Toronto Clear Spirit | 131.36m | 40s | Cityscape | a—A

Yesterday evening, after the Miklos Gaal opening at Artcore, I had another stroll around the site. People weren't fleeing in horror from Pure Spirit or looking up at it in terror as if they'd seen Godzilla. In fact, everyone remains calm in the presence of this handsome new addition to our downtown skyline. If aA continues as they've begun, we're clearly in for a real treat when the whole complex is built. Great design.
 
Urban Shocker said:
syn: Rack House 'M' is being reduced from eight to five storeys, the footprint kept the same, windows added along the lines that you suggest, between what appear to be the original pilasters or rebuilt pilasters using the same brick. There would be no point in demolishing this thing and rebuilding it exactly as before, would there?
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Everytime I've suggested they adapt Rackhouse M into a residential building you've claimed it was unacceptable, suitable only for moles.

Now you're suggesting that's exactly what they're doing (except lowering the height and adding a massive condo tower on top). Which one is it? If that's truly what they're doing, then I see no reason why they couldn't modify the current structure and leave it as-is so the District could retain it's form while serving a new purpose.

Urban Shocker said:
Again, you repeat your complaint about "scale" but you don't prove that it will be so.
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I don't understand what needs to be proven. Have you not seen the renderings? Unless 50 storeys is far shorter than what I've been led to believe, I think the proof is in the plans.

You often address these arguments by focusing exclusively on what they're doing with the base, ignoring the tower on top of it. I'm taking the entire development into consideration.

Urban Shocker said:
Four towers with a total of, say, 140 storeys would most definitely take up less floor space than a massive eight storey block wedged into the site. And if alklay's vision of a 5 1/2 storey complex were to be built would there be any room to move between the old buildings at all?
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The massive 8 storey block is part of the Distillery.

Urban Shocker said:
Tall towers are part of the vernacular of many cities, including ours. Tewder identifies the proximity of tall with short buildings as a characteristic of Toronto. While others have tried to link the Distillery District development to what's happening in other parts of the city in order to prove that it shouldn't go ahead, I've always maintained that the Distillery District offers a clear slate that allows for a unique solution, and that there isn't a single city-wide context that should be applied everywhere.
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You make the general claim that "Tall towers are part of the vernacular of many cities, including ours". You then state "there isn't a single city-wide context that should be applied everywhere.". You're contradicting yourself. Tall towers are indeed part of the vernacular of Toronto in a general sense. However, I don't think one can apply a general vernacular to the entire city. There's a reason why building heights are limited in some areas and unlimited in others. Each neighbourhood has it's own vernacular, which is definitely taken into consideration when projects for certain areas are proposed.

If you look at the West Donlands plan that includes the Distillery, towers of this magnitude were not envisioned as part of the Distillery. When you factor in the nature of the complex and it's rarity in Toronto 30, 40 and 50 storey towers that involve compromising one of the existing buildings appear to be the wrong way to go.

I agree that there isn't a single city-wide context that should be applied everywhere - this is exactly why I (and I would suspect others) think this is the wrong solution for this particular context. They've simply applied a general formula used around the city and applied it to the Distillery, without consideration for the historical built form of the area. This is one, 13 acre area of the city I think could do fine without highrises given the nature of the complex.
 
US, Rack House M isn't being reduced from eight to five stories. It is being reduced from eight to zero stories, and a new building built on the site of the demolished building.

Let's just take a moment to refresh ourselves about exactly what is being built here in the Clear Spirit project. These are the renderings from the Architects Alliance website.

This first image demonstrates how the one tower will be built on a the demolished Rack House M, while the other will be built on the shells of the two other, shorter rack houses across the laneway from the similar tank house buildings which were renovated for Soulpepper.

distillery-district_2.jpg




This second image clearly shows how the new podium building will have no significant similarity to the existing heritage rack house M other than the presence of red brick. It also shows us again how the Distillery is being permanently severed from its historic connection to the railway by that new long glass building on the left.

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This third image illustrates the scale of the buildings being constructed. I'm not quite as bothered by the building built on the smaller rack houses, though I am still quite uncomfortable with it. It's further from the centre of the district, and I suppose you could make a case that at least the rack houses aren't being completely obliterated.

distillery-district_7.jpg
 
This really is an excellent project. Thankfully the developers are people of vision, creating something new, and not some ossified theme park version of something that never was.
 
distillery-district_4.jpg



Okay - I'm going to dress just like that individual of uncertain tastes in the striking blue shirt, white pants and matching purse and pumps
 
I agree, they are very attractive towers. No doubt about that.

Why they have to plunked right into and onto the Distillery and the buildings of that district is the questionable aspect.
 
Don't worry, Hydrogen, all your questions will be answered in the fullness of time.

Anyone can look, not everyone can see.
 
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