The early stages of construction are prepping the site of what will soon be one of Canada's tallest buildings, coming to the corner of Yonge and Gerrard in Downtown Toronto. Before YSL Residences can rise 299 metres into the skyline, the site of the 85-storey luxury condominium tower is being cleared for construction, while various heritage elements are preserved for reintegration into the base of the future landmark.

Work on the site has been ongoing since February, when crews from Priestly Demolition began to mobilize on site. In the months since, the demolition team has been gradually removing existing buildings at 3 Gerrard Street, and 363 through 391 Yonge Street. Much of the combined site's current architecture will live on in the base of the building, with the street-fronting elevations of the Gerrard Building at 385-391 Yonge Street, the Richard S. Williams Block at 363-365 Yonge Street, 367 Yonge Street, and the Yonge Street Mission being retained in situ, wile portions of both the Gerrard Building and Williams Block are set to be reconstructed with salvaged or new materials to match the existing facades.

Looking southeast to YSL Residences site, image by Forum contributor Benito

Recent photos show that the in-situ facade retentions are currently in the works. Large temporary steel supporting structures now prop up the exterior facades. The size and positioning of these facades requires the supporting structures to bridge over the sidewalk on the east side of Yonge Street. These supports will remain in place until the new-build podium levels are added in behind, securing the facades to the new tower base.

Demolition and heritage retention at YSL, image by Forum contributor steveve

Pedestrians passing by the site on the east side of Yonge's sidewalk now pass directly under the support system, giving them a close-up look at the engineering involved as they pass through the network of concrete blocks and steel beams.

Pedestrians passing through the support system at YSL, image by Forum contributor skycandy

A construction timeline released earlier this year indicates that the conclusion of the demolition phase and start of the shoring and excavation phases were both scheduled to take place this month. Full sections of the site have been cleared, though demolition still appears more than two weeks from completion and will likely move beyond the initially projected August end date.

Looking south on Yonge showing heritage retention, image by Forum contributor Benito

Designed by New York-based Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates with Toronto-based architectsAlliance, the tower would stand as Canada's tallest building if completed today. It is unlikely that YSL will hold this title even temporarily, as The One—set to rise 10 metres taller than YSL—is already well under construction about 1.3 kilometres to the north. Despite this, the tower will still be the tallest at a new height peak at Yonge and Gerrard, overtaking the nearby Aura at College Park.