The Florian by Diamante Developments joins the Yorkville condo crowd with its prime location at the head of Bay Street on Davenport Road. The Florian rises 25 storeys on the site of a former car dealership and fitness centre.
The Florian site, under construction in this Google Streetview image from April 2009.
Designed by Hariri Pontarini Architects in association with Young & Wright/IBI Group Architects, The Florian offers a grounded visual alternative to what is becoming a forest of blue-grey glass-encased towers in the city, with its sophisticated dark tinted glass, eggplant-coloured brickwork and bronze pillars that support the entrance.
Yorkville has long been an attractive location for Toronto's well-to-do, the neighbourhood in which to see and be seen, popular with visiting celebrities and tourists alike. The area has also attracted a tremendous amount of attention for the developments that have been springing up inside and around its borders, as well as the proposals for several more, each seemingly trying to outdo the last.
The Florian's colour scheme and choice of materials stand in stark contrast to its other Yorkville counterparts. These features set it apart from the Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences, the Yorkville Condominiums and certainly in comparison to the flurry of proposals, such as those for 27 Yorkville or 140 Yorkville. Perhaps that's the point.