There is a lot to like here, especially the inset red-brick arches, which recall a certain Esplanade splendour of the 80s. As ever though I find the stuffing and mounting of heritage facades to be distasteful. Have the courage to knock them down, or ship them off to the Facade District where they may join their kind.

But - six dedicated affordable floors for artists! Imagine the hallways! Imagine the cliques! Imagine the vibe! (Probably mostly stress.)

Squints........is that you.........??............. After a six year absence? Welcome back.
 
Squints........is that you.........??............. After a six year absence? Welcome back.

Six years? Christ, I really lost track of time there.

But thank you! I saw this project scroll by on Twitter, and realized there was really only one place where I was going to get an informed opinion about it, so here I am. (Plus, not long ago I had my first opportunity in many moons to spend just a few hours in the city this forum exists to discuss. Recent global events had kept me away for a minute.)

Did I miss anything?
 
The site on the corner should be bought and turned into a Parkette. Or else I feel it will be developed without any cohesion with this proposal.
Perhaps the cube house could be incorporated into this parkette? Let the novelty be experienced by all.

Really the only thing I dislike about this proposal is the name “Artsplace” in how similar it is to Artscape.
 
GH3 quickly becoming one of my favourite Toronto firms

I agree, with 2 caveats.

They have been, til recently one of my least favourite firms, as they were responsible for the mess that is June Callwood Park and several other suspect landscape jobs in public spaces.

I wasn't really familiar with much of their building work, only the landscapes.

But with 25 St. Mary I thought 'wow' what a refreshing, interesting design and here again I see great potential.

That said, my other caveat is to wait and see what comes out the other side of construction on these.

Will the material palette hold up? Will value-engineering cause problems? Will the details be properly executed?

Subject to the above, they've shown great promise lately.
 
Lol. City Planning will fight this tooth and nail, all the way. Maybe I’m cynical but I’ve seen this show too many times to believe otherwise.

Are you sure they're going to fight the former Chief Planner, who I understand had a positive working relationship with most in the department?
 
The old thread with previous discussion and photos of the Cube House:

 
The old thread with previous discussion and photos of the Cube House:

Am I the only one who doesn’t care about the cube house? Like, it’s cool. But I just don’t care what happens to it personally. It has had its moment that has now passed.
 
The Cube House kept reminding me of Super Mario Bros. 3:

kot_9368-jpg.253861

Credit: @kotsy

SMAS_SMB3_World_1-1_Screenshot.png

Source: mariowiki.com

The Cube House will be missed.
 

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