You can view the page at http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2011/03...ealtys-two-gladstone-condo-reshape-queen-west
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- Thread starter Edward Skira
- Start date
junctionist
Senior Member
The wall facing Queen doesn't look good. It should at least get high quality cladding. Or it could be a place for a mural embedded in the architecture. A cascading water feature might also work. It's up to the developer to advantage of the opportunity rather than ignoring it.
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Conrad Black
Senior Member
Better not be plain cinderblock.
Mike in TO
Senior Member
Unfortunately it is a legislative requirement to have a crash wall due to the promity of the rail line - Streetcar would have had very limited flexibility in how they would handle the wall in terms of design integration.
egotrippin
Senior Member
A black slate wall would look great here. I've seen it around several buildings in the U of T area, including the Royal Conservatory renovation.
junctionist
Senior Member
Yes, it's unfortunate, but it can still look good. Fortunately the legislation doesn't say "use ugly cladding on the wall. Ensure minimum class B eyesore."
Jeanhy Shim
New Member
Hi, my name is Jeanhy and I am with Streetcar Developments. I responded to comments/questions about the Queen Street facade in the other thread about 2 Gladstone, but I copying my response here as well as I thought it would contribute to this discussion:
The concrete wall on the south side of 2 Gladstone is actually a structural "crash wall" that we were required to build by CN due to the proximity of the railway tracks. CN has very strict rules, restrictions and design/construction requirements for building within a certain distance from the rail tracks. We are currently investigating various options to make this "crash wall" more "interesting" as we are aware that this would otherwise be prone to graffiti and would become an eyesore. We will be releasing more details about our plans for the "crash wall" as they are finalized over the upcoming months. Please feel free to check our website for updates (www.streetcar.ca) and I will also make a point of providing details of our plans in this thread. Regarding the 'concrete corner' at 2 Gladstone, yes, there is going to be new retail at the corner at ground level. I hope this sheds some light on the situation, and we welcome your comments and feedback. Thanks.
The concrete wall on the south side of 2 Gladstone is actually a structural "crash wall" that we were required to build by CN due to the proximity of the railway tracks. CN has very strict rules, restrictions and design/construction requirements for building within a certain distance from the rail tracks. We are currently investigating various options to make this "crash wall" more "interesting" as we are aware that this would otherwise be prone to graffiti and would become an eyesore. We will be releasing more details about our plans for the "crash wall" as they are finalized over the upcoming months. Please feel free to check our website for updates (www.streetcar.ca) and I will also make a point of providing details of our plans in this thread. Regarding the 'concrete corner' at 2 Gladstone, yes, there is going to be new retail at the corner at ground level. I hope this sheds some light on the situation, and we welcome your comments and feedback. Thanks.