Preston BIA dumps on Soho Italia idea

The Preston Street BIA apparently has this to say about the Starwood-Mastercraft proposed 35 storey condo tower on a black podium/parking garage, at the south end of Preston Street:  “The Preston Street BIA Board of Directors met last Friday, to define their position on the proposed rezoning of 490 Preston Street. The motion below was unanimously accepted by the Board of Directors.   Motion: Whereas a developer is proposing to build a 35 storey building at 490 Preston Street, And whereas the 35 storeys exceeds the recent rezoning that allowed a four storey podium at Preston Street, and an 18 storey tower at the back … Continue reading Preston BIA dumps on Soho Italia idea

More good news

Continuing the story of the Beaver Barracks development, the tallest apartment building is at 464 Metcalfe. It is a familiar sight to motorists from the Queensway or Catherine Street: The exterior of the building is broken up into several components to reduce its apparent mass and height. The round “turret” at the right corner intrigues the eye; there will be an interior shot in a subsequent post.  Notice the glass garage door and commercial storefront appearance of the ground floor. It is the new ambulance station, built right in under the building. An interesting safety feature: the garage is drive-through. Returning ambulances … Continue reading More good news

And now, some good development news

There are plenty of horror stories about proposed and actually constructed buildings. But it is not all bad news. Amongst the dross, there is some gold to be found. It is time to focus on some good developments. The subject of a number of posts over the next week will be the Beaver Barracks story. The project is named after the former military barracks on that site. It is located on the west side of Metcalfe Street at Catherine (the Queensway), ie immediately west of the Police Station and south of the Canadian Museum of Nature. The developer is CCOC, the … Continue reading And now, some good development news

Infill: what might fit?

As seen from Preston Street (off camera slightly to the left) looking along Pamilla Street (pronounced locally as Pa-milla). The brick house is long established; its back yard also abutted Pamilla. A double garage was built, with a ped door between the two garage doors, leading to apartments above.  It looks like it may have been commercial premises at one time, converted to housing in … when?… the forties or fifties? It has … character, and interest, and adds to the variety of the neighborhood. And provides a lot of housing units between the two buildings on the one lot. Behind the house is … Continue reading Infill: what might fit?

The finest and the bravest

I was down at Metcalfe and Isabella this morning just before nine. I noticed this convention of fire trucks outside the police station. Must be big, I thought. The Citizen tells me there was an envelope in the mail room, with “white powder”. Yup, gotta be careful. But not frugal. Seven emerg vehicles for one envelope? And people mock our illustrious mayor for attending any opening, even that of an envelope. His employees make him look like a total amateur. Here’s a view of the finest and bravest from the upper floor of a near by building. One engine has given up … Continue reading The finest and the bravest