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In Toronto's Earlscourt, revised plans increase the height of a proposed mixed-use development at 1613 St Clair Avenue West from 17 to 22 storeys, making it the tallest proposal yet in its immediate area. Designed by SvN for Clifton Blake Group, the proposal eliminates medical office space that formed part of earlier redevelopment approvals when the site was under different ownership.
The irregularly shaped site occupies the southwest corner of St Clair Avenue West and Caledonia Park Road, and is currently occupied by a two-storey vacant commercial/industrial building with surface parking. To the west, the site directly abuts Metrolinx’s Barrie GO rail corridor within the Corso Italia–Davenport area, which is characterized by low- to mid-rise buildings, alongside commercial sites and emerging taller proposals.
A Zoning By-law Amendment to permit a 17-storey mixed-use building by then site-owner Nova Ridge Development was adopted by City Council in July, 2023 with a condition re: a further engineering report, but following the sale of the site, the original approvals were not finalized.
WND Associates has submitted the revised Zoning By-law Amendment application to the City of Toronto on behalf of the new owner. The reworked proposal calls for a 22-storey mixed-use building rising from an 8-storey podium to a total height of 77.05m, increased from 62.75m. The building would contain 330 rental units, up from 258 units previously approved. A new Gross Floor Area of 22,995m² would result in a Floor Space Index of 7.02 times coverage of the 3,275m² site, up from to 6.0 times under the earlier plan. Residential space would account for 22,663m², with 332m² of ground-floor commercial space, a significant reduction from the earlier plan’s 1,404m² non-residential component that included medical office uses.
The unit mix would comprise 39 studios, 106 one-bedroom units, 142 two-bedroom units, and 43 three-bedroom units, increasing the share of larger suites relative to the earlier proposal. The building would be served by three elevators, equating to an elevator ratio of one per 110 units, meaning that high speed motors would be required for acceptably prompt service. Resident amenities would include 749m² of indoor and 1,255m² of outdoor areas. Indoor amenity rooms are planned at Levels 2, 3, 4, and the rooftop, while outdoor amenity spaces are located at ground level, Level 2, and the roof.
A 137m² POPS (Privately Owned Publicly-accessible Space) is also proposed along the west side of the site, accessed from St Clair via a walkway, with landscaped setbacks and connected to the ground-floor commercial space.
Two underground levels are proposed, accommodating a total of 104 vehicle parking spaces, including 86 long-term residential spaces and 18 short-term and visitor spaces, up from the 99 spaces previously approved. Bicycle parking would increase more substantially, rising from 263 spaces in the earlier plan to 373 spaces, including 299 long-term residential, 70 short-term residential, and 4 short-term commercial spaces.
There are TTC stops at the intersection. The 512 streetcar runs in a dedicated right-of-way along St Clair Avenue West, providing frequent east–west service to and from Line 1 to the east. Buses provide north–south connections along Caledonia, meeting Line 2 at Dundas West station to the south, and the upcoming Caledonia station on Eglinton Line 5 to the north. In addition, the future St Clair–Old Weston GO station will be located just over 800m west.
The proposal joins intensification along the corridor that particularly picks up to the west. At St Clair Avenue West and Caledonia Road, proposals include 1500 St Clair West at 15 and 17 storeys, alongside 1492 St Clair Avenue West at 18 storeys. Further west, 1745 St Clair Avenue West is planned at 11 storeys, 290 Old Weston Road at 25 storeys, and 1799 St Clair West calls for three towers from 30 to 45 storeys. To the northeast, Earlscourt Condo is proposed at 9 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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| Related Companies: | Batory Planning + Management, CB Wilkinson, Gradient Wind Engineers & Scientists, WND Associates Ltd |
