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A 68-storey mixed-use tower has been proposed at 530 Yonge Street in Downtown Toronto by KingSett Capital. Designed by Giannone Petricone Associates, it is positioned at the northwest corner of Yonge and Breadalbane streets, and is located within four Major Transit Station Areas, including Wellesley and College stations. This is one of several high-rise proposals from KingSett along several nearby blocks of the Yonge Street corridor.
The site, spanning 1,930m², is an assembly of 530 though 550 Yonge Street, along with 6 and 8 Breadalbane Street, and 145 St Luke Lane. Currently it is occupied by a mix of low-rise buildings, including 2- and 3-storey structures dating from 1873 to 1935. The properties host retail spaces and a single rental apartment unit. All buildings are listed on the City of Toronto Heritage Register. The area is seeing low-rise commercial buildings along Yonge Street give way to high-rises.
Aird & Berlis LLP has submitted Zoning By-law Amendment and Site Plan Approval applications to the City of Toronto on behalf of the developer. The tower would rise 224.8m. The development entails 860 residential units, with a total Gross Floor Area of 52,086m² and a Floor Space Index of 27.0.
The principal east facades of the 19th-century buildings at 538 through 550 Yonge Street would be retained in the podium, and the storefront at 538 Yonge Street would also be rehabilitated to reflect its original character. The podium would feature 543m² of retail space on the ground floor, activating the Yonge Street frontage. Above, 414m² of cultural space would occupy the second floor.
There is 1,750m² of indoor and 429m² of outdoor amenity space proposed. Indoor facilities would be distributed across the mezzanine, third floor, and lower mechanical penthouse levels, with outdoor space concentrated on the third-floor terrace. With six elevators serving the 860 residential units, the ratio of one elevator per 143 units indicates substantially longer than preferable wait times.
Public realm improvements include a 168m² POPS (Privately-Owned Publicly-accessible Space) called "the Porch," located at the southwest corner of the site. The Porch would face Dr. Lillian McGregor Park across St Luke Lane and offer platform seating, decorative paving, and public art.
The design includes one underground level dedicated to bicycle parking, with 874 spaces divided into 777 long-term residential, 87 short-term residential, and ten publicly accessible spaces. In contrast, no vehicle parking spaces are proposed, reflecting the site’s prime location near multiple transit stops and stations. A pick-up and drop-off area with five short-term spaces would accommodate visiting vehicle access.
530 Yonge is approximately 100m south of Wellesley station and 320m north of College station, and also within walking distance of Queen’s Park, Bloor-Yonge, and Bay stations. Surface transit options include buses along Wellesley, Bay, and Yonge streets, as well as the 506 Carlton streetcar. For cyclists, there are north-south bike lanes on Yonge Street and east-west lanes on Wellesley Street.
Numerous high-rises are proposed or underway in the area surrounding the site. To the east, Yonge at Wellesley Station is under construction at 41 storeys, alongside proposals for 56- and 62-storey towers at 34 and 33 Maitland Street. Directly across the street, 543 Yonge Street is proposed at 68 storeys. To the north, the 55-storey 8 Wellesley is under construction, with further proposals at 619 and 646 Yonge Street reaching heights of 70 and 75 storeys, the latter also by KingSett. South of the site are proposals for 46-storey G2 and 73-storey 2 Carlton. Also, to the south, KingSett is co-developing 510 Yonge at 59 storeys and proposing 475 Yonge Street with two towers at 75 and 78 storeys.
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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