The Kingsway - Islington : Development News

Metrolinx is moving ahead with plans for a new 14-bay bus terminal for Kipling Station to improve the integration of GO Bus, GO Train, Mississauga Transit and TTC services at the hub.
 
The proposed GO and Mississauga MiWay terminal would be to the west of the site at Dundas Street West and Kipling, separate from the existing TTC bus terminal. The new parking and access arrangements would reconfigure the local road network, including a new intersection on Dundas. The plan also attempts to improve access to pedestrians and cyclists.
 
As a provincial agency, Metrolinx is not required to obtain site plan approval from the City of Toronto, but it filed one this month, agreeing “to work with the City and to take in City comments as input,” states a letter from Jill Hogan, manager of Community Planning in Etobicoke York District that was filed along with several reports on how the new terminal will affect the area.
  
With major MiWay connections moving to Kipling, the TTC would be able to rebuild the Islington bus terminal “to provide full accessibility and increased redevelopment potential at that station,” states an FAQ from Metrolinx.
 
An earlier design concept had the new bus terminal located under the transmission lines in the Hydro One corridor/easement, but because of “changes in Hydro One restrictions on development in their corridor, that concept no longer satisfies Hydro One requirements.”

March 30 Update: Kim Johnson, media relations and issues specialist for Metrolinx, says the agency is working on having a preliminary design for the hub ready by the end of 2016 for posting for tender bids.With a design-build contractor on board by mid-2017, the tentative completion of the facility would be the end of 2019.

“Public input is very important during the planning stages and we take all resident concerns in account as we continue on with the project. Extensive stakeholder collaboration is currently ongoing as further design development continues,” says Johnson. “The mobility hub concept is not just about the transit station—it includes the surrounding neighbourhood and is about creating an opportunity to live, work and play, while also being regionally connected.”

Writer: Paul Gallant
Source: City of Toronto, Metrolinx, Kim Johnson

How do you accommodate large-scale sustainable growth right next to low-rise neighbourhoods?

In a presentation last month at the Performative Places conference in Lund, Sweden, Cyndi Rottenberg-Walker, a partner at Toronto's Urban Strategies, used the company's Humbertown project as an example of how smart urban design can reduce environmental impact through increased density, greener buildings and shared community spaces.

The project at Royal York and Dundas West, which last year won the Excellence in Planning Award for Urban/Community design from the Ontario Professional Planners Institute (OPPI), would replace a 1950s shopping plaza with a mixed-use village within Humber Valley Village, doubling the commercial space and adding 1,000 residents in a variety of building types, with 12 storeys as the highest building.

Despite the increased density and more intensive uses, there would be five times the number of trees on the site, including green roofs, and a goal of LEED Gold sustainable buildings. Interestingly, the site plan, broken down into five blocks, echoes the existing shopping centre's footprint, a nod to the historic significance of one of the GTA's earliest modern shopping plazas. But the parking, now a dominant feature of the site, will move underground to make way for public spaces that recognize the Kingsway as a main square, knitting the development back into the broader community.

“Humbertown is taking a site which is highly underutilized today, but still plays an important role as the focus of its community from a single-use development pattern to a mixed use development, which is by its nature more efficient, introducing opportunities for different forms of living into the Humber Valley community,” Rottenberg-Walker told Yonge Street Media after the conference. “Children who have grown up there can conceivably buy their first apartment there. There's a retirement housing component, so at the other end of the spectrum, once you've finished with your large house, there's a possibility of moving into a condominium or something that has assisted living.”

Initial community opposition has largely evaporated after extensive consultation. “You're asking for people to buy into something they can't see or feel,” she says. “The reason it happens is that people care passionately about where they live.”

The project is currently awaiting site plan approval. After about a year of infrastructure work is done, construction could start within the year.

Writer: Paul Gallant
Source: Cyndi Rottenberg-Walker

The developer behind a luxury condo and townhouse development on The Kingsway may be allowed to build the replacement rental units it’s required to provide in another location.
 
