Dan416
Senior Member
Yeah they're nothing special to look at.
syn
Senior Member
The density is nice but the towers are pretty generic.
junctionist
Senior Member
There are similarities with the exterior but Verve beats this project. Verve's exterior is cleaner, the lofts look better than the podium here. It's a single tower too. Like others have said, this is boring, bland and generic. I'll add that it's banal like the average slab rental apartment from the 1960s.
This project is far better than the slabs that went up all over the city in the 60s - there's no comparison really. No, these towers aren't architectural landmarks, but they do have a few curves, and acres more glass than the old slabs ever did, and, well, they are neither slabs nor slablike! As for the podium - no it's not like the north building at Verve, but with as few floors as it has, at least it starts to add some urbanity to a site that has been completely suburban for decades. Good show.
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Hypnotoad
Senior Member
I agree with the general feeling that these are not masterpeices. I don't think they take anything away from the area (it is the opposite really). As for the structures themselves, they are generic but I really appreciate how they are not identical to each other. There are enough differences between the two towers to give them credit.
urbandreamer
recession proof
To be honest, I was kind of surprised at how much I liked these towers passing by yesterday. No beauties for sure, but at least from this angle, they look "classical", in an almost Pantages-type of style. Sure, the nice greenery helps, and the precast plays off the concrete interchanges.
Towered
Senior Member
Well, as someone already mentioned, these towers have replaced Palace Pier as the new visual gateway to Toronto coming from the west.
Jarrek
Active Member
Which makes one think just how much more interesting their design should have been.
adma
Superstar
Except that, other than highway signage, how clear is it to casual visitors that "Toronto starts here"?
lordmandeep
Banned
Imo it is when people see the lake...
Metropolitan areas across the continent have suburbs that sprawl beyond the core city's boundaries - with few exceptions*, how would anybody know anywhere that you were crossing the boundary except for the highway signage?
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*Crossing into Manhattan from New Jersey's towns would be the ultimate example of where you don't really need signage to know that one side of the tunnel (or bridge) is very different from the other.
Hipster Duck
Senior Member
The biggest case of "Surprise! You're in a city!" in NA is coming into San Francisco via the Golden Gate bridge.
That bridge leads to nice surprises in both directions.
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I prefer the drive in from New Jersey into NYC (Interstate 80). Endless suburbia with an occasional glimpse of the top of the Empire State Building. Then down into the swamplands, a couple of major turns and all of sudden you hit the George Washington Bridge with the amazing Manhattan skyline revealing itself for the first time. And here, unlike San Francisco, you hit highrises immediately upon entering Manhattan.
Redroom Studios
Senior Member
I think the approach to Toronto from the west has lots of interesting stages to it... first glimpses of the skyline and the enormity of the urban area can be seen from high elevations at QEW / Winston Churchill Blvd, then Erin Mills Pkwy. The interchange at 427 along with these new towers at Sherway definitely feels like you have entered the big city. Then coming to Royal York Rd or Park Lawn on the Gardiner, you get the cluster of towers near Palace Pier in the foreground and the CN Tower and office towers in the distance creating an amazing wall of concrete, glass and steel. Finally there is the approach onto the elevated portion of the Gardiner at Dufferin... at first the skyline looks small and stumpy until you get up to the top of the ramp and the city opens up all around you looking quite impressive!
The approach to Chicago keeps you in suspense for quite awhile as most of the 90/94 is sunken below the level of surface streets. I remember my first visit coming in that way and being perplexed that I was well within the city limits and couldnt see the Sears Tower...
The approach to Chicago keeps you in suspense for quite awhile as most of the 90/94 is sunken below the level of surface streets. I remember my first visit coming in that way and being perplexed that I was well within the city limits and couldnt see the Sears Tower...