[Paclo]

Columbia Student Residence: a proposed 15 & 15-storey mixed-use student dorm and commercial building designed by MSAI for Plaza Imports Limited on the southwest corner of Main Street West and Longwood Road South in Hamilton's Westdale area.

OLT of October 2020.

Renders from the Urban Solutions microsite:

 

[A Torontonian Now]

Could you be more specific on which MSAI is the architect? I know at least 3 firms that have been referred to with that acronym...

 

[Paclo]

Could you be more specific on which MSAI is the architect? I know at least 3 firms that have been referred to with that acronym...

Michael Spaziani Architect Inc is the MSAi here. What other firms use the acronym?

 

[A Torontonian Now]

Montgomery Sisam Architects Inc, and less frequently I've seen it used for mcCallumSather (which is also officially Architect Inc)

 

[UtakataNoAnnex]

An angled cheese sandwich PoMo that somehow would be more pleasant to look at if it magically replaced CampusOne up here... >.<

 

[Amare]

It honestly seems like this project has been on the books forever. Is there actually any movement on this?

 

[ben.thebean1]

It honestly seems like this project has been on the books forever. Is there actually any movement on this?

Based on the fact that we actually have renderings now, I think it's safe to assume that it's made at least a few steps forward. No clue if we'll see these buildings anytime soon though

 

[innsertnamehere]

The project was approved about 2 years ago and the existing buildings on the site demolished about a year and a half ago, and nothing heard since.

 

[Chris R.]

Considering Columbia college pulled out of the old hotel downtown, and the new rules around international students, I'm assuming this project is dead, at least until LRT is started or complete.. I hate this section of Main St, especially this corner. The design of the building planned here wasn't actually that bad.

 

[Paclo]

A formal consultation has occurred for this site now contemplating 2 x 25-storeys and a total of 628 residential units (previously approved at 2 x 15-storeys and 456 units). New Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment applications are required for these changes.

Site plan & elevations via UrbanSolutions microsite:

 

[Chris R.]

A formal consultation has occurred for this site now contemplating 2 x 25-storeys and a total of 628 residential units (previously approved at 2 x 15-storeys and 456 units). New Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment applications are required for these changes.

Site plan & elevations via UrbanSolutions microsite:
View attachment 601265View attachment 601266View attachment 601267

So a few thoughts:

1) Wow this got uglier somehow. Unsurprising considering KWs student residence boom has turned into these bland precast Lego buildings. But man, it sucks that Hamilton's going to be getting even more ugly sticks that will outlast my great-grandchildren.

2) Glad to see commercial remain on the ground floor. I'm not really sure I understand the landscape plan as it's incredibly suburban in design, which is odd as this are is set to intensify into quite an urban area with LRT.

3) The ground floor has SO much space dedicated to automobile movements. It's getting ridiculous. Are they just trying to see how car oriented they can make these things?

4) Way too much parking proposed. This is going to be a student residence with 50% of the units including parking? Are they insane? It's walking distance to an LRT stop and to the school itself...

 

[innsertnamehere]

A real looker..

 

[Chris R.]

A real looker..

View attachment 601342

View attachment 601343

This really turned from something they could be moderately proud of, with the corner fronting onto Longwood and a corner signage of the College to this crap. The earlier design was uninspired and bland, but this is just horrific. The driveway destroys the pedestrian realm, the building doesn't even interact with Longwood anymore, and the building got grey and overly busy. Like look at the difference in how it attaches to the street:

 

[innsertnamehere]

most of that is because of a city-required road widening. I hope the city would allow them to waive it like the original proposal presumably did.

 

[Amare]

So a few thoughts:

1) Wow this got uglier somehow. Unsurprising considering KWs student residence boom has turned into these bland precast Lego buildings. But man, it sucks that Hamilton's going to be getting even more ugly sticks that will outlast my great-grandchildren.

2) Glad to see commercial remain on the ground floor. I'm not really sure I understand the landscape plan as it's incredibly suburban in design, which is odd as this are is set to intensify into quite an urban area with LRT.

3) The ground floor has SO much space dedicated to automobile movements. It's getting ridiculous. Are they just trying to see how car oriented they can make these things?

4) Way too much parking proposed. This is going to be a student residence with 50% of the units including parking? Are they insane? It's walking distance to an LRT stop and to the school itself...

Completely agree with everything you've said here.

This is absolute gutter trash to the fullest extent. Every single aspect of this project as proposed is an abject failure of basic planning principles.