10K 
A late 2020 application to the City of Toronto seeks Zoning By-law Amendments to permit a new 15-storey development at 471 Queen Street East, between Parliament and River streets in Corktown. Dubbed The Queen, the project by Lamb Development Corp features a design by A&Architects that brings new ground floor retail and condominium units above to the former footprint of a partially-demolished row of terrace houses and a two-storey commercial building.
The commercial building at the corner of Queen and Sumach and the remaining 1877-built townhomes in this block at the corner of Queen and Bright streets are unaffected by the proposal. In the view below, the green-painted building west of the corner plus the vacant site in the centre represents the proposed tower footprint. It would be sandwiched mid-block between older, low-rise neighbourhood buildings.
In place of the existing commercial and demolished residential buildings, the proposed condominium tower would rise to a height of 54.85 metres and contain a total gross floor area (GFA) of 8,653 m². The majority of the GFA (97.5%) would be dedicated to residential space, while the tower base would house 213 m² of double-height retail space.
The residential space would comprise 143 condominium units, in a mix of 76 studios, 28 one-bedrooms, 23 two-bedrooms, and 16 three-bedrooms. Among the smaller units, 20 studios and 20 one-bedrooms have been designed to include knock-out panels that would allow them to be easily combined into 20 two-bedroom units, depending upon demand.
The most notable feature of the proposal is its brick exterior and specific attention to the tower base. On the ground floor and mezzanine levels, a two-storey line of openings divided by bricked piers and topped by Palladian arched windows has been designed as a direct response to the building materials and design of the heritage Dominion Square building across from it on the north side of Queen Street. A double-height vaulted galleria at the west end of the Queen frontage would serve as a vehicular access point, connecting with the laneway to the rear of the building.
Above the brick base, levels 8 through 15 are set back 2.5 metres from the main Queen Street frontage, and feature a change in materiality from brick to glazing. This has been explained in planning documents as a means to emphasize the streetwall scale below for the balcony-free north elevation. The south elevation is planned with projecting balconies. To the east and west, lower levels abutting property lines are planned with blank walls, while upper levels include strips of windows for added articulation.
Located in close proximity to multiple transit routes, the plan includes a relatively small parking component of 33 parking spaces housed in a four-level underground garage. The underground levels are also planned to house 176 bicycle parking spaces, addressing the majority of residents' local transportation needs. An additional four bicycle parking spaces are planned at street-level.
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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