For decades the northwest corner of Yonge Street and Wilson Avenue has been home to a large surface parking lot, serving York Mills subway station on the TTC's Line 1. Spanning 3.2 acres, this Toronto Transit Commission-managed parking lot has been a major asset for Build Toronto, an arm’s-length real estate corporation set up to manage City owned land. Build Toronto had previously applied for rezoning to allow a 500,000-sq.ft., LEED-gold office building for the site back in 2010 that was to be financed through a partnership with the private sector. The resulting KPMB Architects-designed proposal was to contain 367,000 square-feet in a seven storey building, clad in blue and green-tinted glazing. The building was originally proposed as a new headquarters for the TTC, but these plans met resistance from the public, and were eventually shelved.

KPMB design for 4050 Yonge Street, image courtesy of Build Toronto

Earlier today, The Gupta Group / Easton’s Group announced the acquisition of the 266-space parking lot at 4050 Yonge St. from Build Toronto for an undisclosed price, bringing new life to this stale proposal. While it is currently unknown if the previous KPMB design will be retained by the new owners, we have learned several new details about the development.

Site of 4050 Yonge Street, image from Google Earth

The sale, which was facilitated by the Toronto office of CBRE Limited, opens up the doors for a redevelopment of massive proportions. Gupta Group has stated its intentions to develop the site into a half a million square-foot mixed-use development, set to include a 4-Star hotel, luxury office condominiums, retail space and direct access to York Mills station and the TTC's Line 1.

“This acquisition is a major step forward for our company. The site is ideal for an ambitious mixed-use development which will breathe new life into the entire neighbourhood, especially because this property sits alongside some of Toronto’s most pristine urban parks, the Don Valley Golf Course, minutes away from the Don Valley,” said Steve Gupta, Chairman and CEO of The Gupta Group and Easton’s Group.

We will return with additional details about 4050 Yonge Street as new information emerges. In the meantime, you can check out renderings from the previous KPMB-designed proposal in our dataBase file, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? You can join in the conversation by visiting our Forum thread on the project, or by leaving a comment in the space provided at the bottom of this page.