# TORONTO | West Don Lands Development



## STAR-ter (Jul 16, 2008)

80 acres of land to be developed on brownfields east of Toronto downtown, just beside the Historical Distillery District. 









You can find a lot of information here:
http://www.waterfrontoronto.ca/dbdocs//447b63fa687d3.pdf

Some renders:

































Right now there are only a several old buildings on the site(dating from late late 19th to eary 20th century) and they will be incorporated in the fabric of the new, dense development.


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## PortoNuts (Apr 26, 2008)

An amazing project for a wasteland! :applause:

Toronto has been clearly rocking on in these times. kay:


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## eMKay (Feb 2, 2007)

That's very cool, reminds me a lot of the Antigone development in Montpellier.


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## Coral Builder (May 25, 2007)

Hope no one is planning on having a groundwater well or growing food in an urban garden in this area. PCBs, Petroleum, Heavy Metals. All that soil belongs in an incinerator... or a toxic waste dump. Oh well, existing brownfield laws let them cover it with 6 ft. (2 m) of clean fill, and build on top as if it was pristine...


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## OEincorparated (Jul 22, 2007)

Like it! Good density without the crazy tall condo's. Hope they put lot's of shops at street level.


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## Jaborandi (Nov 19, 2006)

Coral Builder said:


> Hope no one is planning on having a groundwater well or growing food in an urban garden in this area. PCBs, Petroleum, Heavy Metals. All that soil belongs in an incinerator... or a toxic waste dump. Oh well, existing brownfield laws let them cover it with 6 ft. (2 m) of clean fill, and build on top as if it was pristine...


Are you suggesting that no soil remediation has taken place?


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

Why are there so many cars parked on the side of the road in the renderings? Shouldn't we promote a car-free society being in the heart of the city?


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## STAR-ter (Jul 16, 2008)

hkskyline said:


> Why are there so many cars parked on the side of the road in the renderings? Shouldn't we promote a car-free society being in the heart of the city?


We should but we cannot be too radical about it. A good road network is essential for a functional district - to make space for deliveries, public transit, ambulances, taxis etc. Those vehicles should have a right of way and this is what is going on in Toronto. 

We have a purely pedestrian district which is just beside this development (on the south-west side), called Distillery District, and still... Most of the visitors drive to get there, but hopefully an extended puclib transit network will change it... Don't worry about the rendering. It's just a rendering.


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## Man_in_the_mirror (Nov 4, 2009)

A lot of trees...i like it.can't wait it start the construction


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## Woodstock88 (Mar 19, 2008)

cool project that park reminds me Paris


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## Ukraine (Apr 2, 2009)

Strangely, it looks like Griffintown...
I like the way these buildings have a modern/classical look which gives them lots of character. 
A question: Are most of these developments approved and ready to go?, or they're just looking for investors right now?.
Thank you very much


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## Coral Builder (May 25, 2007)

As part of Toronto's winning bid for the 2015 Pan American Games, the West Don Lands re-development will be accelerated. This should be the site of some major new construction very soon.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

Should we change this to the 2015 Pan Am Games development thread? Or will there be non-Games related construction happening in this part of town as well?


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## Tuscani01 (Nov 24, 2005)

hkskyline said:


> Should we change this to the 2015 Pan Am Games development thread? Or will there be non-Games related construction happening in this part of town as well?


River City (Part of the West Don Lands) is being developed separately from the Pan Am Athletes Village.

Tough call!

I guess you can have one thread for River City, and one for the Pan Am athletes village.


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## TheCanadianEuro (Oct 4, 2009)

Yes this is great I would usually prefer the tallest they can build but this is pretty damn nice.I also hope they build market strips it would be a thriving neighbourhood.Why am I thinking gay village?


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## jjippidy (Sep 29, 2009)

TheCanadianEuro said:


> Yes this is great I would usually prefer the tallest they can build but this is pretty damn nice.I also hope they build market strips it would be a thriving neighborhood.Why am I thinking gay village?


Well, I believe a lot of the renders shown here were created fairly early in the design of the neighborhood and should be looked at as more of a tool for giving a feel for the structure of the neighborhood then its specific architecture.

The Pan Am bid greatly increased the speed at which portions of this area will see redevelopment so I can only imagine that very soon we'll start to see more finalized renders.

