Posts Tagged ‘Real Estate’

During last weeks “peak and enter” at the newly completed Don River Park… I stopped by the River City development to take a few photos of phase one under construction!

The 7 storey River St. building is well underway and already taking shape.

The two storey townhomes line the base of the building along River St.

Here’s a close up of the King St. building… eventually the two will be connected by a bridge!

Interlocking stone was used in the construction of sidewalks and roads for the area!

Looking for more updates from River City?  Waterfront Toronto recently relocated one of its web cameras to capture the construction progress of the development! The web camera, which was previously used to capture the construction of Sherbourne Common north, is now on the rooftop of Edge Loft condominiums at 625 Queen Street East.  Still images of the site are taken every 15 minutes and can be viewed on Waterfront Toronto’s construction webcam page and on the River City page.

Images are archived and once the project is complete, a two minute time lapse video is created that showcases the transformation of the project from start to finish.

One of the most exciting things about being in the business of selling the City is watching how it changes over the years. In 2008 I started focusing on the West Don Land (or River City) part of town.  At the time it was no more than a contaminated brown field with a bunch of old industrial buildings.  With the announcement of Toronto hosting the Pan Am games in 2015… plans quickly got underway to improve the look of the area.

A new school, daycares, and condos are just a few of the things planned for the area… but before any of this could happen, the City had to deal with a potential flood hazard at the base of the redevelopment. Reshaping the floodplain would not only protect the West Don Lands but also a 99 hectare (245 acre) area, including Toronto’s financial district, from sinking underwater!

The solution they came up with was both practical and useful for the area residents and the overall look of the area! Approximately 400,000 cubic metres of fill is being used to construct the Don River Park.   According to WaterFrontToronto’s website: “The centrepiece of the West Don Lands, Don River Park will be a 7.3 hectare (18 acre) active, vibrant and inviting park that will not only serve the local community, but residents from throughout Toronto and visitors from far and wide. Construction of the park, which will occupy the south eastern portion of the neighbourhood and will run along the Don River from King Street to the rail corridor in the south, started in September 2010. When completed, the beautiful green space will invite people to the Don River and offer inspiring experiences along the river’s edge as well as spectacular views of downtown and Lake Ontario.”

I’ve visited the site several times since 2009 and been blown away by it’s progress each time! Shortly before the park opened, I took a self guided tour of the almost completed park!  Check out the photos below:

Encore at the Met is a 33 storey condominium complex at Carlton and Yonge.  Completed in 2008, the building features a long list of amenities that include a concierge, fitness facilities, pool, hot tub and a guest suite to name a few!

I currently have a spacious 650 sq.ft suite available for sale.  The condo is located on the 29^th floor and is a one bedroom plus a den. It faces south and is positioned to give the residents sweeping views of the downtown core, from the lake to the East to the City in the West!

The dark hardwood floors are the first thing to catch your eyes when entering the suite.  Off to the left of the entrance is a home office and a open concept kitchen to the right.  The kitchen is well equipped with tons of storage space as well as stainless steel appliances.  The dining room and living room are combined.  There is a walkout to the south facing balcony from the living room that makes for a perfect place to unwind at the end of the day!

The bathroom and master bedroom are separate so guests can use the washroom without entering the bedroom (a big plus).  There is an ensuite washer and dryer located in it’s own separate room.  A parking space and locker are also included in the $420,000 purchase price!

If you’d like to schedule a private appointment to view the place, please fill out the form below:

Starting at 12:00 pm on Tuesday March 20th, I’ll be live blogging from the South Hill on Madison VIP Broker Launch. This exclusive Platinum Broker lunch is taking place at Mistura’s Upper Lounge and will go from 12-2. The project is being developed by Burnac Holdings Limited and will be constructed next to The Madison Avenue Lofts, at the foot of Casa Loma.

12:30 – arrived at Mistura, beautiful spread for lunch. A lot of excitement!

1:28 – Hunter Milborne taking the floor to discuss the details.

Sales office to have a one bedroom suite!

1:30 – History of Burnac development. Built over 1000 condos in the past 20 years. Currently working on a highend boutique on Davenport

1:33 – priced in the 600 per square foot. 15% for VIP downpayment.

1:35 – only 159 suites available. Parking available for everything over $300,000.

Prices and floorplans now available!

Prices range from $239,900-$989,900 and in size from 384-1259 sq. ft.

Check in here for all the live details. And if you’re interested in purchasing at South Hill, fill out the form below anytime!

LEGO recently ran an international competition asking design junkies to vote online for their favourite landmark!  The winner was to become LEGOized as part of their Architecture series.  One of the candidates was Canada’s very own Habitat 67.  Having just purchased two buildings from the collection – the Rockefeller Centre and the Empire State Building, I was thrilled to see Habitat not only make the list, but also domintate the votes!

