Toronto's posh Bloor-Yorkville area has been the site of some tremendous intensification over the last decade, with many new high-rise developments now added to the landscape. The demise of the historic Uptown Theatre and sale of the site in the early 2000s paved the way for Pemberton Group's Uptown Residences, a 48-storey, Burka Architects-designed condominium tower on Balmuto Street south of Bloor. Work got under way on the site in 2007, and was completed in 2011, but back in 2004, the Uptown site was a vacant lot awaiting redevelopment.

The site of Pemberton's Uptown Residences, February 21, 2004, image by Edward Skira

Fast forward to 2014, and the same vantage point as the 2004 photo gives us a view of The Uptown's podium on the east side of Balmuto Street, which the construction site for Great Gulf Homes' 75-storey One Bloor East condominium tower dominates the background.

The site of Pemberton's Uptown Residences, December 18 2014, image by Jack Landau

Tilting the camera upwards reveals the completed condominium tower above, as well as neighbouring CrystalBlu Condos to the immediate south, which was built by developer Bazis during the same time period.

The site of Pemberton's Uptown Residences, December 18 2014, image by Jack Landau

We will return next week with another look at the changing face of Toronto!