Toronto Aqualina at Bayside | 47.85m | 13s | Tridel | Arquitectonica

I hear you. I used to get upset at seeing almost every single new building constructed with grey spandrel panels feeling that our city is going to look like crap...but now I embrace it knowing how many people are employed by the grey spandrel factory...and their children who now have shoes and soccer equipment. This comforts me.

I mean why fight it? I think the ancient Greeks had a similar feeling towards limestone and marble.

There's at least 100 future buildings to come in shades of grey and having many, many spandrel panels and formed- brick panels. Better get used to the new normal.
 
NBGtect said:
I hear you. I used to get upset at seeing almost every single new building constructed with grey spandrel panels feeling that our city is going to look like crap...but now I embrace it knowing how many people are employed by the grey spandrel factory...and their children who now have shoes and soccer equipment. This comforts me.

I mean why fight it? I think the ancient Greeks had a similar feeling towards limestone and marble.

There's at least 100 future buildings to come in shades of grey and having many, many spandrel panels and formed- brick panels. Better get used to the new normal.
Click to expand...
Sorry 'bout it.
 
NBGtect said:
I hear you. I used to get upset at seeing almost every single new building constructed with grey spandrel panels feeling that our city is going to look like crap...but now I embrace it knowing how many people are employed by the grey spandrel factory...and their children who now have shoes and soccer equipment. This comforts me.

I mean why fight it? I think the ancient Greeks had a similar feeling towards limestone and marble.

There's at least 100 future buildings to come in shades of grey and having many, many spandrel panels and formed- brick panels. Better get used to the new normal.
Click to expand...

People are employed by the construction of many types of materials - it's not spandrel production or the dole.

Knowing that people in the development industry actively frequent these threads, I think there is value in expressing our displeasure with certain material trends (or at least how they're commonly applied).
 
ADRM said:
People are employed by the construction of many types of materials - it's not spandrel production or the dole.

Knowing that people in the development industry actively frequent these threads, I think there is value in expressing our displeasure with certain material trends (or at least how they're commonly applied).
Click to expand...

Sure. But LV4L's point -- that the whingeing & nattering about spandrel, or same boring glass, or looks like another building, or omigod new roadcut! -- gets really tiresome, n'est-ce pas?

Whether grey spandrel covered or not, this is going to be a great contribution to the ongoing revitalization of QQE.
 
I honestly don't believe anyone in the construction material industry cares what opinions are posted here. Otherwise, this obsession with everything grey would have ended ages ago.

I agree that this structure is better than an old industrial building or parking lot. My hope is that once the construction boom is over across the city that newly planted trees (preferably in silva cells) will flourish and take over from the grey in new builds.

Moving into the West Don Lands as a pioneer resident, I had hope in the Pan Am Village being somewhat awesome based on conceptual renderings. Once the first grey brick panel and grey spandrel panel went up on the first building I gave up all hope. So now the saviour to the neighbourhood will be trees, public art, and colourful retail signage rather than wonderful buildings. This in and of itself is sad. My opinion is never to change. And it's especially sad that adding in some colourful materials doesn't cost any extra money. The YMCA was supposed to have orange accents. Thankfully there is some red used to compensate.

Aqualina could have been built in blue and white. Doesn't that make sense? Instead we get...grey :(
 
NBGtect said:
I honestly don't believe anyone in the construction material industry cares what opinions are posted here. Otherwise, this obsession with everything grey would have ended ages ago.

I agree that this structure is better than an old industrial building or parking lot. My hope is that once the construction boom is over across the city that newly planted trees (preferably in silva cells) will flourish and take over from the grey in new builds.

Moving into the West Don Lands as a pioneer resident, I had hope in the Pan Am Village being somewhat awesome based on conceptual renderings. Once the first grey brick panel and grey spandrel panel went up on the first building I gave up all hope. So now the saviour to the neighbourhood will be trees, public art, and colourful retail signage rather than wonderful buildings. This in and of itself is sad. My opinion is never to change. And it's especially sad that adding in some colourful materials doesn't cost any extra money. The YMCA was supposed to have orange accents. Thankfully there is some red used to compensate.

Aqualina could have been built in blue and white. Doesn't that make sense? Instead we get...grey :(
Click to expand...

I know for a fact that industry insiders read these boards. There's a difference between not caring at all, caring and taking feedback under advisement and then not acting on it (for any number of reasons, good, bad, and everything in between), and caring and doing something about it regardless of cost.
 
ADRM said:
I know for a fact that industry insiders read these boards. There's a difference between not caring at all, caring and taking feedback under advisement and then not acting on it (for any number of reasons, good, bad, and everything in between), and caring and doing something about it regardless of cost.
Click to expand...

As a builder/developer ... the above line is something no one will never say
 
NBGtect said:
I honestly don't believe anyone in the construction material industry cares what opinions are posted here. Otherwise, this obsession with everything grey would have ended ages ago.

I agree that this structure is better than an old industrial building or parking lot. My hope is that once the construction boom is over across the city that newly planted trees (preferably in silva cells) will flourish and take over from the grey in new builds.

Moving into the West Don Lands as a pioneer resident, I had hope in the Pan Am Village being somewhat awesome based on conceptual renderings. Once the first grey brick panel and grey spandrel panel went up on the first building I gave up all hope. So now the saviour to the neighbourhood will be trees, public art, and colourful retail signage rather than wonderful buildings. This in and of itself is sad. My opinion is never to change. And it's especially sad that adding in some colourful materials doesn't cost any extra money. The YMCA was supposed to have orange accents. Thankfully there is some red used to compensate.

Aqualina could have been built in blue and white. Doesn't that make sense? Instead we get...grey :(
Click to expand...

I have been spending some time in the Pan-Am Village this summer and I can only speak for myself but the trees and landscaping do not do much to mask the overwhelming amount of grey. It just does not feel pleasant to be there, for me, and I think much of the reason for that is the massive amount of grey boxes, just feels bad. It feels gloomy and overwhelming. Sure, more people and more stores will help to animate this district but it won't take away the feeling that this place is dull and just plain gloomy. I want to like this area because I love the artwork and open feeling on Front Street but I just don't like hanging out in this area. The Distillery, St Lawrence and The Esplanade feel so much better! The trees may help somewhat but they don't make up for all that depressing grey!

I certainly hope developers/the city do not continue with this trend but I am not hopeful at all.
 
Builders will build what sells. We are not going to see the same kind of building in say....Manhattan.... If bland/cheaply desgined buildings did not sell they wouldn't get built. We are in a massive boom where builders are selling to flippers and investors who do not care about what the building looks like. Many haven't even stepped foot in Canada, some purchases sight unseen.
 
Luckily 90 percent of the city doesn't contain these buildings...and we can look at the skyline from a distance where these areas can look kind of picturesque (from far far away). It's not the developers fault, they are just building what makes money. It's not the designer's fault, they are just following the direction of their clients. It's not even the city's fault, because our society just values freedom and tolerance above other values that would constrain building form and design.
 
Well it's somebody's fault!

It's not just a grey building here or there that's the problem either; it's entire new neighbourhoods on vacant lands stretching east and west and looking way too homogeneous. It's gotten to the tipping point that it's beyond obvious that new builds are primarily for investors who don't care. There's a whole lot of crap in these former industrial lands and they now take up a huge chunk of the skyline. The view from the lake isn't postcard worthy. My choice of stellar skyline is from the north east which includes Yorkville.

One would have thought for more effort and care here, like what's occurring in Regent Park. The Pan Am Village is a dud that could have looked so much better. My hope for East Bayfront is gone. I don't think Monde is going to save it.
 
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