Toronto 316 Bloor West | 121.14m | 37s | State Building Group | Kirkor

[P23]

This is just a block away from my apartment up at Spadina/Lowther.

Dude! I live there too! I assume you're from Ottawa as well? That's where I grew up.

I'm also interested in seeing development here. There hasn't been anything built in the area for many years which is odd since it's such a prime location and there are some properties that could easily be bulldozed.

 

[Uptowner]

Why on earth is 42 storeys too tall here? Being so close to multiple subway stations and streetcar lines, it should be as tall as possible.

I agree. A few people having a bit less direct sunlight shouldn't trump offering homes for a couple hundred people. I would go higher.

 

[kris]

It's because of the dumb NIMBYs. You live downtown in the largest city of the country. If you don't like tall buildings then move.

 

[sixrings]

I'd just like to say past standards of what are at some major transit intersections should not be a standard. I apologize to some people who have houses in this area or at Yonge and eglinton but we need to build up not out and encourage transit usage. In the old days that might not have mattered which is why nimby prevailed but I'm hoping that places like this see major density.

 

[A Torontonian Now]

Dude! I live there too! I assume you're from Ottawa as well? That's where I grew up.

I'm also interested in seeing development here. There hasn't been anything built in the area for many years which is odd since it's such a prime location and there are some properties that could easily be bulldozed.

Yep, proudly from O-town. I guess I'm a Torontonian now (living here nearly 3 years now), but it's good to remember where you're from.

In terms of density in the Annex, I wouldn't advocate anything tall for the neighbourhood streets (other than those like Walmer or St. George that already have apartment towers), but along Bloor is fair game for just about any height for the stretch from Avenue right up to Spadina (possibly Walmer). West of that any development should be avenues scale.

Also, I'm not sure why there isn't more development up along Dupont near Dupont station. Personally I feel like that is an undervalued/underdeveloped node with surprisingly good street life and interesting retail/restaurants. I wouldn't be surprised to see more action there in the near future.

 

[Gotzvon]

In response to the cries of NIMBYism, let me refine my position. A taller building will be fine here, as long as it meets the street well and contributes to the pedestrian realm. When you're walking next to a tall building, after a certain point it becomes irrelevant how tall that building is. So as long as the pedestrian realm is decent, I'll be happy. That said, going taller than 42 storeys here would look absolutely insane and would have no regard for the context of the area. Many buildings like UTS, other U of T buildings, etc. will likely be there for a long time, so building to suit the context of the neighbourhood is important.

 

[innsertnamehere]

42 is way too tall for the area. If we were talking 30 floors, still significantly beyond anything around it, I may think it would be fine, but 42 is way too much.

 

[Ramako]

As long as we're talking east of Spadina, I don't find the character of the street really worth preserving - it's actually quite barren until you're almost at St. George. Bring on the height!

 

[interchange42]

I'm inclined to agree that 42 storeys is quite a stretch here, but I'm not sure what I would peg as reasonable for this site. Whatever that appropriate number is will be the subject to quite a debate. No doubt Planning will reject this as overdevelopment, and the Annex Residents' Association won't want it any higher than Tartu College just across Madidon (which is about 17 storeys), but the developers will get more than that here. It'll be interesting to watch the reasoning on where this end up.

42

 

[ProjectEnd]

42 storeys is in no way a 'stretch' here. Meters from a subway stop, several more meters from another...(?)This is precisely where new density should occur. The Official Plan and zoning by-law both support a mix of uses here (it's difficult to get a reading on any sort of suggested 'density' because of our neanderthalic FSI suggestions (I know, I know, s. 37...)) so why not go for it? Furthermore, as is not the case with many 'avenues' sites, the area to the north is also CR and is therefore projected to change over a certain period. So why not? Because the ARA will object? Sorry, call in Moses' bulldozers here, it's time to move on.

 

[P23]

Yep, proudly from O-town. I guess I'm a Torontonian now (living here nearly 3 years now), but it's good to remember where you're from.

In terms of density in the Annex, I wouldn't advocate anything tall for the neighbourhood streets (other than those like Walmer or St. George that already have apartment towers), but along Bloor is fair game for just about any height for the stretch from Avenue right up to Spadina (possibly Walmer). West of that any development should be avenues scale.

Also, I'm not sure why there isn't more development up along Dupont near Dupont station. Personally I feel like that is an undervalued/underdeveloped node with surprisingly good street life and interesting retail/restaurants. I wouldn't be surprised to see more action there in the near future.

yeah agreed, I wouldn't want to lose any of the victorians in the Annex but there is a lot of potential with other properties on the arterials. Dupont as you mentioned has great potential. It needs wider sidewalks though and traffic is already quite bad during rush hours. I expect neighbourhoods like this will see more development in the next building cycle once areas further downtown have been filled out.

 

[Uptowner]

I understand the reaction that will come from some area residents but that is mostly because it will seem like such a big change. People will get used to it and, in retrospect, come to appreciate how poor the streetscape is east of Spadina at this point.

The more I think about it the more I'd like them to be bold and go for 50. Then on both the NE and NW corners of Spadina and Bloor you go for 65 storeys. We have very few opportunities to build new nodes so close to (central) downtown. Let's get this one started right.

 

[pw20]

I understand the reaction that will come from some area residents but that is mostly because it will seem like such a big change. People will get used to it and, in retrospect, come to appreciate how poor the streetscape is east of Spadina at this point.

The more I think about it the more I'd like them to be bold and go for 50. Then on both the NE and NW corners of Spadina and Bloor you go for 65 storeys. We have very few opportunities to build new nodes so close to (central) downtown. Let's get this one started right.

Are you guys crazy? This conversion completely underscores how Toronto confuses height with density. Dupont needs to be redeveloped, but 40 story buildings? That's not how you create a dense urban core...

Don't confuse the "manhattanization" of Toronto with glass walled 40-story condo buildings - the majority of Manhattan doesn't have that built form either. We should rather be concentrating on building 15-20 story midrises that are appropriate to the neighbourhoods they are apart of not turning every node into a forest of skyscrapers.

Urbanity is not necessarily a skyscraper.

 

[salsa]

Might as well propose a 42 storey tower at Pape and Danforth and some of you will think that's appropriate too, just because there's a subway station.

 

[sixrings]

Might as well propose a 42 storey tower at Pape and Danforth and some of you will think that's appropriate too, just because there's a subway station.

at Spadina I can jump on the 1 or 2 line and a streetcar line... If pape ever gets a DRL I will agree 42 stories will make sense... All of manhatten is not skyscraper but almost anything new in Manhatten is skyscraper. Anyways in my mind it isnt that its on a subway line which makes it 42 floor worthy its because its on 2 subway lines.

As for the rest of the danforth and bloor I dont understand why there isnt more midrise versus 2 and three floor buildings.. Hopefully the new building codes encourage more development in this area.