Koops65
Senior Member
A zoom-in and flyover:
- Thread starter interchange42
- Start date
raptor
Senior Member
Zoning By-law Amendement application to facilitate construction of two mixed-use towers, 39 and 40 storeys in height (136.65 metres and 142.9 metres, respectively, including mechanical penthouse), with two levels of retail uses , 7 floors of office space, a daycare use and the intended replacement of the existing movie theatre with a new movie theatre use, with residential units above. 613 dwelling units, 49,079 square metres of residential gross floor area, 16,527 square metres of office gross floor area, 5,993 square metres of retail gross floor area, 3,350 square metres of gross floor area for a proposed movie theatre use and 1,315 square metres of gross floor area for a proposed daycare use.
Marcanadian
Moderator
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Towered
Superstar
Don't get excited - grey spandrel boxification incoming.
Lyphe
Active Member
I hope you are wrong Towered.
If they use proper materials, then this looks like it has great potential. Big 'if' ... but here's to keeping a positive outlook.
If they use proper materials, then this looks like it has great potential. Big 'if' ... but here's to keeping a positive outlook.
cd concept
Senior Member
Beautiful just beautiful ! Love the detail on those two buildings ! Can't wait to see it built !
concrete_and_light
Active Member
Some of this I'm sure is already known, but some things that stand out to me looking at the architectural plans:
- The theatre is on the third floor and has 8 screens — 2 bigger, 6 smaller (vs. the current 14 screens which includes one IMAX)
- There's a daycare in the south/west corner which is nice to see
- On the second floor there's space specifically labelled grocery store (more groceries in this area is very welcome - the options aren't great)
- There are 5 retail entrances on the ground level not counting the theatre/grocery lobby, so that could be five different retail units, but of course some are likely to be combined. There is another large retail space in addition to the grocery store on the second floor. I wonder what might go in there.
All and all these things seem generally quite quite good and combined with the more adventurous architectural style and warm building materials this seems like a great outcome here.
My only real issue is with how the building meets John and Richmond and its relation to the uninspired park space. The siding of the building there seems like it could end up looking like just a whole bunch of cheap ventilation grates if not done well. So that's concerning and the park space is just paint by numbers but also it seems like just a bit of a missed opportunity for something to really animate the corner and this just really doesn't.
Even though the theatre is smaller I don't really mind that plus hopefully there will also be theatre space at The Well. Smaller theatres are a nice vibe, but the current multiplex has its advantages and charms as well so it is a tradeoff. But all in the balance this seems like it will be good for the area and is a major upgrade over the Entertainment District standard. I'm feeling cautiously optimistic that the next wave of development in this area seems to be at generally a bit higher level than what's been built so far.
- The theatre is on the third floor and has 8 screens — 2 bigger, 6 smaller (vs. the current 14 screens which includes one IMAX)
- There's a daycare in the south/west corner which is nice to see
- On the second floor there's space specifically labelled grocery store (more groceries in this area is very welcome - the options aren't great)
- There are 5 retail entrances on the ground level not counting the theatre/grocery lobby, so that could be five different retail units, but of course some are likely to be combined. There is another large retail space in addition to the grocery store on the second floor. I wonder what might go in there.
All and all these things seem generally quite quite good and combined with the more adventurous architectural style and warm building materials this seems like a great outcome here.
My only real issue is with how the building meets John and Richmond and its relation to the uninspired park space. The siding of the building there seems like it could end up looking like just a whole bunch of cheap ventilation grates if not done well. So that's concerning and the park space is just paint by numbers but also it seems like just a bit of a missed opportunity for something to really animate the corner and this just really doesn't.
Even though the theatre is smaller I don't really mind that plus hopefully there will also be theatre space at The Well. Smaller theatres are a nice vibe, but the current multiplex has its advantages and charms as well so it is a tradeoff. But all in the balance this seems like it will be good for the area and is a major upgrade over the Entertainment District standard. I'm feeling cautiously optimistic that the next wave of development in this area seems to be at generally a bit higher level than what's been built so far.
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ADRM
Senior Member
This is my beef with the site planning here, as well (though I say that not knowing what specifically is driving it; tower separation distance on the site itself?). This stretch of Richmond isn't actually all that hospitable to pedestrians, and certainly isn't conducive to lingering, whereas John's future is one of a $75M+ "cultural corridor" revamp.
Midtown Urbanist
Superstar
I would be lying if I said that I wasn't saddened by the loss of 40% of the movie theatres.
pw20
Active Member
Most likely a gym... Goodlife or Equinox. Current Goodlife is 35k square feet.
Alex L
Active Member
Me too. And the Paramount props. The screens get used by several festivals, so there will be some scrambling. While there is a nice Imax at Yonge/Dundas, this one has the advanced laser Imax and a great picture. The AVX is good too. So much hallway, lobby and escalator space, I hope the new theatre design is better. As for the proposed building design, looks like nothing special.
DavidCapizzano
Senior Member
I wonder if this is for Michaels.
Richard White
Senior Member
I highly doubt it. Micheals was never really as good a fit there as Chapters was. Sure it catered to OCAD but so do Currys among others.
I can see this being a winners or something along those lines. Maybe a Nordstrom off the rack like they have at One Bloor East.
I'm concerned about cinema space for festivals too. Right now, Hot Docs is only using four of the fourteen Scotiabank cinemas—I think TIFF uses only a couple more of them—but it's also the size of the theatres that's a big question. In the meantime, not Cineplex, nor any other chain, have announced that they are going into The Well yet. I'm not sure how far into construction they can go before a decision might be made to alter plans for that space to better suit some other purpose. Here's hoping both sites open with cinemas. (The Well as maybe all VIP style screens?)
42
Midtown Urbanist
Superstar
I wonder if this is an area where UrbanToronto can reach out and find out?