New retail podium plan for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

WZMH Architects has taken the vertical concrete ribs which run up between the bay window rises of the building and made them a feature of the base, allowing the building to appear to sprout from the ground. The new embellished ribs celebrate the building’s verticality while allowing wide bands of horizontal street-embracing windows to open the base of the building up to the surroundings. It’s not just a better rendering above than the one below: it’s a better building. This is architecture in the service of public engagement, and in service of history. This plan does not try to hide a tower designed in a style which so many are so slow to embrace: it celebrates it and integrates it into a contemporary and more vibrant Toronto.

Original retail podium plan for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

The original plan, above, updated just the building’s podium by covering the building’s original bones behind new fields of reflective glass: the new plan makes the tower integral to the update by highlighting its old bones and playing them up even more while intermingling a transparent skin. As plastic surgery goes, this is good stuff! Notice as well that the cladding treatment of the new corner units replacing the balconies up the tower is much more sympathetic now too.

So let’s look a little closer at the details, contrasting the new plan with the old. First, how the building will meet Yorkville Avenue:

New retail podium plan, north end, for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

Original retail podium plan, north end, for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

The base of the tower along Avenue Road:

New retail podium plan, centre, for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

The base of the tower along Avenue Road:

Original retail podium plan, centre, for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

And the south portion along Avenue Road, where the podium is:

New retail podium plan, south end, for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

Original retail podium plan, south end, for The New Residences of Yorkville Plaza, by WZMH Architects for Camrost-Felcorp

You will notice in the above rendering of the new plan that the podium ends rather abruptly up top. That is because Camrost-Felcorp and WZMH Architects have another surprise for the future still: it is here where the second phase of the project will be. The size of the second tower and podium are still to be worked out through the City’s planning process, but it is above here where it they will rise. Here’s looking forward to more on this suddenly much more exciting project.

Many more renderings can be found in UrbanToronto’s dataBase page for this project, linked below. You may also join in the discussion of this project through the associated Projects & Construction or Real Estate Forum links below as well.

Yorkville Plaza in Toronto

Yorkville Plaza will retain much of the 31-storey building, with most of the changes occurring on the interior. Former hotel rooms will be converted into a variety of suites, offering residents the choice of a more traditional style, or a thoroughly contemporary interior. Interior design firm The Design Agency have created spaces of understated elegance, with clean lines, inviting colors and a variety of textures.

A classical finished suite designed by the Design Agency

A contemporary suite by the Design Agency

The Brutalist style of architecture is not everybody’s favourite. Often chastised as cold and monolithic, others appreciate its celebration of its own material make-up. Buildings such as the Manulife Centre and Robarts Library characterize the style. Camrost-Felcorp decided to bring back the building’s original architectural firm, WZMH Architects, to re-vitalize the structure. A two-storey glass podium on Avenue Road will replace the imposing driveway currently on site, and will actively engage street-level pedestrians with retail, replacing the existing below-grade retail. Whether you like the style or not, these buildings are reaching the age necessary to become protected heritage structures, making it increasingly difficult to tear them down; it will be interesting to see how WZMH goes about preserving and re-using the building, providing an example of how we may be able to approach future projects involving similar buildings.

New facade for Avenue Road entrance and retail

Rumours have been circulating on the project’s forum about the zoning review submitted on September 30th earlier this year. The review calls for the re-zoning of the hotel to mixed use, but also for approval to construct 2 additional towers of 10 and 39 stories. These towers would include two floors of retail with residential above, plus five levels of below-grade parking. No word yet from Camrost-Felcorp or WZMH Architects, however the map below shows the current site, with the area in blue showing where we think the towers will most likely be placed.

Map of Yorkville Plaza, image from Google Maps

The project is expected to be complete in 2014, and we’re looking forward to hearing more from the developer as to how the two new towers will fit within the project. Check out the dataBase listing below for more renderings, and keep your eyes peeled for more information on the project forum page here.

