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UrbanToronto is celebrating 20 YEARS throughout October with stories and images looking back over the last two decades. Today we take a look back at skyline renderings by longtime UrbanToronto Forum contributor 3Dementia which chronicle Toronto's evolution through through completed, altered, or failed proposals.
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As with any skyline in a thriving city, Toronto's has seen constant evolution — projects are proposed, some get constructed, some fail, but many end up looking significantly different from their initial renderings...
Today we take a look at the future skyline renderings created by one of UrbanToronto's original and most prolific contributors, 3Dementia, which have artfully chronicled Toronto's future skyline evolution with development proposals, the earliest still on our site dated from 2009. (UrbanToronto's earliest imagery has been lost to the vagaries of the Internet 1.0.) 3Dementia has been creating views of the future city by combining some photography with imagery created for the countless proposals that UrbanToronto tracks, orienting each building for the particular view, sizing it appropriately, and locating it precisely: the idea being that if all the buildings that were proposed at a particular time were all built a built a few years distant into the future, this is what our skyline would look like.
No future rendering shows exactly what ends up being built, of course, as plans are always changing… but then a few years later, and 3Dementia has updated his malleable renderings with the latest set of proposals, giving us the renewed look at why lies ahead. Each rendering ends up as almost a living snapshot reflecting the time and climate in which each were created. The collection of earlier 3Dementia skyline renderings allows us to look back at projects that have since been either built or shelved, while the new additions allow us to speculate and imagine a built form in which everything that is currently proposed was approved, and constructed.
Let's start with a 2010-created image by 3Dementia, looking northeastish from over the Islands to the downtown core.
The above image shows a variety of development applications that were proposed, approved, or under-construction at the turn of the first decade into the 2000s. Assuming you're familiar with where buildings are in Toronto and what they look like now, as you can see, there are a number projects in this 2010 rendering that ended up being constructed fairly similarly to how they are represented here: Aura (2014), Ïce Condominiums (2014-2015), and the L-Tower (2016) all bear a strong resemblance in this rendering to their constructed counterparts, completed a half-decade later.
CIBC Square
In addition to buildings that have since been constructed, 3Dementia's 2010 rendering is particularly interesting as it also includes a 2006 concept that was floated around for the piece of land now occupied by the south tower of CIBC Square. In the rendering above, this concept can be seen to the right of the Air Canada Centre (image-right) - easily identified as the tallest building south of the Gardiner.
That concept was for a single 50-storey office tower that incorporated the Toronto Coach Terminal into the lower levels of the building, and although it was only a "fantasy" concept, generated much excitement for its potential for a kick-starting regeneration in this part of the downtown core. A funny side note is that some of the early responses to this concept on UT's forum in 2006 was that 50-storeys would look out of place in the skyline being located this far south away from the taller buildings which were then restricted to the Financial District. Of course today, you can hardly see the south CIBC Square tower from the lake due to the surrounding redevelopments.
This piece of land would go on to become the CIBC Square that we know (and love) today, which following the completion of phase two will consist of two towers that straddle the rail corridor, linked by an elevated park. This is arguably one of the rare instances in which the completed building matches — if not outdoes — its renders.
Pinnacle One Yonge
3Dementia's renderings also captured a number of projects — such as Pinnacle One Yonge — which have undergone multiple design changes since the original submission, while generally managing to maintain its overall scheme. The residential portion of this project, originally proposed by Pinnacle in 2013 as a 4-tower design by Hariri Pontarini, was resubmitted in 2015 as a 3-tower proposal (pictured above).
Following further redesigning, the (ultimately-approved version), was submitted in 2017, which included a unique non-load-bearing diagonal frame system for the tallest tower (see above model). Subsequently, Phase 1, (the shortest at 65 storeys in the southeast corner of the site), was submitted for rezoning in January, 2017, followed by Phases 2 and 3 in July, 2018. Construction of Phase 1 began in April 2018 and was completed during 2023 — after construction for Phase 2 had already began.
Yet despite this, there were further changes made to Phases 2 & 3 in 2021 and 2022 regarding the overall design, materials, and building height — even after the construction of Phase 2 was underway. Most notable was a 2022 rezoning application to increase the height of Phases 2 & 3 from 276m & 312m to 306 & 346m respectively, meaning the site would be home to not one but two 'supertalls'. We are still waiting to see if the City will approve the height extensions.
With Phase 2 currently under construction without the height increase having been approved, this is a great example of a project that was not only altered from its original inception, but even from the version that was ultimately approved by Council and then used for marketing materials. In this unique scenario, 3Dementia's diagrams reflect the ongoing nature of evolving designs, some of which continue to shape-shift even after being approved.
50 Bloor Street West
3Dementia's skyline renderings also capture projects that never came to fruition and have since been shelved, such as the proposal for 50 Bloor Street West. This is seen in the 2012 skyline rendering above as the tallest blue building behind and left of the CN Tower. A design for this site was first submitted by Morguard in 2012, which proposed an 83-storey (277m) mixed-use building. At 5 meters taller than Aura (272m), this was Canada's tallest residential building at the time of submission.
