A planned redevelopment of the 1886-built Bloor Street United Church (BSUC) at its northwest corner with Huron Street in Toronto's Annex neighbourhood has evolved yet again with a new submission filed with the City. Working with BSUC to maximize density on the site, Collecdev and Northrop Development's planned high-rise condominium development at 300 Bloor West is one step closer to realization, with the latest submission building off of the project's 2019 zoning approval from City Council.
Designed by KPMB Architects, with heritage elements overseen by specialists ERA Architects, the project dates back to an initial rezoning application filed at the end of 2017, which was followed by a second rezoning application last October, and most recently, an application for Site Plan Approval. The most recent changes reflected since the rezoning approval include changes to the tower's height and exterior expression.
In a multi-stage evolution that was originally proposed at 38 storeys, the tower is now aiming at 29 storeys, an increase of one level from the last plan. The added floor, along with revised floor heights, have combined to result in a new height of 103.85 metres, increasing from the previous submission's 96.31-metre height.
The slender-framed grid of the earlier plans has evolved. The tower's exterior expression is now planned with a heavier, more textured grid of projecting composite panels with a bronze finish, reminiscent of the design of the recent Sixty Colborne development. Other materials are to include composite bronze-coloured vertical fins, metal picket balcony railings, and window wall cladding for the tower, as well as curtainwall glazing for the podium below.
A glazed atrium between the retained sanctuary walls and a four-storey, Bloor Street-fronting podium volume has been reduced in volume, creating a clearer separation between the new-build and heritage components. The proposed south elevation has also been revised with a new glazed entrance to the sanctuary, which has been simplified from the previous design's ornate bronze detailing.
Major changes have also been made to the podium's east elevation facing Huron Street, where the previous plan's glazed volume framing a porte-cochère has been replaced by a mix of glazing, charcoal brick, and exposed structural elements. A line of columns supporting the north end of the podium have been revised from straight columns finished in metal to the new plan, a group of exposed Y-shaped concrete columns.
Like the previous submission, the current plan calls for 249 condominium units, with a revised unit mix now proposed of 91 one-bedrooms, 135 two-bedrooms, and 23 three-bedrooms.
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Image courtesy of Urban Toronto.