Okay, as a St Mike's alumnus, I'd like to weigh in on this one.
First, I don't mind seeing the parking lot at the corner of Bay and St Mary's built on. Good riddance to a parking lot that is a bloody waste of space in downtown Toronto and that adds nothing to street life or the college.
Second, that being said, I would rather see St Mike's use this space to expand. As it stands, the college's campus is poorly laid out south of St Joseph. This land could be used to refocus the campus around Brennan Hall, which itself deserves a major renovation.
Third, I am steadfastly opposed to them building on the parkette at Bay and St Joseph. I lived in the area for seven years, and I had a dog for the last four of those seven years. That green space is the most accessible for the condo denizens along Bay Street, and it's an important element of the community (I admit that I use the term loosely in this context).
Fourth, I don't understand the opposition to the 'townhouses' on this forum. Maybe I'm not reading the renderings correctly, but it looks to me like they are creating an almost continuous street wall along Bay and St Mary. It's not quite a podium, but it's that the built form that we're always promoting on this forum?