Toronto Sixty Colborne Condos | 82.29m | 25s | Freed | a—A

I'm not sure I see an issue either. These are just sliding glass doors.

But I would love to see the couple chasing the bird that accidentally flies into their apartment.
 
Aren't these just Juliet balconies? I guess those usually have the railing on the outside, but the difference seems minor.

I don't understand why these wouldn't pass code...
 
Juliet balconies just has a railing directly outside or (like at River City and few other condos) inside of the door. In concept these "Open Air" suites are essentially units with glorified long Juliet balconies with large sliding doors.

There is a building code that limits the amount of window or door openings depending on the proximity to a neighbouring property line. This is to prevent the possibililty of fires from jumping from building to building.
So large expanses of glass walls/doors that could open up like that would probably be limited to units that face the street or are at a considerable distance from a lot line (depending on the size of opening).

This idea is really interesting and I would like to see more buildings with this feature as it makes for a cleaner exterior building design, reduces the amount of heat loss from projected balcony slabs (which are almost never insulated or thermally-broken), and makes condo units (especially small suites) feel less closed-in and brings more ventilation and outdoors in.
The downside is that these large sliding doors are expensive (but the lack of balconies will offset its cost) and with moving parts these doors will need more maintenance and repairs over time.
 
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alklay said:
I'm not sure I see an issue either. These are just sliding glass doors.

But I would love to see the couple chasing the bird that accidentally flies into their apartment.
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This is what I was thinking, too! Imagine what could fly in: bats; insects/moths; Batman; other superheroes; the list goes on really ;)
 
I have sliding doors to my balconies now; insects/spiders (ugh) are definitely an issue. No birds so far :) I live in a corner unit, and I'd love to have these sliding windows/doors/whatever they are.
 
I've always wondered why we don't have more glassed in balconies in condos, like in Finland, considering our climate
http://cocomino.wordpress.com/2012/...ormal-apartment-in-finland-holland-and-japan/

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There is a building code that limits the amount of window or door openings depending on the proximity to a neighbouring property line. This is to prevent the possibililty of fires from jumping from building to building.
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Since these will be facing Church Street I can't see this being an issue.
 
There was an article in today's Globe and Mail on it.
There's only 4 units in this building that will offer this option, and it's a whopping $50,000 option. The sliding door openings are 16 feet wide on each side, occuring at the corner of the building. All 4 of these units are between 1,000 sq.ft. and 2,000 sq.ft., so a $50,000 upgrade on these units priced at $705,000 to $1.4million unit doesn't sound so bad and it makes up for not having a balcony which at this high price point could be an issue at resale.
 
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I think this is a great option, and it would be great if more projects went in this direction in the future. Condo balconies are one of those things that are better in theory than in practice. At least in a climate like ours. People think of them as a "must have" in their imaginations but, when they actually move in to a unit, in most cases the balcony is extremely under used. In my building, I see hundreds of condo balconies all around me every day, and there is hardly ever a soul to be seen on any of them at any time. My own balcony is no exception.

So, imagine the benefits to be gained by having that much more extra floor space, with the option of a very wide sliding aperture to give you exposure to the outside at those times when you want it.

I think all condos in Toronto should be built this way.
 
Mississauga Slim said:
I think this is a great option, and it would be great if more projects went in this direction in the future. Condo balconies are one of those things that are better in theory than in practice. At least in a climate like ours. People think of them as a "must have" in their imaginations but, when they actually move in to a unit, in most cases the balcony is extremely under used. In my building, I see hundreds of condo balconies all around me every day, and there is hardly ever a soul to be seen on any of them at any time. My own balcony is no exception.

So, imagine the benefits to be gained by having that much more extra floor space, with the option of a very wide sliding aperture to give you exposure to the outside at those times when you want it.

I think all condos in Toronto should be built this way.
Click to expand...

+1
 
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