Toronto The Rosedale on Bloor | 185.92m | 55s | Gupta | Arcadis

The massing is decent. It's a typically late modernist massing. The cladding is the usual standard window wall. The virtues of it being charcoal coloured vs the more common grey green is too low a bar for me. I couldn't care less about the penthouse. It'll probably be plastered with a by Hilton sign. The main entrance is flagrantly uninviting, jumbled and, oppressive.

Toronto is one of the most expensive cities. We can't use that as an excuse.Our greatest Canadian rival is totally outclassing us on cladding too.
This is a generic glass tower development in Montreal https://forum.agoramtl.com/t/quinzecent-36-etages/187/274?page=15, That's the global standard. Only Toronto/Ontario and Vancouver/British Columbia are fully invested in inferior, ugly window wall.
 
The massing is decent. It's a typically late modernist massing. The cladding is the usual standard window wall. The virtues of it being charcoal coloured vs the more common grey green is too low a bar for me. I couldn't care less about the penthouse. It'll probably be plastered with a by Hilton sign. The main entrance is flagrantly uninviting, jumbled and, oppressive.

Toronto is one of the most expensive cities. We can't use that as an excuse.Our greatest Canadian rival is totally outclassing us on cladding too.
This is a generic glass tower development in Montreal https://forum.agoramtl.com/t/quinzecent-36-etages/187/274?page=15, That's the global standard. Only Toronto/Ontario and Vancouver/British Columbia are fully invested in inferior, ugly window wall.
It's hard to please people. Someone in that thread posted this:

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I wouldn't call this building "that bad". I would call it really good!
 
The massing is decent. It's a typically late modernist massing. The cladding is the usual standard window wall. The virtues of it being charcoal coloured vs the more common grey green is too low a bar for me. I couldn't care less about the penthouse. It'll probably be plastered with a by Hilton sign. The main entrance is flagrantly uninviting, jumbled and, oppressive.

Toronto is one of the most expensive cities. We can't use that as an excuse.Our greatest Canadian rival is totally outclassing us on cladding too.
This is a generic glass tower development in Montreal https://forum.agoramtl.com/t/quinzecent-36-etages/187/274?page=15, That's the global standard. Only Toronto/Ontario and Vancouver/British Columbia are fully invested in inferior, ugly window wall.

While this tower is nice, a visit to Montreal will reveal a lot of window wall being used, and quite a few ugly developments too. The grass isn’t always greener. I’d say Toronto towers are nicer but Montreals low rise projects are where they have us beat.
 

There's a mention of a restaurant situated on a high floor, with a view of the Rosedale Valley. Not sure how that's possible, unless it's located on the upper floors of the residential section. There's a building across the street that's about 10 storeys high, and the hotel only occupies the second to ninth floor. Anyway, the photos don't seem to justify the $550/night rate.
 
I know it's a hot take, but I think the street presence seems good for this building. I haven't been by that spot in person in years so I'm only speaking from what I've seen in photos here, but I love when the base/podium/entrance of a building keeps your eyes low, a stellar example of this is The Well. The dark charcoal block on this tower is definitely heavy but doesn't seem too overbearing and it stops your eyes from immediately looking straight up at the mediocre tower that rises from it, but it also doesn't scream look at me and how flashy I am. Especially comparing to the buildings across the street which have absolutely nothing unique about them and immediately draw your eye right up to the rows and rows of concrete glass concrete glass.
 
I know it's a hot take, but I think the street presence seems good for this building. I haven't been by that spot in person in years so I'm only speaking from what I've seen in photos here, but I love when the base/podium/entrance of a building keeps your eyes low, a stellar example of this is The Well. The dark charcoal block on this tower is definitely heavy but doesn't seem too overbearing and it stops your eyes from immediately looking straight up at the mediocre tower that rises from it, but it also doesn't scream look at me and how flashy I am. Especially comparing to the buildings across the street which have absolutely nothing unique about them and immediately draw your eye right up to the rows and rows of concrete glass concrete glass.
There's really no cornice at the top of the podium - there's no dark horizontal member above those windows at the top of the podium, so I think that tempers the heaviness. There's a strip of light coloured cladding (with edging) which also makes it feel like the black podium is tucked under the cladding of the tower.
 
I wonder if those black beams above the door will be popular with birds.

I think that large canopy sign (mounted on the canopy?) would probably look better mounted on the grey wall to the right, but then it wouldn't be sticking as far as possible into the street.
 

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