As for more height, I wouldn't rule it out, it'll still be some time before the entire area is completely rehabilitated, think decade(s) over years, so a lot will surely change. I'd be surprised if by the end some of the 'planed' buildings don't see significant height increases.

As for gay village, don't know why you're thinking that. Not that I'd care what it becomes so long as it's a functioning healthy neighborhood.

But, I think the potential is there for it to really anchor growth in the upcoming waterfront communities (the infrastructure it will bring to the area cannot be overstated) and potentially be of the very few major downtown'ish developments that offers significant appeal to larger families, something the condo market in general hasn't really achieved as of yet.


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## STAR-ter (Jul 16, 2008)

As I was visiting the site recently (it a part of my project for school), I took a few pictures. No much going on, they are still working on levelling the ground. They should start construction in spring I guess. Another news is that a part of the development will be reserved for the olympic village for Pan-Am games in Toronto in 2015. However, no major changes in the project are proposed.

View from Don River towards Downtown:









The northern part; view from King/Queen intersection:









"Canary Restaurant" - one of the older buildings which will be refurbished (you can see the rendering in the first post). It's right in the centre of the area. Apparently, this building is very often used for movie production.


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## Mussoda (Mar 10, 2007)

looks nice,, not that high, adequate density, decent street part.. very wishful !


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## flesh_is_weak (Jun 16, 2006)

TheCanadianEuro said:


> Yes this is great I would usually prefer the tallest they can build but this is pretty damn nice.I also hope they build market strips it would be a thriving neighbourhood.*Why am I thinking gay village?*


West Dong Lands? :lol:


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

So what lasting improvements will outlive the Games? I believe Transit City should cover this part of town as well? So in the future, residents can streetcar into the financial core?


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## Ervin2 (Nov 7, 2009)

hkskyline said:


> So what lasting improvements will outlive the Games? I believe Transit City should cover this part of town as well? So in the future, residents can streetcar into the financial core?


I was thinking the same thing. Streetcars would be perfect to have going along Queens at the waterfront to the east, a place that's getting a lot of development as well, and then up to Don's developments.


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## monkeyronin (May 18, 2006)

hkskyline said:


> I believe Transit City should cover this part of town as well? So in the future, residents can streetcar into the financial core?


Nothing of the Transit City lines cover this, but there will be new/expanded streetcar lines in the area. Also, the DRL (subway) will likely have a station here.


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## Ervin2 (Nov 7, 2009)

Whoa nice! Are those just proposals? Is there a good chance some of those lines will come some time soon?


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## kuquito (Aug 8, 2006)

It's a wonderful project. Can't wait to ride my bike through it.


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## OEincorparated (Jul 22, 2007)

You can walk into the financial core, Y&D Square or where ever from West Donlands, no problem. The people who buy there won't even need a metropass, everything will be included near by. People from else where will be flocking down there to relax, live and just hang out I bet.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

OEincorparated said:


> You can walk into the financial core, Y&D Square or where ever from West Donlands, no problem. The people who buy there won't even need a metropass, everything will be included near by. People from else where will be flocking down there to relax, live and just hang out I bet.


That's probably a 20 minute walk - probably do-able in the summer, but I think there needs to be a fast connection into the core, such as by streetcar. But then, given its location, I think the length of the commute might not be different from talking the subway @ Eglinton. So price-wise, will it be worth it?


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## Looking/Up (Feb 28, 2008)

> Waterfront Toronto Announces West Donlands Underpass Park
> 
> 
> Waterfront Toronto yesterday announced plans for Underpass Park. Located under the Eastern Avenue and Adelaide/Richmond overpasses between Cherry and Bayview, it will beautify an area that is currently derelict. Designed by renowned landscape architects Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg in conjunction with The Planning Partnership, the park will connect the northern part of the West Donlands with the larger area to the south.
> ...


http://urbantoronto.ca/content.php?245-Waterfront-Toronto-Announces-West-Donlands-Underpass-Park


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## STAR-ter (Jul 16, 2008)

Construction update

Still digging in the ground, but we can see progress:








Mill St., east of Cherry.









The lot on the South-West corner of Front and Cherry was closed for a while due to a soil pollution study, but now it was opened up and hopefully some construction will start here soon.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

*Dupuis: Athletes Village a catalyst for waterfront redevelopment*
December 07, 2010
Stephen Dupuis
Special to the Toronto Star

Not that I haven’t been watching it unfold building by building, but on a trek through the city last month, I seemed to notice all the new condo development that has occurred along either side of the Gardiner Expressway from the Air Canada Centre westward to Highway 427 as if it had magically appeared all at once.