North Drive Investments Inc. has proposed an eight-storey building with 30 condos and five street-level townhouses on a triangular piece of property at 2800 Bloor St. W., marketing the project as 4 The Kingsway (though that address currently doesn’t exist). The building, designed by architect Richard Wengle, would require the demolition of an existing building that has 10 rental units, all currently vacant.
 
“We want to be sure we replace the units that are being demolished,” says city planner Greg Hobson-Garcia.
 
Typically, the city would require those rental units to be built on the same site where they were lost. But heading into an October hearing at the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), the city adopted a motion that would permit North Drive to provide those rental units further east, in another residential and commercial project North Drive has proposed for 2114 Bloor St. W. This kind of arrangement is unusual because it creates uncertainty around whether the rental units actually get built and are in the vicinity of the lost units. To set the city’s mind at ease, North Drive has submitted a Letter of Credit worth $1.5 million to secure the provision of the rental replacement units.
 
The development at 2114 Bloor St. W. is further dependant on the developer acquiring a small triangular piece of city land. City Council voted to support that deal and direct “that arrangements satisfactory to the City” are made for the owner to acquire the property. That 2114 Bloor St. W. proposal, for a 10-storey mixed-use building comprised of 110 residential dwelling units and street-level commercial property, has attracted the ire of some local residents.
 
The city also voted that the developer make Section 37 contributions of $200,000 and meet other design requirements in order for the 2800 Bloor St. W. project to proceed.
 
To speed things up, the OMB agreed in a July 29 decision to administer the two properties together during the hearing process.
 
Further complicating matters is that back in 2010, the city had passed a bylaw to let the previous property owner build an upscale seniors home on the site. That bylaw, which still dictates what can be done with the property, required that only three replacement rental units be built, though the city has argued that option was tied specifically to the seniors home proposal.
 
Writer: Paul Gallant
Source: Greg Hobson-Garcia

A three-storey, low-cost rental building at Bloor and Kingsway that’s been slated to be demolished in favour of a retirement home since 2009 has been sold, and is now going to be a condo.

The site, a prime corner lot at 2800 Bloor Street West, currently houses a 10-unit rental building. The old proposal, approved by council four years ago, was for a seven-storey seniors residence with 86 rooms and three rental apartments.

The new building would take the address 4 The Kingsway.

Without getting any further approvals, the applicant -- North Drive Investments -- can build their own seven-storey condo, but are looking to add two more floors on top to make make 44 condo units, along with five townhouses.

The architect has been announced as Richard Wengle, known for his work on single family dwellings in Forest Hill, cottage country and other monied spots. Interiors will be by Brian Gluckstein, who had a similar clientele, in addition to a line at The Bay.

According to Susan O’Connor, Councillor Peter Milczyn’s executive assistant, Etobicoke Community Council planning staff will likely set a date in October or November to commence public consultations on the proposal.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Susan O’Connor

Tridel’s moving into a relatively open market with its One and Two Old Mill condos on Bloor West just east of the Kingsway.

"There's ourselves, and a Lanterra project behind the Old Mill," says Tridel VP Jim Ritchie, summing up the condo space in the vicinity. "So it services south Kingsway, the Old Mill community and Bloor West Village."

And though not exactly bargain priced, the units, which start around 650 square feet, are considerably less expensive than the notoriously pricey homes in all three of those areas. Ritchie says one floor plan in particular sold especially quickly, mostly to single women: the 850 square foot one-bedroom plus den, which include two bathrooms, unusual for one-bedrooms.

Construction on One Old Mill began in November, and demolition of the sales centre at 2500 Bloor West is imminent, making way for Two Old Mill, which is nearing its 70 per cent sales mark.

The 12-storey, 275-unit One Old Mill is designed by Kirkor Archictects, which also designed Two Old Mill. Ritchie expects it to be ready for occupancy by fall 2013.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Jim Ritchie

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a new house being built in the neighbourhood? Please send your development news tips to [email protected].

