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Two months after Great Gulf celebrated the start of construction for their 357 King West project with a ground breaking, the first steps in construction have begun at the southwest corner of King and Blue Jays Way in Toronto’s Entertainment District. Permits for the 42-storey, Quadrangle-designed condominium tower were still pending at the time of the late September event, and with them now issued, crews have begun the project's shoring phase.
To start the shoring, crews drill a ring of boreholes around the perimeter of the site, into which steel I-beams are dropped: they become the vertical supports of the pile and lagging shoring system. Once excavation begins, timber lagging will be slotted in between two piles, gradually dropping to the bottom of the excavation as they hold back the surrounding soil. As the below-grade retaining walls grow taller, they will be braced by tiebacks that are drilled into the earth behind them, anchoring them.
A single drilling rig is working away at the constrained site, and while visible progress is minimal so far, several boreholes have been drilled and a collection of steel beams stands at the ready, soon to be lowered into the individual boreholes.
Great Gulf expects construction to wrap up in 2022. Once the project is built, 357 King West will rise 148 metres into the Entertainment District skyline, while bringing 324 new condominium units to the growing neighbourhood.
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.
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