Toronto Forma | 308m | 84s | Great Gulf | Gehry Partners

The earliest ideas for the base were conceived to redefine the entertainment district- what an astonishing turnaround. Is this still a Gehry project?

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Not quite as flashy as the first renders but I never expected those to be built in the first place. While disappointing to some, these renders at least have a good possibility of being built. We will probably see a few more tweaks going forward but I think it's still very unique. Nothing else exists like it in Toronto or Canada for that matter.
 
the bigger problem is that people got their expectations up for no reason upon seeing the original renders as if they were naive enough to believe a preliminary render. that was your first mistake (C)
 
isaidso said:
Aren't we really talking about Toronto building 1-2 buildings at this price point vs the 20-25 buildings like this that Manhattan has/is building? Toronto surely has enough HNWI (High Net Worth Individuals) that it can build a 1-2 buildings like this. If you look at the HNWI data in cities around the world it suggests that Toronto certainly does have enough of them.
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Location and demand are the primary drivers of price points with of course some variance with the actual building, but that's secondary. The previous rendering might have had a chance in Yorkville or possibly a choice area on University Ave but no chance in the Entertainment district, not at least in 2021. The King development in the Entertainment District is an encouraging start but there isn't yet a market for a large volume of something considerably more expensive per sq ft in the area. These buildings will still take on a very distinctive form and will from a distance be as striking on the skyline as the previous renderings.
 
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.dwg said:
"Add a few crinkles here and then this design works" etc. etc.... Really? I'm not even a Gehry fan and I think the last design was brilliant compared to this. Call it what you want but it's "architecture" by a million cuts. The ridiculous, anemic defence of developer cost-cutting and a complete lack of ambition throughout this thread is illustrative of what I think is bringing the quality of discourse on UT down in general. It shows a lack of understanding of what separates an undulating facade from a curtainwall product trying to be something it is not, or crappy typical details replacing what where custom Gehry details. This proposal is nothing of what it used to be, regardless of the excuses people make for it. And the design team themselves would probably tell you the same thing if you chatted with them about it over a stiff drink.
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I'm still hopeful they go for higher end glass curtain, in this regard it will at least look decent. But the move away from the original cladding now opens up the possibility for cheaper window wall and spandrel. I'm also not convinced that it will be streamlined further, reducing offset sections with fewer setbacks and overhangs. Also keeping in mind this is probably not the final design there is still hope they do more with the base- it's in the theatre district not Bay St. after all. I'm not actually seeing much Frank Gehry in this building anymore though- it's very blocky and rectilinear and more of a conventional build- gone are the organic sculptural elements and whimsy. Fiscal restraint and Gehry definitely don't go together- he's a starchitect better suited for projects in NY and ego driven LA. It would be fascinating to get his honest opinion of it though.
 
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Bogtrotter said:
The earliest ideas for the base were conceived to redefine the entertainment district- what an astonishing turnaround. Is this still a Gehry project?

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As ambitious as they where, I found those going too much the other way, IMO. And they would have claimed two heritage structures if those where to be built as is. The current versions least try to bring more balance to the latter, for what that is worth.
 
travis3000 said:
Not quite as flashy as the first renders but I never expected those to be built in the first place. While disappointing to some, these renders at least have a good possibility of being built. We will probably see a few more tweaks going forward but I think it's still very unique. Nothing else exists like it in Toronto or Canada for that matter.
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Least it is hoped to see a bit more refinement before they put shovels into the ground.
 
UtakataNoAnnex said:
As ambitious as they where, I found those going too much the other way, IMO. And they would of claimed two heritage structures if those where to be built as is. The current versions least try to bring more balance to the latter, for what that is worth.
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These were early concepts for the podiums- I posted it to demonstrate the 180 they have have gone with it. You don't need to hire Gehry to build a curtain wall facade.
 
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Is there any way we could formally object to this? I know we're just normal people living in the city and the GTA but can't we somehow reach M+G's ears? Maybe we will pull their heartstrings by some miracle
 
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