Nominations opened this week for the 2012 Green Toronto Awards, though the most interesting category from the 2011 edition has been dropped.

Last year, the awards expanded to include a green homes category, aimed at individuals who had done something remarkable to or with their own homes.

"It wasn't our strongest category," says Jessica Chow, co-ordinator for the city-sponsored awards. "We don’t know why. We noticed a lot of them were, 'Oh, I recycle in my home.' It wasn't really what we were after."

So this year, it's been folded into the more general green design category, where individual homes will now compete with eco clothing, green roofs and other design innovations.

Nominations can be submitted here until midnight on Feb. 6. Winners will be announced in March.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Jessica Chow

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A formerly Polish and now universal immigrant assistance agency has received almost $500,000 to expand their Etobicoke offices.

The 18-year-old Polycultural Immigrant and Community Services will use the $495,000 Trillium grant to built a third floor on its centre at 3363 Bloor Street West, as well as make it more accessible.

"The site is a small site," says director of programs and services Nadia Sokhan, "so we're trying to expand the location so we can run more programming."

One of the conditions of the grant is that the agency match the funds with its own fundraising. Sokhan figures they'll have done this and will be able to begin work in about a year.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Nadia Sokhan

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Demolition is almost complete at the future site of West Village.

The $95-million Tridel project, at Burnamthorpe and The West Mall, is being built on a site that was once occupied by several low-rise office buildings.

"It's mostly rubble now," says Tridel's senior vice president of sales and marketing, Jim Ritchie, "there's not much structure remaining."
The first phase of the project will consist of two towers, one 27 storeys and the other 30, built on a podium that will also include the top half storey of a mostly underground two and a half storey parkade with space for more than a thousand cars.

Ritchie expects the demolition to be finished within the next week or two, and for construction on the five-acre site to begin in May. He figures people will be able to start moving in sometime in early 2013.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Jim Ritchie

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The $1.5-million road works project for The West Mall is starting up again.

After replacing the water mains in the fall, and shutting down for winter, the resurfacing work is getting underway, and is scheduled for a May or June completion.

According to city engineer Salima Jivraj, the work, which is being carried out between Burnamthorpe and the Civic Centre Court, will have minimal effect on traffic.

"Most of this work will occur at night," she says, "during lower traffic volumes, and a paid duty officer will be present."

Writer: Bert Archer
Source; Salima Jivraj

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The ground is being broken today for One Valhalla, the first phase of a massive residential project that is replacing central Etobicoke's storied Valhalla Inn.

The three-tower, multi-townhouse development by Page and Steele/IBI Group architects will ultimately house around 2,000 people. The first tower is set for completion by the end of 2012, and the first town houses will be ready for occupancy around December of this year.

"Heritage Preservation Services became aware of the fact that there were some notable features related to the hotel," says developer Edilcan's vice president G.P. Di Rocco of the 1963 building. "What made it somewhat notable, the architect was George Robb, who had done some notable things throughout the city. We worked with Heritage Preservation Services to identify certain aspects that we're going to remove, salvage and restore and reintroduce back into the project."

Edilcan salvaged several elements of the old Robb building, including a copper sculpture by the architect, which will be erected in one of the outdoor amenity areas, as well as the Viking bar and some Robb-designed light fixtures, which will become the centrepieces of one of the party rooms.

The second tower is scheduled to start construction this fall for a 2013 completion. The third tower is set to launch in the fall.

The three towers will be 22, 35 and 30 storeys, respectively.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: G.P. Di Rocco

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a new house being built in the neighbourhood? Please send your development news tips to [email protected].

Work replacing and repairing the water main on The West Mall between Bloor and Burnhamthorpe has finally wrapped up.

Begun June 17, the 1.1km stretch of construction, which also included some maintenance work on the sewer, will cost the city $1.5 million, once the road resurfacing, scheduled for the spring, is done.

