Toronto Wellesley on the Park | 194.15m | 60s | Lanterra | KPMB

Sorry, I just can't buy into not buildings parks if the reason is not to attract an undesirable element. Time to fix the problem, which has nothing to do with parks.

42
 
caltrane74 said:
No disrespect to the park lovers, but I'm not feeling it.

Especially since, we know that there are a lot of drug abusing kids (And their wacky drug dealers) that love to hang out at Yonge and Wellesley. It would just make the area into a pure hell hole if you ask me. The drug dealers are all over the place there, especially by the bank machines at the corner, making their deals and phone calls. Reminds me of Yonge and Dundas back in the day. The place needs a a tanker truck of Javex to just spray the place down.
Click to expand...

I don't know what those kids are up to but your right, it can be a little sketchy at times though I don't feel most of them pose any real threat to anyone's personal security. A good thing that could come of this (if there is one) is that a condo tower or two along Wellesley and a park on the south part of the 11 Wellesley land would have a lot of eyes on the green space so that could be a good thing. I lived in the Opera Place when it was first built back in the day when male hustlers worked the strip from about the Y over to Queen's Park along Grosvenor St. It took about a year of meetings between the Board of Directors and the community liaison at Metro Police and soon enough the kids were gone. I personally didn't have any problem with them, most of them didn't cause any noise, very little drug use that I ever noticed (if any) but the residents wanted them gone so they were pushed more over towards Queen's Park until they eventually moved on elsewhere. So it's an example of how people can affect change in their neighbourhood if motivated to do so.
 
interchange42 said:
Sorry, I just can't buy into not buildings parks if the reason is not to attract an undesirable element. Time to fix the problem, which has nothing to do with parks.

42
Click to expand...

+1000%

A park in this area could be a true oasis. Lots of places elsewhere in the centre where tall towers will yet sprout.
 
I welcome a park at this location too but I also understand concerns about it becoming a place for "undesirables" to hang out but there must be studies and experience about how to design parks that work well that could be drawn on by the developer and city - if well executed I think a park could really add to this neighbourhood.
 
Interesting coincidence...heard the Sobeys next door to this site is closing two weeks from now. It will be interesting to see if a developer snaps up that site as it is fairly large. Could be the chance to redevelop that area of Yonge, though I don't think it will be part of teh Lanterra development.
 
Sobeys IS closing

It's true. I emailed them, and just received this reply...

Sobeys wrote: "Following an extensive and careful review of our operations, we’ve made the decision to close our Yonge Street Sobeys Express store effective April 13th, 2013."
 
urbandreamer said:
I guess Loblaws is killing them. Not surprised. That site would make for a great condo tower--though I wish the numbers would work for Yonge Street to be restricted to 10s buildings so it would become more like the scale you see on Saint Catherine
Click to expand...

I could live with that but how about affordable rentals for a change instead of friggen' condos that step back as it rises on the Yonge Street side? I don't remember anything remarkable about this building back when it was the Parkside in the 70's/80's, I recall field-stone and aluminum or wooden siding and there's certainly nothing left of it now.
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
jmacmillan:

I think the Y is looking at a decentralized model with more facilities in different neighbourhoods instead of a megafacility in the core. Certainly, they have worked with the province to such ends (e.g. the post-Pan Am West Don Lands Y). Makes sense, if you ask me, given the role of the Y in community building.
Click to expand...

I doubt that the downtown Y will be any less crowded after any of the new locations open. It's not like somebody who lives in one of the new condos between Bloor and College near Yonge are going to trek over to another location. And there are so many new people moving into the core that the Y desperately needs more facilities.

The downtown Y is a gem -- great architecture both to look at and to use, and it was one of Diamond's first buildings.
 
The Metro Y just went through a cycle of expansion in the last 3 years. In any case, they can always build up or under the parkette on Breadalbane even?

AoD
 
When: June 19, 2013 – 6:30pm
Where: YMCA, 20 Grosvenor Street – Auditorium

This will be the first public consultation for the formal development approval at 11 Wellesley Street West. As application for rezoning the site has been received by the City and area residents are invited to provide feedback on the proposal, as well as their vision for the best use of the site.

More information on the application can be found on the Planning Department's website here.
 
innsertnamehere said:
The community will probably want a tiny 10 floor building with the rest of the site being a park.
Click to expand...

I don't think so, the community's pulse is on whatever can be squeezed out in terms of shared green space. What's done is done in terms of the sale of the property, I can't see any reasonable objection to highrises here (along Wellesley Street) with a parkette or something of the sort along Breadalbane St that will get a good deal of sunshine.
 
You must log in or register to post here.

Back
Top