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 Context
is Everything
Text: Duncan McAllister
Images: architectsAlliance
Context Developments took the wraps off their latest designs for
transforming the urban cityscape of Toronto’s historic St. Lawrence
market community.
At a public consultation meeting in September, Context presented
their plans for a 46-storey residential waterfront tower with 451
units, an eight-floor podium complex of retail and community spaces,
and a new park with green streetscapes to be located at 18 Lower
Jarvis, the site of an existing industrial area directly south of
the St. Lawrence Market.
Context, a well-known developer with a reputation for excellence,
has won numerous urban design awards and is the same firm that
developed Radio City, MoZo and Spire condominiums in downtown
Toronto.
The project is in the preliminary design stages and the consultation
process is still underway. A presentation by Robert Glover, urban
planner with Bousfields Inc., gave the public a preview of the
proposed concept. “We’re looking forward to working with the
community and stakeholders in terms of developing this project in a
fashion that fits in well and really contributes to the area,” says
Robert Glover.
The original site of the Market Wharf 150 years ago, a huge area –
5,766 square metres, with the rail corridor and Gardiner Expressway
to the south and the water’s edge beyond that. The current
streetscape, adjacent to the Crombie Park complex, consists mainly
of surface parking.
It’s not the most attractive feature of downtown Toronto and lacks
sidewalks and access. Robert Glover sees this as an opportunity to
revitalize the space. “In terms of the St. Lawrence fabric, it’s
very much a hole and it’s been that way for many, many years. So
here’s the opportunity to deal with that and finish this portion of
St. Lawrence.”
One of the unique things about Lower Jarvis St., whether you’re
walking or driving, looking south you can actually see ships in the
harbour. Says Mr. Glover, “It’s the only view we’ve got left in
Toronto that creates that relationship between the city itself and
the waterfront.” As a gateway to the waterfront, the Market Wharf
complex would be paired with the emerging East Bayfront development
that will see a complete transformation of the waterfront south of
the Gardiner Expressway.
The 8-storey podium building will have retail space at street-level,
including a Shoppers Drug Mart and a cafe across from the park.
Context plans to harmonize the structure with the existing housing
to the east and west, and the market building to the north. Their
design principles state that the architectural identity of the
project should be respectful of the context and include high-quality
architecture. Compatibility, style, materiality and proportion
should all be compatible with the historic identity of the St.
Lawrence neighborhood as a unique area with distinctive character.
Plans to create a high-quality public promenade, supportive of
pedestrian activities are underway. Transforming the urban space
will include widened Jarvis and Market St. sidewalks with double
rows of trees, as well as a “living wall” with plant materials up to
the 2nd floor level of the building. Parking and loading will be
hidden from view and to minimize the disruption of pedestrian
traffic. Plans call for a 483-space parking area above grade, which
creates a buffer between the railway corridor and the residential
space.
“At some point it’s going to be possible to walk up the west side of
Jarvis St., south to the waterfront [and] north from the waterfront
into St. Lawrence,” says Robert Glover, “and it’s really important
that we build the right streetscape right now in terms of the
sidewalks.”
A lot of thought has gone into the details, like matching the
masonry to the existing Crombie Park complex, but unlike the podium
with its brick styling and industrial look, the residential tower
itself will have a waterfront flavour, with serpentine-like
balconies creating a lighter, sail-like quality that reflects the
character of the waterfront area. The slender 38-storey tower has a
floor plate of only 711 square metres. The tower location is
designed to be pushed as far to the south as possible to minimize
the impact of shadow and sight lines.
The firm of architectsAlliance has done other similar buildings in
Toronto, based on a very slim, skinny and elegant tower concept.
“Tall and skinny” is the new building trend, now being recognized as
a good way to deal with these kinds of urban situations, as opposed
to the “squash and spread” developments that don’t make efficient
density use of the building footprint. According to Robert Glover,
tall and skinny “actually has a much lighter touch when it comes to
the impact on the area around. It’s that spirit that we’re trying to
achieve in this particular case.” |
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