[Benito]

More balcony glass from earlier today

 

[kris]

Almost half way up already

 

[urbandreamer]

Attn: Toronto Developers/Architects:

Decoration is good.

Luckily I've upgraded my sketching software to show y'all what I mean soon.

 

[arvelomcquaig]

The giant gaps between these new buildings on Charles drive me crazy. Why don’t they build them closer together, if not pressed together like our older buildings are?

 

[Ramako]

The giant gaps between these new buildings on Charles drive me crazy. Why don’t they build them closer together, if not pressed together like our older buildings are?

Are you referring to the podiums not creating a connected streetwall or the separation distances between the towers?

 

[urbandreamer]

Yes! I wanna stick pink icing between the gaps between podiums in all these new condos, inspired by Toronto artist Maria Legault who once stuffed pink icing in sidewalk cracks etc.

Or at any rate, build tin and wood shacks with roll up garage doors selling t-shirts out of garbage bags to fill in these suburban-style gaps.

 

[adHominem]

Or tin and wood shacks selling pink icing? Guaranteed hit. Torontonians have a demonstrated love of lining up for food.

The gaps between podiums are bothersome, though maybe less so on Charles, since it's still (even with all this new density) a quieter residential side street. It would drive me insane on a high street, though.

 

[junctionist]

When I see distinctive but fragile building components like the balcony railings on this tower, I wonder what happens when they break over the decades. Are they designed by the architect, who gives the builder the drawings (which in turn go to the condo corporation)? That would simplify making more of them as one-off replacements. The alternative would be to buy a certain number of extra panels and put them in storage somewhere in the building. I hope these issues are addressed, so that buildings like this one don't end up with random clear glass railings in 20 years from now.

 

[arvelomcquaig]

Are you referring to the podiums not creating a connected streetwall or the separation distances between the towers?

Both. Connecting podiums would be better than nothing since it would establish a street wall, but ideally the towers should connect as well. So much wasted space, and so disruptive to the rhythm of the pedestrian experience without a street wall.

 

[modernizt]

The fact that these towers are not connected does not disrupt the pedestrian experience in any way, unless your sensibilities are offended by seeing the sky.

The gaps between the podiums and various driveways (and narrow sidewalks that put you right up against car traffic) are more worthy of criticism.

 

[Edward Skira]

Some people including myself prefer a continuous wall rather than point tower on top of connecting podiums. Think Carlton east of Yonge.

 

[steveve]

Some people including myself prefer a continuous wall rather than point tower on top of connecting podiums. Think Carlton east of Yonge.

Yeah, the Carlton street wall is definitely unique in that regard, it's a very dense feeling canyon not just because the lack of gaps creates dark shadows at many times of the day, but also because the street bends with the MET framing one end of the street nicely. If feels very 'Manhattanish' and is one of my favorite streets

As for the other emerging canyons, the gaps created between these newer buildings are advantageous to both residents and the pre-existing low rise/residential buildings that line streets such as Charles. They do become less imposing and make the street more breathable. Also, the sites are more forgivable granting much larger spaces, allowing for gaps and podiums.

As a density-lover, I can't say I prefer the latter of the two, but there are few places in the city built and welcomed for that kind of density. Some stretches of our CBD canyons come close, but even most contain gaps in between.

 

[modernizt]

Some people including myself prefer a continuous wall rather than point tower on top of connecting podiums. Think Carlton east of Yonge.

I too prefer the built form of Carlton between Yonge and Church, but those are not 50-storey blocks. The very essence of point towers is that they are taller and are set at a distance from one another.

 

[someMidTowner]

 

[Marcanadian]

Casa II by Marcus Mitanis, on Flickr

Casa II by Marcus Mitanis, on Flickr

Casa II by Marcus Mitanis, on Flickr

Casa II by Marcus Mitanis, on Flickr

Casa II by Marcus Mitanis, on Flickr