530 The East Mall in Etobicoke is currently home to a seven-and-four-storey apartment building constructed in approximately 1965. In a step that would modernize a low-density area developed in the 1960s and 70s on the west side of Toronto, the 110 existing rental units would be demolished and reconstructed into a new design proposed by Hazelview Investments. Bousfields has submitted applications on behalf of the developer for a Zoning By-law Amendment and Plan of Subdivision for the site located southeast of the Highway 427 and Rathburn Road interchange.

Looking southwest to 530 The East Mall, as designed by Turner Fleischer Architects for Hazelview Investments

Turner Fleischer Architects has prepared a design of three residential buildings, with the centre building having two towers rise from a shared podium. The four towers would all count 21 storeys and stand at 76.32m high. The three sites would be separated by driveways allowing for access to The East Mall, the driveways running to the north and south of the centre building. In addition, a public park 2,889m² in area would be found at the southern end of the site, adjacent to the sports field of neighbouring Burnhamthorpe Collegiate. All in all, the proposal has a total residential ground floor area of 81,887m² and results in 1,074 residential units, including the 110 rental replacement units.

Site plan for 530 The East Mall, with north to the right, image retrieved from submission to the City of Toronto

Just north of the proposed park, the design of the south building features an L-shaped floor-plate for the eight podium levels, with a the 13-storey tower above and a total of 280 residential units. In contrast, the centre building’s U-shaped podium features a tower rising from each arm. Akin to the south building, the north building would also be L-shaped, with a podium and tower of the same number of storeys. Each building would have multiple step-backs, including ones at 28.87m high at the 9th floor for outdoor amenity space atop the podiums.

Looking west to Building A by the public park, as designed by Turner Fleischer Architects for Hazelview Investments

The proposal calls for the north building to be built first, prior to the demolition of the existing apartments, in order for those tenants to be relocated without having to move offsite. Residents would eventually be able to enjoy enhanced greenery on the site, including the proposed public park to the south, as well new hard and soft landscaping elements and street trees. For vehicles, three levels of underground parking garage would provide 867 parking spaces. For those traveling by bike, the proposal entails 819 bicycle parking spots.

Looking west to the two towers of the centre building, as designed by Turner Fleischer Architects for Hazelview Investments

As noted, the surrounding area around Highway 427 has a development pattern dating back to the 1960s. Those designs were based on a “tower in the park” style with buildings set far back from streets, and with plenty of surface parking. Newer proposals for the area have brought about the more modern tower-and-podium structure.

Looking northwest to the current apartment building at the site, image retrieved from Google Street View

The East Mall is designated a Minor Arterial Street by Toronto’s Road Classification System, and runs adjacent to Highway 427. Connections to the highway are found at Rathburn to the north and Burnhamthorpe to the south. For public transit users, TTC buses pass by the site which connect to the Kipling station on the Bloor Line 2 subway, about 2.6km away, where the GO Transit Milton line also stops, while MiWay buses serving Mississauga also have a terminal there.

An aerial view of the site and the surrounding area, image retrieved from Google Maps

The design of the 530 The East Mall redevelopment is meant to complement adjacent existing and future buildings. In addition, the added green space would be utilized by both residents and the public.

UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on this 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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Related Companies:

Bousfields, EQ Building Performance Inc., Hazelview Investments, Jablonsky, Ast and Partners, LEA Consulting, STUDIO tla, Turner Fleischer Architects