Designed by Pellow + Associates, this original design (above left) included 600 residential units, 41,000m² of commercial and office floor area, and 620 below-grade parking stalls. Situated atop the Holt Renfrew flagship store, this proposal was updated in 2013, before being approved by Council in 2014 at a height of 70 storeys (above right). However, while there have since been a plethora of completed skyscrapers within 100m of this project, due to a number of factors, this proposal is indefinitely shelved.
One Bloor East
Also shown in the 2012 skyline rendering above is One Bloor East - shown with an angled roof. Notorious for its lengthy design evolution, this rendering was one of the last iterations of the building before finally being approved and then completed in 2017.
A skyscraper was first proposed on this site as far back as 2005 in the form of a 60-storey tower designed by Young & Wright (above left). A few years later and the property changed hands to Bazis International, who selected Rosario Varacalli as its architect, who then designed an 80-storey mixed-use building (above centre). However, this partnership was also not successful, and the land was once again sold, this time to Great Gulf Homes, who unveiled a new design in the spring of 2010 by Hariri Pontarini (above right). This design utilized its balconies and fritted balcony glass to create an undulating exterior form - a design that proved divisive at the time of unveiling.
The completed building stands at 76 storeys (257m), and while it was marred by... we'll say an 'extended' construction timeline... it is one of the more unique and recognizable buildings in the city. It is rather humorous re-reading some of the responses in the UT thread for this building in 2010, gasping at the thought of even a 60-storey building being constructed in this location. And yet it also serves a reminder of just how much has changed in less than twenty years as there are now thirteen 60+ storey proposals just within 200 meters of this site.
Union Square (formerly Oxford Place)
Another type of project that 3Dementia's renderings have also captured are those that have not been constructed yet have also undergone a series of design iterations. For example, Oxford Properties' twin-tower proposal for the redevelopment of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, seen in the above image from 2012 on either side of the CN Tower, has undergone a significant redesign since it was first proposed to the City in October, 2012.
This original design consisted of four towers - one residential, one office, and two for a hotel - and occupied the entirety of the convention centre lands, stretching east to where the Intercontinental Hotel currently stands. With over 7.35 million ft², 4,000 parking stalls, and a 5.5-acre park partially covering the rail tracks, this was at the time one of the largest proposals in North America. However, it was not approved by City Council, leading the project to be shelved and re-assessed.
Flash-forward to 2019, and the re-submitted version of this proposal is still a 4-tower design, however it has been confined to the lands directly north of the Rogers Centre and does not include the existing convention centre nor Intercontinental Hotel lands at all. While we have covered this resubmission previously, in the context of this article it's important to note the differences in design, tower spacing, and uses between the two versions. While the 2019 redesign maintained aspects of the original proposal such as a park over the rail tracks, it essentially streamlined the same GFA into half the amount of land: four towers were now proposed where there were previously two; separation distances that sometimes stretched to over a hundred meters in the original proposal are now the minimum 20 meters. And in terms of uses: gone from the proposal altogether are new hotel uses; replaced instead with two residential towers and two offices towers. Again, this resubmission reflects the current and future needs, which were different in 2019 than in 2012 (and one could easily argue that they have shifted yet again in 2023).
Full Skyline View
3Dementia's most-encompassing piece of work is the full skyline view from the west. Above is the 2020 version of this rendering — this vantage point from over the Humber Bay parks allows the full downtown core to be captured, and the renderings have grown and filled-out as the city itself has. The 2020 version above shows a number of proposals that had been recently-submitted at the time, such as 1200 Bay (326m) and 372 Yonge, (248m). This version also shows projects like Pinnacle One Yonge and The One at heights that have since been increased, and projects like Forma (then-known as Mirvish + Gehry) and Concord Sky (formerly YSL Residences) both of which have subsequently been decreased in height.
Perhaps even more shocking is the same view from 2004, seen in the image above taken by 3Dementia. The majority of Toronto's tallest buildings are clustered within the Financial District, with only a few taller buildings north, such as the Manulife Centre (image-left). This skyline defined Toronto as early as the 1970s, with the completion of Commerce Court West (1972), First Canadian Place (1975), and the CN Tower (1976) — plus a few important later additions such as Scotia Plaza (1988) and TD Canada Trust Tower (1990).
And finally, contrasting the above 2004 image with the 2023 skyline rendering below, and the exponential influx of redevelopment proposals in the downtown core is astonishing. Even contrasted with the 2020 skyline rendering from three years ago, there are a number of new proposals that have since been submitted that have dramatically altered the rendering yet again. A few obvious changes include the redesign of Pinnacle One Yonge, increased height of The One, and the deletion of 1200 Bay. However, significant clusters of towers have since appeared between Aura and One Bloor East - a few notable proposals include 645 Yonge, 646 Yonge, 15 Charles East, and the twin towers of 475 Yonge Street.
The level of detail in these skyline renderings is unparalleled, and we at UrbanToronto are very appreciative of the hard work that goes into the updating of these as the city evolves.
It is anyone's guess as to when — or in what form — the proposals in 3Dementia's latest 2023 rendering will come to fruition. However, as long as there are proposals submitted, there will be the opportunity for speculation and discussion, all of which we look forward to continue seeing reflected in 3Dementia's future skyline renderings.
Come back tomorrow for the last of the special articles covering Urban Toronto's last twenty years!
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Thank you to the companies joining UrbanToronto to celebrate our 20 years in business.
