Undead
Senior Member
I can't be the only one who thinks this is excessive. I know community consultation is necessary, but this much?
I can't be the only one who thinks this is excessive. I know community consultation is necessary, but this much?
View attachment 362582
Don't worry, when the excavators arrive for demolition, undoubdetdly there will still be locals who will charge "they didn't tell the community".I can't be the only one who thinks this is excessive. I know community consultation is necessary, but this much?
They haven't.Looks like they've shortened it by a few floors.
Your only chance for input would be to ask to speak at Community Council on Thursday on this item:Can anything be done at this point to save the corner facade?
In this case, the community and local agencies surrounding the Bloor and Spadina intersection expressed a desire to keep the unique history of the place at the forefront of any plans.
“It’s something of a gathering and meeting space. It offered safety and connection,” said Pamela Hart, Executive Director of the Native Women’s Resource Centre, of the intersection. “To redesign with consideration of the benefit to the community, there must be a deeply rooted understanding of what was there before. If not, it can eliminate the community.”
Layton says developers, in large part, heard the community’s concerns and wishes. They worked closely with the Indigenous-owned and operated firm, Two Row Architect, to integrate Indigenous knowledge and heritage into the way the building will be built and they have consulted with nearby organizations to ensure the public space in the entryway to the building will be what developers call an “urban living room.”
The “urban living room” will be a glassed-in atrium and a public space for anyone to use. Layton says it’s a “place that they expect people to gather, to interact.” The living room will serve as a lobby for the housing units in the building, but will also contain office space, retail opportunities and a path to the Spadina subway station.
The living room will be the site of the community benefits project funded through Section 37. Indigenous leaders, in meetings about the development, were clear that any contribution from developers must have real benefits.
“It has to go toward something tangible,” said Hart. “It has to be housing units. It has to be office space. It has to be something the community owns and can call their own, not just visible representation in a building that doesn’t offer anything tangible to give back or enhance our community.”
While Layton said the city cannot compel developers to include affordable units in the building, developers agreed to provide opportunities for office and retail space, as well as fund visible and prominent Indigenous-led art in the space.
Developers and city planners have expressed a desire to make the space a truly open and public one, and they plan for it to operate at the same hours as the TTC, rather than closing when the retail stores lock up for the night. This means there will be challenges monitoring a public place like this, but for now, the focus is on finding and securing spaces within the living room for Indigenous-led groups.
There are more development applications for the other corners of the Bloor and Spadina intersection which means there will be more opportunities to engage meaningfully with Indigenous-led groups and create spaces for their communities.