G.R Feldman Investments Ltd has submitted an application to the City of Toronto via WND Associates for Zoning By-law Amendment at 45 Balliol Street, on the south side of Balliol, east of Yonge in Davisville Village within Midtown Toronto. If approved, a 39-storey condominium tower would replace the two existing buildings on the site. Surrounding the site on all sides is a neighbourhood of apartment and condominium buildings with some commercial. Smaller buildings in the area are increasingly being replaced by larger ones.

To the immediate south of this site, a property at 50 Merton Street is also subject to planning application for a 39-storey building. You can read about it here.

Currently, the west half of the 45 Balliol site is an 18-storey Tower-in-the-Park style rental apartment building with 264 units, while the east half is home to 19 units of two-storey rental townhouse dwellings, with addresses from 57 through 93 Balliol. It's the townhouses that would be replaced with a Core Architects-designed 39-storey residential building that would contain 507 new residential units.

Immediately east of the site at 155 Balliol is a virtually identical set of two-storey townhomes that share their property with an 18-storey rental building. The properties, with different owners, are effectively mirror images of each other. 155 Balliol is subject to an earlier application to replace its townhomes with a 38-storey building.

Location of 45 Balliol, image from submission to the City

The proposed development would have 266 one-bedroom units (52.4%), 189 two-bedroom units (37.3%), and 52 three-bedroom units (10.3%). The building, the planning application argues, would contribute to the city's housing stock by providing for a large proportion of new family sized apartment units, with approximately 47.5% of all units consisting of two and three-bedroom units. (The current townhomes onsite include 13 three-bedroom and 6 two-bedroom units.)

45 Balliol by CORE Architects for G.R Feldman Investments Ltd

The 39-storey building would generally take the form of a 'L' with and 6 and 12-storey podium volumes, with a total height of 133.45 metres. The six lowest levels would also extend to the west somewhat at the south end. Units are proposed across all levels of the development with the exception of the 13th floor which is amenity space. The 7th floor would also include amenities, and both the 7th and 13th would also have outdoor amenity spaces atop the podium roofs. Lobby, storage, garbage, and servicing areas are to be located on the first level.

Base of the new tower featuring green spaces, image from submission to the City

The proposed building’s total residential gross floor area is 35,432m² with a total proposed FSI of 8.14. It also includes a 435m² onsite public parkland dedication along the eastern boundary of the site. Given the large size of the site, the building's base would be located towards the rear of the lot to provide generous front yards, enhancing the pedestrian realm by maximizing opportunity for the on-site parkland and other open spaces. 

A total of 101 parking spaces are proposed on the site for both residents and visitors of the new building in a two-level underground garage. Out of 76 vehicular spaces for residents, 55 would be typical, 16 would be dedicated Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment spaces, and 5 would be barrier-free spaces. Access to the underground garage is to be provided via the driveway along the western side of the building, with the surface driveway connecting to a ramp at the southwest corner of the building.

Top down view of 45 Balliol showing its shape, image from submission to the City

A total of 457 long-term bicycle parking spaces would also be provided for the building, of which 106 are proposed to be located on the ground floor, while 351 spaces are provided on the first level of the garage. Additionally, 51 short-term bicycle parking spaces would be located on the ground level, within the building.

The site is situated less than 100 metres from Davisville station on TTC Line 1, while the new Crosstown LRT will be just one stop north at Eglinton station. The site is also well-served by five TTC bus routes and one kilometre north of St Clair Avenue which offers an east-west streetcar.

You can learn more from our Database file for the project linked below. If you'd like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Project Forum thread, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.

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Related Companies:  Core Architects, Crozier & Associates Consulting Engineers, EQ Building Performance Inc., Ferris + Associates Inc., Gradient Wind Engineers & Scientists, SKYGRiD, Snaile Inc., WND Associates Ltd