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Last week in a marathon four-day meeting, Toronto City Council approved the recommendations of Planning Staff, giving dozens of development proposals the green light, and less than a dozen the cold shoulder. Among the approvals was the mixed-use development of St Clair Place on the northeast corner of Yonge Street and St Clair Avenue East in the Deer Park area of the city.
The site comprises the whole block extending north to Heath Street and east to Alvin Street. The total gross floor area of the proposal is 126,625m², resulting in a site density of 9.25 FSI.
Capital Developments led the rezoning of the property on behalf of property owner Wittington Properties Limited. The proposal consists of three condo towers of 27, 39, and 44 storeys, and a mid-rise building of 13 storeys, all designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects. They will be just across Yonge from the landmark One Delisle tower designed by Chicago's Studio Gang Architects, which has just recently begun construction.
Among the 1,361 new dwelling units will be 520 two-bedrooms (38%) and 136 three-bedrooms (10%). The upper floors of the three towers will offer terraced units, while live-work units will be found at the base of the two eastern buildings. 40 rental replacement units will also be part of the development, replacing the existing 36 units that will be demolished onsite.
The development will feature 2,722m² of indoor and 1,361m² of outdoor amenity spaces for the residents – plus a 1,400m² POPS (Privately Owned Publicly accessible Space) for everyone running north-south between the buildings. It will feature seating arrangements and plantings, and will be enlivened by retail spaces facing it. The base buildings facing the POPS will rise 3 to 4 storeys before a step-back above with the towers will rise, keeping a human scale in the ground realm.
In the image above, we look north through the POPs by day ...and below we look south by night. The sidewalk widths will increase at the north end of the site, to open up views of the park and the Yorkminster Church tower, as seen above.
The public space will also feature a series of public art pieces, which are being funded by the developer, although the art to be commissioned is still being considered at the moment.
North of the POPS will be a 1,560m² park. Located at the northwest corner of the site, it is pictured below. Both the park and the POPS are Claude Cormier + Associés designs. Cormier is famous in Toronto for their remake of Berczy Park and its instantly beloved 'dog fountain', is currently working on the high profile 'Love Park' at York and Harbour streets, and has several other commissions in the city.
Commercial space at St Clair Place will cover an area of 20,524m², and will be located on the first and second floors of the buildings that front onto the public spaces.
500 spaces for cars will be located in a three-level below grade garage with access from Heath Street East and Alvin Avenue, along with parking for 1,741 bikes. The site is directly linked to St Clair subway station on Yonge Line 1, which is also served by the St Clair streetcar and a number of bus routes.
We will continue to follow progress on the development, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, 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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