sunnyraytoronto said:
HSBC Bank is still coming - I'm expecting bank interior construction to start a month or so after current lockdown is over.

Delay over the years mainly due to zoning change required and appeal - during pandemic:
- 1992: Previous Canderel 29-storey mix use from 1992 only allow ground floor restaurant, retail store and personal service shops - no banks allowed!
- 1997: City expropriated land for Sheppard STUBway construction
- July 2006: City converted public laneway behind site to private laneway and lease site with private laneway to DovCapital
- July 2007: 63 parking for proposed food court with 9 stalls reduced to 10 parking then zero for current configuration (reasoning cited both times that its above subway station)
View attachment 315473
- Sept 2019 HSBC Bank agrees to rent space
- Feb 2020 Committee Of Adjustment grant variance zoning change to allow bank on this site,... which was appealed to TLAB/OMB by the adjacent property owner to the north!

Private property owner to north appeal because corner this site has no on-site parking:
- so drivers looking for (free) parking are constantly parking illegally on private rear parking of appellant property - which is now blocked off with cinder blocks (liable - tripping hazards BTW)
- drivers, especially food delivery drivers picking up at McDonalds & Taco Bell constantly park illegally on the Public Laneway behind appellant property - call Parking Enforcement and they're gone by the time Parking Enforcement arrives
- apparently, this parking issue is negatively affecting Appellant from renting their retail space
- Also note, the private laneway behind this site are gated off - delivery trucks often off-load on Yonge St or Sheppard Ave because it's easier and faster than going through that gated private laneway
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Anyways, TLAB/OMB concur with Committee of Adjustment decision to allow rezoning for bank so HSBC will start interior construction soon.
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Thanks! Interesting! Wonder if this new HSBC branch would replaced the one couple blocks north.
 
LLHH said:
Thanks! Interesting! Wonder if this new HSBC branch would replaced the one couple blocks north.
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Nope - that other HSBC bank is staying. Willowdale is 25% Chinese, 15% Persian and 12% Korean,.... Yonge corridor in North York is the "new Spadina" - first landing area of many new immigrants,... even big banks realize this often targeting new immigrant bank customers,.... targeting this market more - RBC recently opened their new "Meeting Place" RBC branch at EmpressWalk
 
Not sure when this sign went up
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After being empty and never occupied since construction for 10 years,... the second floor what-ya-ma-call-it that was originally conceived to host a large digital display screen but local Councillor Filion didn't want a Yonge-Dundas Square here,... ditto for the large digital display screen that was supposed to overlook the public plaza of Tridel HullmarkCentre at the opposite corner. Anyways, this second floor is now finally occupied,... sort of,... it's now hosting a print mural from the HSBC Bank below - no lettering, just hidden logo and image of *hot-air* balloons (local Councillor Filion hates Hot-Air Balloons - even cancelled Avondale Community Condominium's "Picnic In The Park" Event where little kids got to ride on Mr.Oulahen's ReMax Hot Air Balloon),.... they started installation on Monday and finished Tuesday,... it's on inside of Window - so don't need City sign permit,.... illumination is from regular room lighting from inside,... so don't need City illuminated sign permit,.... gee, does Toronto sound over-bureaucratic?

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sunnyraytoronto said:
After being empty and never occupied since construction for 10 years,... the second floor what-ya-ma-call-it that was originally conceived to host a large digital display screen but local Councillor Filion didn't want a Yonge-Dundas Square here,... ditto for the large digital display screen that was supposed to overlook the public plaza of Tridel HullmarkCentre at the opposite corner. Anyways, this second floor is now finally occupied,... sort of,... it's now hosting a print mural from the HSBC Bank below - no lettering, just hidden logo and image of *hot-air* balloons (local Councillor Filion hates Hot-Air Balloons - even cancelled Avondale Community Condominium's "Picnic In The Park" Event where little kids got to ride on Mr.Oulahen's ReMax Hot Air Balloon),.... they started installation on Monday and finished Tuesday,... it's on inside of Window - so don't need City sign permit,.... illumination is from regular room lighting from inside,... so don't need City illuminated sign permit,.... gee, does Toronto sound over-bureaucratic?

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Looks like it's gone already
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fatty said:
Looks like it's gone already
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Maybe it triggered an illuminated sign by-law infraction/complaint? The owner of the empty property directly north has long standing issues this plaza - mainly due to customers of McDonalds, FedEx-Kinkos/TacoBell, 7-11 now HSBC parking illegally in their parking spot behind their building. Part of that building will soon be sales centre for Fieldgate Urban's 53 Sheppard West project,.... not sure if it'll be sales office for other nearby Fieldgate projects.
 
Whereas the previous HSBC Bank Hot Air Balloon mural had an HSBC logo,... the new mural of famous landmarks (London Bridge, New York's Statue of Liberty, Toronto's waterfront skyline, Hong Kong skyline, India's Taj Mahal) does not - the smaller HSBC Bank logos are now pasted onto the inside of the windows - not the mural itself,... exterior signage are subject to City's sign bylaw,... interior signage are often ignored.

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With RBC's purchase of HSBC Canada completing last Friday and the former having a branch at kitty-corner in Hullmark Centre, looks like the former 7-Eleven space will once again need a new tenant. HSBC signage is already down and this was on the front when I walked by over the weekend.

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Interestingly... the above signage forgot a couple of RBC branches at Yonge & ParkHome/Empress (North York Centre Station),.... one is an RBC Meeting Place (not a full branch, mainly for new immigrants) but the other at 5160 Yonge was an HSBC branch that was converted to RBC this past weekend - weird seeing RBC but walls are still bright red from HSBC.
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sunnyraytoronto said:
Interestingly... the above signage forgot a couple of RBC branches at Yonge & ParkHome/Empress (North York Centre Station),.... one is an RBC Meeting Place (not a full branch, mainly for new immigrants) but the other at 5160 Yonge was an HSBC branch that was converted to RBC this past weekend - weird seeing RBC but walls are still bright red from HSBC.
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I noticed that as well and was surprised when I walked north to see they were in fact converting the Yonge and Empress branch. Perhaps it was a late change (I saw a couple of posts on other forums suggesting that location had been marked for closure too) or perhaps it was an intentional omission because the Empress branch hadn't yet reopened when that sign was posted.
 
DowntownCoder said:
I noticed that as well and was surprised when I walked north to see they were in fact converting the Yonge and Empress branch. Perhaps it was a late change (I saw a couple of posts on other forums suggesting that location had been marked for closure too) or perhaps it was an intentional omission because the Empress branch hadn't yet reopened when that sign was posted.
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RBC 5001 Yonge at Hollywood location has been under renovation,...

But the HSBC->RBC 5160 Yonge North York City Centre is better location since:
- it's above North York Centre Subway Station - the busiest Subway Station without a connecting bus/streetcar route,... it's all high volume walk-in transit users (Pre-Pandemic 2018 data).
- Yes, I suspect it was last minute decision to keep this branch (for now, longer term RBC more likely to merge their RBC Meeting Place here),... maybe difficult to get out of this lease agreement.
- Lots of dead retail space in this Yonge North York City Centre Mall,... but if rumours are right about the new Supermarket coming in - this Mall will get busy!
- Also beneficial that RBC Dominion / Wealth Management has offices upstairs at 5140 Yonge 11th floor for their high-net worth clients. TD Wealth / Private Investment Banking is on 16th floor but their closest branch is 5200 Yonge - Sorbara Beacon.
 
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