Toronto DUKE Condos | 25.91m | 7s | TAS | BDP Quadrangle

For the record, the rendering posted above is a massing study completed several years ago while the project was in its infancy. The finalized design will be constructed from black and white brick, as per your 'request.'
 
That's not an objective statement.

Most buildings in the vicinity use red or orange brick, though there is that circa 1960s white-brick Salvation Army shelter nearby that was originally built to be a motel by a speculative developer. However, its architecture isn't that good, so it doesn't set a positive precedent. There are a couple of stucco-clad PoMo buildings which shouldn't set the precedent either, because stucco isn't local. There are some prominent stone buildings, and smooth stone would be interesting as cladding.
 
Most buildings in the vicinity use red or orange brick, though there is that circa 1960s white-brick Salvation Army shelter nearby that was originally built to be a motel by a speculative developer. However, its architecture isn't that good, so it doesn't set a positive precedent. There are a couple of stucco-clad PoMo buildings which shouldn't set the precedent either, because stucco isn't local. There are some prominent stone buildings, and smooth stone would be interesting as cladding.

I was just hanging out in the Junction last weekend with a good friend of mine who happens to be part of the Heydon family that used to owned several properties in the West End. Including the apartment block on the NW corner of Keele/Dundas W & the Heydon House. Though they do feature some interesting gritty effects, it's a shame that those buildings have been much neglected in recent decades. I agree that stucco has ruined the original aesthetics of many buildings throughout the city. This particular application is unacceptable.
 
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That's interesting to know someone from the Heydons. They had a large presence in the Junction's history. The Heydon House hotel at St. Clair and Old Weston Road is in particularly bad shape, from the facade long missing its turret to the storefront which now lacks glass windows. (They boarded them up and painted the boards, I believe.) It really deserves a restoration because it's a great Victorian building. I think the Heydons also owned the Subway Hotel at Keele and Vine Avenue, but it burned down in the 1980s and has been an empty lot ever since.
 
http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2013.TE23.3

Endorsed by the TEYCC and going to Council on May 7th. This development can't move fast enough - as has been said already, this bleak stretch of Dundas between Keele - Annette needs a new lease on life ASAP - and the heinous money mart that just popped up on the southwest corner of Dundas/Annette is not a step in the right direction... an ICBL preventing the expansion of fringe financial institutions in the area would be amazing!
 
That's interesting to know someone from the Heydons. They had a large presence in the Junction's history. The Heydon House hotel at St. Clair and Old Weston Road is in particularly bad shape, from the facade long missing its turret to the storefront which now lacks glass windows. (They boarded them up and painted the boards, I believe.) It really deserves a restoration because it's a great Victorian building. I think the Heydons also owned the Subway Hotel at Keele and Vine Avenue, but it burned down in the 1980s and has been an empty lot ever since.

I'm unaware of the Subway Hotel but was told that the Heydons' owned a prominent Victorian mansion in the High Park residential area that was demolished for one of the high-rises near the subway station. A scenario similar to the 1960-70's redevelopments of grand residences into apartments in the Annex.

The decline of the Heydon House Hotel is also quite tragic. Elimination of the roof elements on the shorter north section also resulted in a reduced historical statement. Although it had potential to be a gateway into communities to the north and west, today it unfortunately stands as a disconnected piece of Victorian heritage in the midst of autocentric suburban banality.
 
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Rendering.jpg


I believe the developer was asked to rethink the look so that it fits in with the neighbourhood better.

I like the old one better, but this one 'fits' better.
 

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That is an old render.

Sorry about that...Is there a new(er) one?

Although old, I think it's more recent than the other non-brick (white) design. It's also similar to the 2013 plans.

2803 Dundas SPA RZ Resubmission_ELEVATIONS.jpg
 

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It is newer than the all-white version but is still not current. The elevation you've posted above is accurate. The lines indicate where the facade has been extruded or recessed.
 
It is newer than the all-white version but is still not current. The elevation you've posted above is accurate. The lines indicate where the facade has been extruded or recessed.

I see what you mean.

I guess my point was that the white is out, and that it is now more sympathetic to the existing street (brick).

Is there a new rendering? The reports I was provided by the City didn't have a new one (just the red brick one).

Thanks.
 

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