Toronto Union Park | 303.26m | 58s | Oxford Properties | Pelli Clarke Pelli

[westtoeast]

I love those context massings that Urban Strategies does showing area applications - but they need to work on their approval status accuracy. They have a lot of buildings that have been approved (some for years) as yellow as "application submitted", and even have 1 listed as approved even though it hasn't yet been, or at least is still sitting waiting for an LPAT Decision (400 Front).

I noticed that too, but there's another quote in there which kind of explains it: 'Beyond these, to the northwest, is a private surface parking lot at 400 Front Street West, which is subject to a development application that has been appealed to the LPAT. The proposal includes residential towers of 57 and 59 storeys and based on conversations with City staff has been assumed to be approved for the purposes of our application ' (Page 10 of the planning rationale document)

Interesting...would make sense we get a decision on 400 Front soon considering the OMB/LPAT hearing was over a year ago.

 

[ProjectEnd]

Some interesting detail about the structure supporting the overdecking:

 

[Contra]

There's gotta be a better way of shortening "Pelli Clarke Pelli"

Some say their design will blow your mind.

 

[someMidTowner]

Some say their design will blow your mind.

Laughs in James Brown HAHs

 

[concrete_and_light]

View attachment 198965
I’m sure the condo owners above love the render people on the floor below jamming on Marshall stacks.

Love that they also installed fake brick veneer lmao. They're ROCKERS, in tacky luxury housing. Everything about this little triptych of condo lifestyle branding is hilarious.

 

[someMidTowner]

Love that they also installed fake brick veneer lmao. They're ROCKERS, in tacky luxury housing. Everything about this little triptych of condo lifestyle branding is hilarious.

These are rentals apparently

 

[concrete_and_light]

These are rentals apparently

Legitimately pleased to hear that. Maybe it's just my perception, but rental seems to be more and more a standard component of major developments these days, which is good to see.

 

[maestro]

Does it really matter if the tenure is rental or condo? These will be priced at the high end of the market.The income is barely worthwhile to build at the high end of the market. Rising property values is the bigger attraction. There will never be enough supply built to affect affordability for these reasons.

 

[concrete_and_light]

Does it really matter if the tenure is rental or condo? These will be priced at the high end of the market.The income is barely worthwhile to build at the high end of the market. Rising property values is the bigger attraction. There will never be enough supply built to affect affordability for these reasons.

I completely agree and this will do nothing for affordability. For that we need massive public investment in social housing and we should settle for no less. But in addition to moving the needle on affordability through urgent investment in the short term, I think we need to move away from a home ownership culture in general to help long term with affordability and to cut out the toxic home-as-an-investment dynamic that creates and entrenches class divisions in our society. And my thinking is that having even high end housing tend more towards being purpose built rental might help with normalizing renting across the society and have more potential for political action towards goals that benefit all renters.

 

[Mongo]

Comparing the tallest Union Park tower with the taller 400 Front West tower (which is right next to Union Park and hence should have minimal perspective distortion), I make the tallest Union Park tower to be 1.525 times the height of the taller 400 Front West tower (199m), which would make it 303m tall.

Nailed it!

 

[Yegger]

I mentioned that the cladding would likely look like Salesforce Tower earlier - I think this pretty much confirms it (and is similar to all of PCP's recent work).
View attachment 198978
Salesforce tower photo link

I honestly wasn't excited about this pair of towers until your post. This would give the complex much higher merit with regards to the final product

 

[ProjectEnd]

I mentioned that the cladding would likely look like Salesforce Tower earlier - I think this pretty much confirms it (and is similar to all of PCP's recent work).
View attachment 198978
Salesforce tower photo link

It 100% does not.

 

[Contra]

It 100% does not.

I mean, I don't know how they could look any more similar. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

 

[ProjectEnd]

Sorry - the post came at the end of the day and was perhaps too sassy.

In any case, there's no way that the cladding on a residential building - even one of rental tenure - will match that found on a recent Class AAA office tower in a primary market. I just want to make sure that expectations are tempered before anyone gets too excited about something that's absolutely not going to happen.

 

[Contra]

Sorry - the post came at the end of the day and was perhaps too sassy.

In any case, there's no way that the cladding on a residential building - even one of rental tenure - will match that found on a recent Class AAA office tower in a primary market. I just want to make sure that expectations are tempered before anyone gets too excited about something that's absolutely not going to happen.

All good! I couldn't help but see that the mullions were nearly identical with the open curved elements. While perhaps not *identical* I think it will be a good basis at least. Many of Pelli's recent buildings have been using a similar "finned" facade with the curved elements. I think given it's Oxford and a world-class architect it'll be a stunner to say the least.