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The 2019 opening of a new Toronto MEC flagship store (formerly Mountain Equipment Co-op) at Queen and Soho unlocked the outdoor adventure store's previous site at King and Peter for redevelopment. The old property at 400 King West was purchased by developer Plaza in 2016, with the retail space now home to short-term tenants while the planning and appeals process draws to a close for the proposed condominium tower that could replace the current low-rise building.
Initially proposed for rezoning in 2017, the project was resubmitted to the City in 2018, 2019, and most recently again in March, 2020. The November, 2019 submission revealed a new Quadrangle-designed proposal following City Council’s adoption of a Settlement Offer in July, 2019, the result of the project having been appealed to the LPAT. A number of refinements have since been integrated into the re-imagined design, though the plan maintains overall concept from the previous March, 2018 proposal, notably that it rises 48 storeys and contains 620 condo units.
The building would rise 156.9 metres to the top of a mechanical penthouse level, and contain a total gross floor area (GFA) of 42,066.8 m², with residential condo space to take up 38,575.62 m², or 91.7% of the total. The podium is proposed to house 2,517.5 m² of retail space (5.98% of total GFA) and 973.7 m² office space (2.32% of total GFA). Above the podium, the residential floors now heavily favour smaller unit sizes, with 347 of the 620 units being studio or single-bedroom layouts in a mix of 218 studios, 129 one-bedrooms, 211 two-bedrooms, and 62 three-bedrooms.
Renderings and architectural diagrams shed light on the new design. The most striking feature is a podium clad in a frame of brick-embedded precast panels forming a pattern of capsule-shaped, multi-storey openings for windows and balconies.
Above, the tower would be finished in a frame of white precast panels around window wall cladding system with vision glazing and back-painted glass spandrel panels.
The complex would have a three-level underground garage with 118 parking spaces, 93 for residential use and 25 for retail and visitor uses. Plans outline that a minimum of 22 and maximum of 25 public parking spaces would be sold to the Toronto Parking Authority as part of the rezoning settlement.
Another public aspect of the project would be a planned privately-owned publicly accessible space (POPS) measuring 115.9 m², located at the northeast corner of King and Charlotte streets. The open space would complement a smaller POPS opposite on the northwest corner of the intersection at the base of Charlie Condos.
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 below.
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