Dream Office REIT and Humbold Properties have unveiled plans for a 79-storey mixed-use tower straddling Toronto’s financial and entertainment districts. Three existing heritage buildings at 212, 214 and 220 King Street West will be incorporated into the podium of the development, which will house 660,000 square feet of office space, 588 rental housing units and 10,000 square feet of retail space.
“We believe, and continue to believe, that demand for incredibly well-located and designed mixed-use buildings will increase as residents and tenants expect to have it all,” says Michael Cooper, chairman and chief executive officer of Dream Office REIT — promising that the new development will have “a strong focus and importance placed on amenities, transit, connectivity to the city, outdoor spaces, and a serious approach to health and wellness.”
Courtesy of SHoP Architects
Development partner Humbold Properties acquired 214 King Street West nearly 45 years ago, prior to the arrival of the nearby iconic Roy Thomson Hall and transformation of an aging industrial zone into today’s vibrant commercial-residential reality.
“We are excited to unveil a design that not only honours our city’s rich architectural history but injects new energy into the downtown core,” says Robert Singer, vice president with Humbold Properties. “We are thrilled to be partnering with Dream to create a new vision for this unique intersection and to carry these buildings’ legacies on for generations to come.”
Lead architect, New York based SHoP Architects, has experience in that city integrating new towers with designated heritage buildings. Working with the Canadian firm, Adamson Architects, the SHoP design retains the scale and presence of the original block, using setbacks and a public atrium, which will double as the office lobby, to create connections to a 310-metre tower soaring above.
“We know we have to move forward and innovate, but we need to do so in a way that demonstrates sensitivity and sensibility, and contributes to the life of a city,” says Gregg Pasquarelli, founding principal of SHoP Architects.
Streetscape illustration by Norm Li.
