There is a silver lining to this building: since it isn't premium office space, it wont be competing against any of the office towers we are all looking forward to.
 
I find this project more palatable if I just pretend to myself that it's an office tower from the 1970s undergoing large scale renovations.

In a weird way though, that kind of makes me like it. The area needs something that doesn't look brand new. A city is only interesting when there is a mix of style and built form, and this tower's slightly dated look kind of has that effect on southcore. Maybe I'm imagining things...
 
Front page story with the latest pics is here.
 
image-5.jpg
 
We got notice that The PATH connection is to be constructed this weekend. The Lakeshore will be closed for few hours as cranes will lift and instal the sections that are already assembled.
 
Speaking of connections, maybe I'm late to the party and everyone already knows this, but RBC WaterPark Place has been completely connected to the 10 & 20 Bay Street towers (where I work) with a large atrium. They're completely integrated and connected. We'll share a common food court and the underground parking lot has also been connected. They cut through the underground retaining walls of 10 & 20 Bay to connect them (isn't that kind of a big project?) I'll be able to enter 10 Bay (off of Queens Quay) and drive underground into WPP. That's kinda crazy. I hope there's enough parking for all the new high rollers who will no doubt have company parking. Might make the commute home a bit busier. I now, ironically stare out the window at the glass that I thought was so cheap. It is cheap, but the grass roof is kinda snazzy. Grass roofs are so hot right now.
 
Are they both going to be managed by O|X|F|O|R|D Property management? That's who manages 10 & 20 Bay.

Be nice when the Gardiner Off-ramps come down.

Working down there you really get the sense that the streetscape south of Front Street in Toronto is really built on a large inhuman car scale. The lights are timed extra long in favour of the cars and off-ramps. The roads are super wide and the whole thing just makes pedestrians feel like they shouldn't be walking around. Feels like north Mississauga or something. The sidewalks have gotten wider and there's more cafes and restaurants, but there's still this overwhelming feeling like you're walking down the shoulder of a highway, not in Downtown Toronto. It's really unfortunate and I don't know if it can ever be truly remedied on roads like lower Bay, lower Spadina, Lower Simcoe, Lower Yonge St etc. Hurray 1950s planning philosophy!
 

PDF said:
The building, the third tower in Oxford’s WaterPark Place will complete the complex.

Well that answers that.

Also, this will be a much nicer way to get to the building in winter muck and snow than walking down Bay across Lakeshore and Harbour Street. Can't wait.

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The interior or 10 & 20 Bay are getting a huge makeover. They're pulling down all the salmon coloured tiles and putting up nice white marble. It's gonna look much better. Still pink and green outside unfortunately.
 
I wonder how long Toronto's PATH network will be after the completion of these PATH additions. We have this giant PATH overpass over Lakeshore, connections to the Sun Life tower, Delta Hotel, ICE condos (I think?), not to mention the York Street addition, and various new towers in the core (EY, INDX, BAC2).

Will we surpass Montreal's 32km of underground tunnels? The city of Toronto says we're at 30km, although I'm not sure how old that number is.
 
We got notice that The PATH connection is to be constructed this weekend. The Lakeshore will be closed for few hours as cranes will lift and instal the sections that are already assembled.

Pedestrian bridge forms first PATH connection to waterfront
An already constructed bridge to be installed this weekend

A new pedestrian bridge being installed over Lake Shore Boulevard on the weekend will transform our view of Toronto — from above and below.

Drivers on Lake Shore will be the first to see the bridge — a long clear prism of glass below the Gardiner, hanging above the cars.

The installation itself will be a mostly unexpected treat for people who happen to be out late enough to catch a glimpse of a 26-wheeled transporter delivering the bridge to its final destination sometime between midnight and 3 a.m.

The bridge was assembled off-site so that it could be installed over the course of a summer weekend without disrupting weekday traffic. It will likely be in place by noon on Saturday. The final section of the bridge will be installed during another yet-to-be determined weekend in September.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...first-path-connection-to-waterfront-1.2736834
 

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