A new application for Site Plan Approval submitted earlier this week brings design changes for The Waverley, a new 15-storey, Kirkor Architects-designed rental tower set to replace the Hotel Waverley and Silver Dollar Room, currently being torn down at Spadina and College in Downtown Toronto. The plan was acquired by Fitzrovia Real Estate Inc. earlier this year, and the current resubmission represents one of the final steps in the planning process before shovels go into the ground.

Updated plan for The Waverley, image via submission to City of Toronto

The updated plan's most notable revision has been a complete re-design of the tower's exterior envelope, while the overall massing introduced in previous iterations has been largely retained, albeit with some tweaks. The previous design—which predated Fitzrovia’s involvement—involved contrasting dark and light sections of precast concrete, including dark stamped precast concrete panels providing texture.

Previous plan for The Waverley, image via submission to City of Toronto

The new plan features a simplified exterior with white precast concrete framing punched windows. At street level, a dark brick treatment has been added to differentiate the base from the tower above. A frame of copper-hued prefinished aluminum panels darn a canopy over the building's entrance, while the rebuilt Silver Dollar Room is featured to e north, separated from the bulk of the building by a deep overhang.

Base of The Waverley, image via submission to City of Toronto

A total of 190 rental units were proposed in the previous version, which has since been revised down to 167. The units are planned in a mix of 32 studios with average sizes of 39 m2, 94 one-bedrooms with average sizes of 55 m2, 29 two-bedrooms with average sizes of 69 m2, and 12 three-bedrooms with average sizes of 105 m2.

Skyline of The Waverley, image via submission to City of Toronto

The Silver Dollar Room, a music venue that operated at the site from 1958 to 2017, will be rebuilt with elements retained for reincorporation including the venue’s bar, stage, murals, terrazzo floor pieces, and the locally iconic sign. An updated heritage plan for the project includes photo updates from heritage specialists GBCA Architects, showing the repair status of these various elements as they appeared during restoration earlier in the year.

Restoration of Silver Dollar Room elements, image by GBCA Architects via submission to City of Toronto

Additional information and images can be found in our database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment in the field provided at the bottom of this page.