Toronto W Hotel Toronto | ?m | 9s | Larco | a—A

[deerparker]

 

[UtakataNoAnnex]

Tacked on comes to mind, both figuratively and literally...

 

[isaidso]

Agree although we're getting a lot of bang for the buck here. A re-development of this block is a very long way off so any improvement is welcomed for now. I'm hopeful that the only people who'll realize this is a tacked on facade will be people who come here in 2021 onwards.

 

[thaivic]

Almost there!!

 

[interchange42]

I'm not sure about the glass choices here. No, strike that…

What's the deal with the glass choices here?! If you're going to put a bar/restaurant a few stories up, and you need to draw people up and out of their way to it, aren't you going to want it to look appealing, to look like a destination worth arriving at?

So first, you install a glass elevator that promises a cool view over Bloor Street as you ascend… but nope, you frost the glass and likely reduce the view to fuzzy blobs. Second, venue is angled in a way that suggests there's something different and special about it… but then you clad it in thoughtless green glass that screams second-rate office tower.

They're ending up with an exterior here that will quietly sit there whispering "nothing special, not worth it, don't bother."

42

 

[DSC]

They're ending up with an exterior here that will quietly sit there whispering "nothing special, not worth it, don't bother."

42

Truth in advertising!

 

[UtakataNoAnnex]

Makes me wonder though in the longterm schemes of things if this is temporary addition that would be eventually replaced with something much bigger for that whole block.

 

[.dwg]

You wouldn't want to see all the crap behind that elevator glazing - mechanical and structural stuff that isn't nice to look at; especially given how compact it is, there are probably some serious limitations as to what you can conceal in that shaft. No it's not giving impressive views of Bloor Street (until you get to the rooftop bar which provides good views, presumably) but it reads as a strong vertical element and suggests movement, especially in the evening hours when you should be able to read the movement of the elevator. I'm not saying your opinion is wrong but pointing out that the idea of more transparent glazing on the elevator shaft may not work the way you are imagining it would.

The bar on top is where I would have been interested to see more transparency and lightness.

 

[3Dementia]

Second, venue is angled in a way that suggests there's something different and special about it… but then you clad it in thoughtless green glass that screams second-rate office tower.
42

Always happy to toast the season with some "genuine green Whine", but the angled venue certainly doesn't photograph that way... have you seen it in person? Bear in mind I still haven't chased down my new eye-glass prescription...

 

[stjames2queenwest]

It looks like a silo pretending to be a car dealership. The dining box glass is ok. But the elevator looks like transparent white coroplast

 

[officedweller]

Maybe the white elevator shaft will be lit with colourful lights at night
- the white fritt providing a surface on which to project the colours?

Side note - this is the antithesis of The Well - real cross-bracing that's hidden from view.

For comparison, here's a similar glass elevator at Burnaby's Amazing Brentwood from SSP.
The W one has a cleaner look.

some pics from May 20

2020-05-20_11-55-34 by snub_you, on Flickr

Nov 23

2020-11-24_04-55-04 by snub_you, on Flickr

 

[interchange42]

Maybe the white elevator shaft will be lit with colourful lights at night
- the white fritt providing a surface on which to project the colours?

Side note - this is the antithesis of The Well - real cross-bracing that's hidden from view.

For comparison, here's a similar glass elevator at Burnaby's Amazing Brentwood from SSP.
The W one has a cleaner look.

Thanks for posting those. It's for exterior elevators like that one that I don't buy the "stuff to hide" argument here. So what if there are some mechanical elements to look at?

42

 

[GenerationLee]

This is looking more like a Franken-reno...reminds me of the butchering of the Y&E centre. I actually like the bunker of concrete, it's a strong wall thats undeniably going to remind you you're in the city. This looks like fluff...something done to rectify the issues with the concrete facade, but done in a somewhat tacky way. I'm sure what was here before the Hudsons Bay complex was fairly respectable...well, more or less.

 

[Bogtrotter]

I'm sure what was here before the Hudsons Bay complex was fairly respectable...well, more or less.

 

[officedweller]

Thanks for posting those. It's for exterior elevators like that one that I don't buy the "stuff to hide" argument here. So what if there are some mechanical elements to look at?

42

Yeah, it's just the architect's preference, like screening mechanicals on a rooftop.
They could have also used a cleaner style of exterior elevator, like were popular in the 1970 and 80s for observation decks (with views like you mention) that do not have enclosures up the shaft (just at the base and top).
Hopefully it will be lit up at night.