Toronto The Forest Hill 1 + 2 | ?m | 19s | Lash Group | Richmond Architects

From DCN
Javlee continues construction on Five Thirty St. Clair Avenue West Condos in Toronto

Construction has moved above-grade on the Five Thirty St. Clair Avenue West Condos, west of Bathurst Street in Toronto. Owners The Goldman Group and LASH Development Corp. along with construction manager Javlee Construction Co. Ltd. have completion of the 19-storey, 155-unit project scheduled for late 2012.
The building will have ground floor retail, fitness facilities, indoor spa/whirlpool, a multi-purpose room, a lounge, media room, a private guest suite and underground parking.
http://dcnonl.com/article/id48456/-...thirty-st-clair-avenue-west-condos-in-toronto
 
February 24, 2012


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March 24th
 

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I'm actually a huge fan of the original tower. Especially the way it resolves at its crown. The podium not so much, but the rest of it is nicely handled.
 
Walking to the subway

So, now a third tower is to be added. Great location, less than 300m walk to the subway, but look at the sidewalk...


St. Clair W, looking east to subway by StClairWalker, on Flickr

This photo is post ROW but still slightly out of date. This heavily used stretch of sidewalk is way too narrow (look at the width between the retaining wall and the first big light/streetcar overhead pole). In the foreground is the curb cut for the gas station entrance. The sidewalk has such a side slope as to be awkward to walk on at the best of times and it is treacherous in slippery winter conditions.

I contacted Joe Mihevc's office about this inadequate sidewalk and was told that nothing much could be done until the parking lot above gets redeveloped. Joe's staff did get that nasty metal sign post at the near end of the retaining wall removed. The signs are now on the big pole. The street has also been repaved lessening the splash-up hitting pedestrians from vehicles travelling in the curb lane on messy days.

I contacted St. Michael's School this spring and was told they don't have any plans to redevelop their parking lot. I believe they also lease the land to the PetroCan on the corner. They did send out their groundskeepers to clean up the garbage above the retaining wall and to cover over the latest graffiti.

I wish some development fees from all these new condos could be used to fix up the local area. In particular, the sidewalk here needs to be widened to accommodate the increasing pedestrian traffic.

Anyone have any ideas on how to get this fixed?
 
Any development in the area will likely contribute section 37 money to the city which is meant to be used to make upgrades to any public facility in a neighbourhood to accommodate the increased density. You could advocate to use some of these funds towards upgrading the sidewalk to the councillor or the relevant city department, since it's clearly something that must be upgraded with the increased density.
 
Re: Section 37

Thanks junctionist.

I'll have to educate myself on Section 37.
http://www.toronto.ca/planning/section37.htm said:
Section 37 of the Planning Act permits the City to authorize increases in permitted height and/or density through the zoning bylaw in return for community benefits, provided that there are related Official Plan policies in place (section 5.1.1 of the Official Plan as well as certain area-specific policies).

Perhaps I'll start by approaching Mihevc's office again.
 
That awkard, narrow stretch of sidewalk has always annoyed me. It's too bad St. Mike's doesn't have plans to redevelop that parking lot yet. Pretty prime location to build a nice building, and would put the finishing touches to a rejuvenated intersection.
 

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