For the next five years, we’re going to see that type of transformation, albeit not nearly as tall, from the ACC eastward to the Don Valley Parkway as the East Bayfront, West Don Lands and ultimately the Port Lands get redeveloped by Waterfront Toronto.

I have to admit to being one of the cynics who wondered if anything was every going to happen in that area of the city. But having had the opportunity to hear Derek Goring, director of development for Waterfront Toronto, set out the vision and the master plan for the largest urban renewal project in North America — and one of the most significant waterfront revitalization efforts in the world — I’ve become a believer.

While good things were already unfolding, the awarding of the 2015 Pan Am games to Toronto and the decision to locate the athletes village on the waterfront has created a deadline which can’t be missed, not with 10,000 athletes from 42 different countries coming to an event that will be twice the size of the Vancouver Olympics.

You can see the transformation taking place in the East Bayfront area with Sugar Beach and the Corus building already there. Proceeding east, the George Brown College Health Sciences Campus construction is coming out of the ground, next to which will be Sherbourne Common park. On the other side of the park, we’ll soon see the Parkside development by Great Gulf Homes hit the market, followed by the Bayside development by Hines. All told, there will be 6,000 new residential units in this area plus all the office and commercial space.

The West Don Lands will also include 6,000 new residential units, including the 2,100 units slated for the Athletes Village and 900 units in River City by Urban Capital, which is already setting the tone for the area having won BILD’s Best Building Design award earlier this year. The Athletes Village will feature a mix of condominium and rental housing in highrise and midrise form plus some stacked units, designed to ultimately serve every market segment from students to seniors, with 20 per cent designated to be affordable rental and 5 per cent affordable ownership homes.

Other notable features of the West Don Lands includes an underpass park with pop-up retail, living streets and plenty of public art, not to mention the 17-acre Don River park.

There’s so much to get excited about when you hear Goring talk. Overall, a third of the development area will be parks, and all the buildings will be built to some of the highest energy-efficiency and other green standards. Overall goals include quality of place, design excellence, sustainability and intelligent communities.

“Buildings are important, but it’s the spaces between buildings that make the community,” said Goring.

“I’m just knocked out by what’s going on,” says well-known industry consultant Barry Lyon. “There’s enthusiasm for Toronto, enthusiasm for the games, and enthusiasm for the waterfront.”

I share Lyon’s and Goring’s enthusiasm and encourage readers to check it all out at www.towaterfront.ca. Meanwhile, for the next five years, don’t blink as you drive along the Gardiner eastbound.

Stephen Dupuis is president and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association. The views expressed are those of the president. Email: [email protected].


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## STAR-ter (Jul 16, 2008)

2 shots from yesterday:


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## Chadoh25 (Dec 28, 2007)

Awesome project!


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## Innsertnamehere (Jun 8, 2010)

final plan:









first condo phase:


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## Innsertnamehere (Jun 8, 2010)

what the site looked like on may 30th;










from jasonzed over at UT


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## desertpunk (Oct 12, 2009)

Early 2013


pano parts A west Don Lands, 2013 01 01 -ad by booledozer, on Flickr


pano parts A west Don Lands, 2013 01 01 -aa by booledozer, on Flickr


pano parts A west Don Lands, 2013 01 01 -ab by booledozer, on Flickr


pano parts A west Don Lands, 2013 01 01 -al by booledozer, on Flickr


pano parts A west Don Lands, 2013 01 01 -ak by booledozer, on Flickr


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## desertpunk (Oct 12, 2009)

*September 27:*


Construction in the West Don Lands, 2013 09 27 (8) by booledozer, on Flickr


Construction in the West Don Lands, 2013 09 27 (10) by booledozer, on Flickr


Construction in the West Don Lands, 2013 09 27 (2) by booledozer, on Flickr


Construction in the West Don Lands, 2013 09 27 (1) by booledozer, on Flickr


Construction in the West Don Lands, 2013 09 27 (7) by booledozer, on Flickr


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## Canadian Lover (Sep 14, 2013)

It's nice to see this type of urban renewal for an undeveloped/old area. I like how the streetcars in that one photo have their own right of way separate from car traffic - it's a cheap way to build transit while minimizing traffic disruption.


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