Construction activity at the Entertainment District site of Greenland Group's King Blue reached a major milestone back in April, when the first cuts were made into the Canadian Westinghouse Building that sat not he northwest corner of the site. In the months since, crews have demolished all but the north and west facades of the 6-storey, 1927-built warehouse, leaving them standing with the aid of an elaborate steel frame. Once the facades are supported by new construction behind them, the frame will be disassembled, and the facades will be incorporated into the podium of the Page + Steele / IBI Group Architects-designed development.

Following the demolition of the rest of the Westinghouse building and the completion of shoring work, excavation for the project commenced in late Spring. With excavation work now complete and a tower crane in place, the first signs of below-grade construction are now evident along the west side of the excavated pit.

Below grade construction underway at King Blue Condos, image by Edward Skira

Five levels will be built below grade, set to house the development's 348 parking spaces, 300 bicycle lockers, and "back of house" service areas for the Primus Hotel which will open in the north podium, retailers at ground level, support rooms for Theatre Museum Canada which will open on the second level of the south podium, and garbage collection areas for all parts of the complex including the condominium suites. Construction of these very complex underground levels is expected to take several months, with the coming at-grade milestone in 2017 to be the next major point on King Blue's construction timeline.

Below grade construction underway at King Blue Condos, image by Edward Skira

Following that will be the rise of the six-storey podium structure, and then of course the rise of the 44 and 48-storey condominium towers, destined to add two more peaks to the neighbourhood's fast-growing skyline. Once complete, the project will enrich the King and Blue Jays Way intersection with the residential critical mass of 872 new homes, the museum, the 122-room hotel, and street-fronting retail units.

King Blue Condos, image courtesy of Greenland Group

You can learn more about King Blue by visiting our dataBase file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum threads, or leave a comment in the space provided at the bottom of this page.