of the space.

Gah! At just over 1ha in total parkland, this is large enough to do something with, even better if one consolidated the equivalent to that road space to the park getting it close to the 1.5ha mark.

The park also has a poor siting/orientation. I get sheilding it from the 404, but the park should front one major public road, and ideally have southern exposure unimpeded by towers. or a tall podium.

This is how you site the park:

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My version is just a smidge larger, and claims that largely by removing the E-W road across the middle of the site.

Meanwhile, I'm going to be nice and give the building here, more workable floor plans, with the middle road gone, you're going to go slab style with a N-S orienation on the western edge of the park. For porosity, there will still be a mid-block pedestrian opening in the podium in the form of an archway leading the park that is 3-storeys tall.

The park will get lots of sun, the pedestrian experience is improved, the floor plans are better, you're welcome.

Because of the park and the southern opening to Steeles, the eastern buildings will still get plenty of sun.

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Also would someone please put some colour in this set of buildings they don't wall have to be bright and cheery just not a monolith, 2 buildings w/warm-toned colour, one bold but cool, and others can be tastefully neutral.
 
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Calling that empty field a park is generous at best. Spent a beautiful afternoon in Berczy Park on a patio last Sunday, wondering why we can't seem to replicate such an amazing urban park anywhere else in the city.
 
Calling that empty field a park is generous at best. Spent a beautiful afternoon in Berczy Park on a patio last Sunday, wondering why we can't seem to replicate such an amazing urban park anywhere else in the city.

To be fair, these sites (remember this is conceptual park on both sides of the road) is much larger than Berczy.

This isn't a real design either, it's just an illustrative concept for the area.

But your point stands in this respect.

By dividing the site in two, you eliminate all sorts of possibilities from soccer pitches to baseball diamonds; you even make a good quality playground with children's waterplay tough to do.

You want single, larger sites, because they free up choices/options.

If there's no shortage of sports fields/playgrounds, you might for a nature-based space, or one with an amphitheater or bandstand.

You might choose cafe-type spaces, or picnic grounds......

Or Tennis Courts or or or........

But in dividing the space you really constrain the options.

Foreclosing on some entirely while making others just less good than they could be.
 

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