Toronto Smart House | 82.6m | 25s | Urban Capital | a—A

If this project turns out to be as red as it looks in the data base of UT, I will be happy. I like the unconventional balconies and the large amount of retail too. I hope it's very visible from Nathan Phillip's Square.
 
Here's a rendering of the base which hasn't been posted:

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and here is a daytime rendering:

iss216_dev_smarthouse2.jpg


Source: http://www.yongestreetmedia.ca/devnews/smarthousequeen01142015.aspxhttp://
 

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and how else do you suggest that retailers display their goods? glass walls have been the feature of retail spaces for well over a century. When a retail space goes without large display windows, it usually struggles to find good tenants.
 
innsertnamehere said:
and how else do you suggest that retailers display their goods? glass walls have been the feature of retail spaces for well over a century. When a retail space goes without large display windows, it usually struggles to find good tenants.
Click to expand...

You really need to get out and do some traveling because all the great cities of the world are lined with stores that have great retail at street level and are not just a wall of glass. Paris, London and New York have some of the best shopping streets in the world and they are not lined with walls of glass. Most of their retail stores include marble, stone, bricks, stainless steel, copper, brass and other interesting textures. Walls of glass just make a street feel cold and boring.


It wouldn't be a problem if it was sprinkled here and there, like in other major cities but because of the huge building boom we are going through, with almost all developers giving us this wall of glass, I fear it's just going to make our shopping streets terrible places to walk. How interesting is it to walk along Bay Street or in a typical generic shopping mall? Do we really want our main streets to look generic, cold and with no articulation at all, just miles of faceless, unadorned glass walls? I can't think of anything less creative than that.

This site has way too many bean counters and real estate agents and not enough artists!
 
Yes, exactly. Just think about the best retail in Toronto: West Queen West, Kensington, the Beach, etc. have a diversity in the materials that comprise the structure of retail, creating a formal rhythm to the pedestrian experience; every few metres, it’s a completely different look. I think this is what makes for “vibrancy”; small, diverse retail. A long wall of glass is the coldest, most sterile and boring street-level presence I can imagine (other than a concrete wall, I guess).

And, as others have pointed out before, the opportunities for stores’ signage are awful when all they have is a huge glass wall. There should be opaque materials at the top, at least, for signage purposes.
 
I don't understand how a transparent material that allow you to interface with what's going on inside the retail without going inside the store can be deemed cold and sterile. Don't get me wrong, I'm a bigger fan of more traditional storefronts with brick, etc. accents that help to delineate one store from another but, glass still accounts for the majority of the street face on the majority of retail buildings. When glass is cold and sterile, is when you can't see inside. Fortunately, I haven't seen mirrored glass fronted retail in Toronto.

Maybe what is needed are street facing entrances to second and third floor units. That would break things up.
 
I call BS on the comparisons to other cities ... oh wait, let me rephrase 'great cities' ... many have a ton of glass only retail store frontages ... moreover, this is on Queen W, or many of you probably forget that, that implies its mixed in with the traditional retail you all love, that implies if anything this adds variety, not takes it away.

Moreover, take a look at that rendering, they go out of the way to break up the ground floor and retail units from the glass above, and there is clearly another type of cladding (maybe brick) ..

I find some folks are so quick to judge and add little in the way of constructive criticism, moreover they keep repeating their same tired points over and over ..
 
Apparently sold out of smaller units. Now selling Jr. 2 Bedroom and up (532sqft) starting from $450,100.

I guess those micro units are moving. Not sure if I want this to be a trend in Toronto just yet. Micro units out of necessity is one thing, but this is somewhat ridiculous. It's not really any cheaper. You can easily get a 700sqft for similar prices, just slightly less 'ideal' of a location.
 
I don't like the comparisons to other cities either, this is Toronto not anywhere else. The city is booming now so it will be different. I understand people's frustrations with all the glass street wall etc. HOWEVER I really doubt it will be such an issue in 20 years when there are other trends mixed in there too. When all the glass becomes part of our history it will have a place. Also who is to say that other cities in the future wont complain "oh our retail streets are all concrete, and whatever. Why cant we have nice big glass windows like Toronto."
Things wont all be glass forever. Hate how cold the street feels? Plant some more trees. Toronto still and always will have lots of character and a diverse history.

That being said I don't know if I really like this retail front either. I like the red balconies etc. It really comes down to what goes here and the signage they use. Right now it looks like a boring blank slate... but that can easily change with tenants.
 
I agree a wall of glass is boring, but this building is on Queen West, do we really see that many glass buildings west of it? They are mostly lowrise brick buildings So where is this "long wall of glass"?

And I am confused by the size and price. 532sf for a two bed? How the hell is that possible? My friend bought a two bed unit of 590sf and I thought that's ridiculous. A 2 bedroom with 532sf will be a horrible almost claustrophobic place to live in, with tiny bedrooms, living room and bath?

At $450k, it is $845/sf, are they insane? Well, if people are buying and where the market is, that's fine. But I don't think you need to live in less ideal place for this price with much larger space. I live in a older condo that is selling for under $500/sf, with equally good location, if not better. It is the urge to live in shiny new buildings that increases the price tag dramatically.
 
I don't quite understand the price points in this building either.

I am fine with the idea of micro units - I've lived in bachelor apartments with my girlfriend many times because I'm not wealthy but I like to travel and live in different places. One apartment in Paris was literally only 14 square metres (150 sq ft) for the entire place, which was carved out of a larger apartment much like houses here are divided. That was the worst. The best was a 400 square foot place in Berlin, as it was purpose built for rental. They did the job of housing me at a decent price.

However, when you are getting small and expensive, I don't get it. Shouldn't they be the same price per square foot or just a smidgen higher due to the design being more efficient? Did people just snap these up or were there justifications? Because the final price for a 350sqft seems to be the same as a new 500 sqft place nearby. Or am I wrong and the newer condos in the area are $800 a square foot?
 
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