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

[Miscreant]

Yeah, it is, but it doesn't really feel that way when you're down there. It feels oddly sparse to me.

 

[College Park]

That is one big hole in the ground. I've been facinated watching it grow in part because some of the shoring along the north side was done decades ago when the building at Bay and Wellesley was built. The old shoring seems to have survived being buried for a couple decades just fine.
I have a question though. A couple weeks ago I watched some very deep pilons get drilled into the site in the area near the shovel in the last photo. The pilons and accompanying cassons were huge and were set very deep. It took three cement trucks to fill just one of the cassons. After the third truck emptied its concrete and the casson sleeves pulled out a bulldozer covered the top of the pilons with earth. I assumed that the concrete would cure underground and the pillons were resting on bedrock and a concrete slab would eventually sit on top (btw, there were several pilons drilled in that area).
To my surprise the pilons seem to have disappeard. I thought they would be visible due to the deep excavation above them (visible in the last photo). Does anyone understand the process here? Can the pilons be so deep that their tops are not visible yet??

I suspect that this building's foundation will rest on piles, not directly on bedrock. Most condo's foundations go to bedrock, as they have a small footprint, and parking requirements drive the need for deep basements. For this condo, the site is huge, and two or three layers of parking will be sufficient. No need to excavate that deep - hence the pilings.

 

[ChesterCopperpot]

4 levels of parking here - a few drilled caissons in the area of the elevator shaft. Remainder of footings are regular pad footings.

There's a perimeter caisson wall as well

 

[urbannizer]

Nice tower. I'm jealous!

I assume the driveway leads to underground parking, which will be open to the public?

 

[Urban View]

Thank you for posting the rendering Urbannizer — this site really is large.

 

[G.L.17]

I've never really realized how dense this area was before these excavation pictures.

I'm still surprised of how dead it feels walking along that part of Bay St at night.

 

[Urban View]

Agreed, even with the addition of U Condos, the stretch from Wellesley to Bloor Street often feels empty at night — perhaps we just need some sunshine in December?

 

[G.L.17]

From Tuesday:

 

[stjames2queenwest]

This morning around 6:45am there were 17+ dump trucks around this site.

 

[Benito]

Yes and there are often so many dump trucks on Yonge St. now for this project and YC Condos as well.

 

[NBGtect]

Not too much longer with the dump trucks, thankfully, then a two day break, then years of concrete trucks.

 

[stjames2queenwest]

That's ok. More interesting to me personally watching things go up than down

 

[Armour]

That's ok. More interesting to me personally watching things go up than down

We should start building inverted buildings. Who wouldn't want to live underground?

 

[innsertnamehere]

^count me under "wouldn't"

 

[Armour]

^count me under "wouldn't"

Think of the views, though; you'd be looking directly into ant farms, and you'd have worms for neighbours.