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The 60-storey Massey Tower is topping off above Yonge Street in Downtown Toronto, across from the Eaton Centre. To mark the occasion, a special lunch and celebration was held to thank all those who had a hand in building the Hariri Pontarini Architects-designed tower for MOD Developments.
Among those on hand for the event were Gary Switzer, Chief Executive Officer of MOD Developments, who spoke to those present giving thanks for all the work they had put in to bring to plans to reality, along with Noorez Lalani, President of MOD Developments, Aidan Ball, Director of Construction for MOD Developments, Gary Berman and colleagues from Tricon Capital, and representatives of Massey Hall, while the bulk of those enjoying the lunch were management and crews from Tucker Hi-Rise and other subcontractors.
Also on hand was Kristyn Wong-Tam, local City Councillor, who spoke following Switzer, detailing some of the hoops that the Massey Tower plan had to pass through to get approval on its remarkably tight site. Wong-Tam thanked the Planning Department for their work on the file, and then made special mention of the benefits that Massey Hall, about to start their massive expansion and refurbishment, are accruing from the Massey Tower development new door, especially in regard to new space gained from Massey Tower's access area, allowing the hall to expand its backstage area and build new facilities including more performance and amenity spaces.
The event took place on the main amenity level at the Massey Tower, where residents will eventually find a suite of rooms to relax and entertain in… and out: the 10th level of the building is marked by a wide and open balcony area overlooking Yonge Street and nearby buildings. While the 10th level is high than the closest buildings to it, allowing for views to the north and south, and west over the Eaton Centre toward City Hall and Osgoode Hall, the taller buildings of Downtown Toronto make for an impressive backdrop.
Following the event, we rode a construction hoist on the north side of the building up to the top. The view to the was can be seen below. Of note: when you'e up close to the balconies, the white look given to them by the frit when seeing them from a distance begins to brake down to more of a transparency.
On the highest floors where work is still going on—truth is the last of the concrete has not been placed quite yet—RCS forms (for Rail Climbing System) are attached to the outside edges of the building. Cantilevered out, they provide space to store materials when not needed. Below, Michael Attard, Nathan Crossman, and David Pontarini of Hariri Pontarini Archtects take in the progress and the view.
Here, one of the form walls, is hoisted from the RCS platform on the 57th floor to a higher floor where some of the last forms are being being assembled.
On the east side of the building, we find screens at the top of the RCS platforms billowing in the wind. Through a gap between platforms (one RCS section had not yet made the climb from the floor below) we can see the Monde development rising with Lake Ontario behind it.
We'll be back with more on the Massey Tower in the future as there's still lots more left to go on its construction. In the meantime, you'll find plenty of renderings and more information in our database file for the project, linked below. You can get n on the conversation by clicking on the associated thread links, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