On March 8th, LEGO announced Habitat 67 as the winner… but in a “blockhead” move, decided not to turn the landmark into Lego, at least not yet!  According to the website:

“Vote and Inspire is the page on the LEGO Architecture site where you can vote for your favourite architectural icon. We can’t promise to build it, but we do promise to be inspired by you.

Habitat 67, designed by Moshe Safdie, was the most popular among the 10 architectural masterpieces profiled on the site in the first round of Vote and Inspire. It is now a candidate for a future LEGO Architecture set, but it takes more than popularity to make the grade as a LEGO Architecture icon. ”

You can bet your bottom brick that if LEGO ever does decide to make the building, I’ll be first in line to buy one…and of course, make it a MUST HAVE MONDAY!

Today we got our first look of what South Hill on Madison will one day look like!  BuzzBuzzHome released the rendering on twitter earlier today.  It’s hard to tell which way the building will front in relation to Madison lofts next door, yet it’s still better than the vacant lot that currently sits on the site!

South Hill Condos will sit at the base of Casa Loma and have the Dupont subway station literally minutes away.  A brand new eco park is also in the works for the are and will be developed on the vacant parking lot to the south of Macpherson!

Read the rest of this entry »

The Sutton Place made it’s first major break into the mainstream news!  I first wrote about back in November then again in January. Yesterday, The Toronto Star’s Susan Pigg interviewed Barry Fenton from Lanterra Developments and unearthed a ton a juicy details on the project, it’s Hollywood history and it’s 102 year old renter!  Check out the article below:

It’s not often — not ever, really — that a condo developer gets to boast he’s not only snapped up one of the prime building sites in the city, but the piano bench graced by Liberace.

And don’t get Barry Fenton started on the bathtub where one of the world’s most beautiful women, Sophia Loren, soaked her worries away.

“I can’t keep it, unfortunately, but I saw it,” says the president and CEO of Lanterra Developments which yesterday announced it has bought Toronto’s landmark Sutton Place Hotel and will convert it into luxury condos.

Lanterra, perhaps best-known for its development of highrise condos and the boutique Hotel St. Germain in the once-barren Maple Leaf Square area, plans to resurface and renovate what used to be Toronto’s palace to Hollywood stars.

This is just the latest sign that Toronto’s film epicentre has now completely shifted south to King St.: Last month Cresford Development announced it’s converting the site of nearby Bistro 990, the beloved restaurant of the stars, into condos as well.

While plans are still being finalized, Lanterra hopes to add about nine storeys to the 33-storey Sutton Place, convert its 400 hotel rooms into up to 600 condo units and widen the footprint of the building at Bay and Wellesley Sts.

Where limos used to pull up and unload their precious cargo under the glare of cameras during what would become the Toronto International Film Festival, Lanterra plans to add restaurants and retail space while retaining many of the trademark — if dated — charms of the Sutton Place’s grand lobby.

Some 20 people who have rented suites in the hotel for years — one of them 102-years-old — will be relocated during construction and then returned after the work is done, said Fenton.

“Most times as developers we’re starting from scratch. It’s so exciting to find a project in the city, an iconic building, that you can help make even better,” said Fenton Wednesday.

“We like to be selective about our sites and you can’t get any better than this. It’s just yards from the downtown, from Yorkville and City Hall. And talk about being next to a park — you’re just a block away from Queen’s Park.

“If you were playing Monopoly, this would be like purchasing Boardwalk.”

Fenton, and Lanterra chairman Mark Mandelbaum are keenly aware, however, that this isn’t a game, but a key piece of Toronto and Hollywood history.

Which is why Fenton was fielding calls all day from friends and business associates grateful Lanterra plans to preserve the basics of the building that welcomed the likes of Michael Jackson, Robin Williams, and Loren to Hollywood North.

“We plan to keep a lot of the old theme, that British elegance from the ’70s, but add some modern elements to it,” says Fenton.

Lanterra is also considering adding a boutique hotel to the site, but is keenly aware that Toronto has seen a surge in five-star hotels — from the already opened Ritz-Carlton to the new Four Seasons slated to open later this year.

But as far as condos go, this is a rare find in the city, steps to the subway, shopping and the financial district.

The sales price won’t be disclosed until the deal finalizes in June, but Fenton ranked this No. 1 among the 10,000 condos Lanterra has built, from Liberty Village to its other Bay St. property Burano, slated to open later this year.

“Sutton Place is a very very famous complex. Even with all the rumblings that the market is slowing down — which I don’t believe — I think the market will welcome this project with open arms.” Read the rest of this entry »