According to a spokeswoman from acting manager of structures and expressways Mike Laidlaw's office, who by City Hall rules is not allowed to be identified, the work was the result of a regular maintenance schedule.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Mike Laidlaw

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Toronto's bridgework continues to shut down or slow down roads across the city.

This past weekend, the westbound lanes of the Gardiner Expressway were closed from the Humber River to Spadina Avenue from 11pm on Saturday until 9am on Sunday.

"We're removing some of the overhang formwork and installing some conduits on the underside of the bridges," says Mike Laidlaw, acting manager of structures and expressways.

The overhang formwork he refers to is the superstructure erected to aid in the earlier work done of the bridge, which was demolished in April, and whose reconstruction was almost completed before the winter weather halted further substantial work until spring.

Part of a larger $14-million contract, the work that was conducted last weekend, and which will continue into next weekend during similar hours, cost between $250,000 and $300,000.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Mike Laidlaw

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The Onni Group and architect Stephen Hood hope that their massive new development, Westlake Village, will become a new centre for the entire south Etobicoke neighbourhood.

It's based around a community square that would have limited surface parking - about 30 cars -- but "it's basically a pedestrian landscape realm," says Stephen Hood, of Page and Steele/IBI Group, of the 1,300 unit, three-tower project that will also include 70,000 square feet of retail space, including a major grocery store.

Units for the first phase have just gone on sale, and the site plan is before Etobicoke's community council.

"It's very crisp and clean," says Hood of the concrete structure with pre-cast concrete detailing. "It's after a modern look to it. At the same time, we will be introducing a fair bit of masonry in the podiums and along the townhouses and retail frontages to give it a better interface with the natural setting along Mimico Creek, and a more human element relating to the pedestrian realm."

The builders will also be introducing a new traffic light to the neighbourhood, between the Kraft office building, which is next to the Mr. Christie's factory, and the grocery store, which if approved will be built as part of the development's second phase.

If sales go well, Hood expects to be in the ground next year.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source; Stephen Hood

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighbourhood? Please send your development news tips to [email protected].

The latest in a string of 30 murals, each dedicated to an article of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights on its 60th anniversary, has gone up on a building opposite the Arts Etobicoke offices at 4893A Dundas West.

Known as Urban Canvas, the Amnesty International Toronto-sponsored project has so far resulted in 12 murals around the city, mostly outside the downtown core.

"Good walls for murals are hard to find," says AITO's Elena Dumitru in an email, "and we've had lots of challenges with trying to find walls in downtown Toronto (none so far, generally the available ones are used for advertising purposes as far as we know)."

The mural, dedicated to Article 13, is being touted as "Toronto's longest outdoor poem," and was commissioned by Arts Etobicoke from Toronto Poet Laureate Dionne Brand. The owner of the building on which it's painted is Pierre Seunik, head of the PS Group of Companies and president of the Islington Village Business Improvement Area.

"We showed him the poem," says Arts Etobicoke's fundraising and communications manager Ruth Cumberbatch. "We contracted an artist to create a design and ran sketches by him. The only thing he had concerns about where things like if they have to do snow removal in the alley, we wanted to make sure they wouldn't wreck the mural, so he asked us to keep it up a certain height."

The designer is Susan Rowe Harrison and the artist is William Lazos.

The 1,000 square foot mural was unveiled yesterday.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Ruth Cumberbatch, Elena Dumitru

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighbourhood? Please send your development news tips to [email protected].

Work has begun on the $2.2-million repair and upgrade of the railway underpass on Bloor just west of Islington.

According to Mike Laidlaw, the city's acting manager of structures and expressways, "We'll be replacing the sidewalks, making general repairs to the abutments, and putting in some stairways, tying the sidewalk into the TTC commuter parking area."

The work will continue through the winter, with an expected completion in February. At the moment, two lanes in each direction are closed, though Laidlaw expects that for the majority of the construction, only one lane each way will be shut down.

Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Mike Laidlaw

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighbourhood? Please send your development news tips to [email protected].