Consider this model a blank slate. The long white hallways of Suite 1501 at The Avenue are ideal for art enthusiasts to imagine their own collections in the space, while the layout was designed as the perfect party destination. Soft greys and creams and a herringbone floor look refined in the 3,150-square-foot suite, which features formal and informal spaces. “The way we introduce formality these days is more about the end-user and how they’ll be entertaining and socializing,” says designer Matt Davis, senior partner with The Design Agency. And so long hallways lead guests straight to the living and dining rooms; the kitchen is closed off, making it perfect for kitchen caterers, and the rest of the suite is kept separate so that guests don’t enter private rooms. It’s elegant and sophisticated, Mr. Davis says. Remaining suites at Camrost-Felcorp’s The Avenue range in size from 1,855 to 3,750 sq. ft. and in price from $850,000 to $4.7-million. The sales office is located at 155 St. Clair Ave. W. in Toronto and is open by appointment. For more information, call 416-486-6645 or visit theavenue.ca.

1. Though similar, the sofas don’t match. Nailhead detailing adds sparkle to one, while giving it traditional flair. The other features a European-contemporary style, with an open base to keep the suite feeling airy. “The styles pull apart a bit so it doesn’t feel like it’s all bought from the same store,” Mr. Davis says.

2. The rug’s design mimics the nailhead detailing on the sofa, while the white and grey-brown tones pick up on the white walls and baseboards, as well as some of the tones in the walnut floors. “The area rug has a nice subtle pattern,” Mr. Davis says.

3. Given that the floor and rug add pattern and punch, the designer didn’t want the coffee table to call attention. It features a delicate bevelled-edge glass top on an acrylic base. “Even though it’s a gorgeous table, it floats in the space and almost disappears,” the designer says.

4. “A great character piece,” is how Mr. Davis describes this chandelier, with its glass leaf design. It’s the first thing you see when you walk into the master bedroom, so it’s meant to make an impression. “It really fits nicely within the composition,” the designer says.

5. The crème and royal blue patterned fabric of the headboard is repeated in the bed skirt, drapes and bench bolsters. “It’s got subtle tones and a really sophisticated and elegant pattern,” Mr. Davis says.

6. A spiffy white lacquer bench sports a seat cushion to complement the bedroom’s fabrics and is also functional. “A bench at the end of the bed is always handy,” says Mr. Davis. “You can sit down and put on your socks.”

A Bay Street crowd of 350+ looked mighty dapper October 25, in the exquisite mid-century styled lobby of the former Imperial Oil Headquarters at 111 St. Clair West, mingling with classic cocktails and 60’s themed food in hand for Macquarie Private Wealth’s annual fundraising event. I was fortunate enough be in attendance at the event and got to see first hand what the last party at Imperial Plaza would look like!

Standing as a testament to Toronto’s ‘Mad Men’ era, the former Imperial Oil building is one of the few iconic structures in the city designed in classic international style modernism, a style of architecture that was at its height in the late 1950s. Many have come to know the building’s stature for its dramatic two-storey polished marble lobby, which houses the late York Wilson’s “Story of Oil” the most ambitious oil mural ever envisioned in Canada.

Rarely used as an event space, guests of Macquarie Private Wealth had the rare opportunity to see the building in its mid-century glory for the last time before doors close. With a transformation already underway by developer Camrost-Felcorp, the iconic address of 111 St. Clair West will be reintroduced to a new generation as the prestigious new residences of Imperial Plaza.

This historic venue that represents more than 50 years of commerce in Toronto was a perfect backdrop for the sold out crowd of financial industry guests, who were brought back to the glorious ‘Mad Men’ era with a vintage-themed event. Cigarette girls and white-gloved waiters served a 60′s inspired menu that included Lobster Newburg, Beef Wellington, Oysters Rockefeller and Swedish Meatballs. While sipping on classic vodka martinis made with Absolut Elyx, there was also an opportunity to indulge in a quintessential fondue station featuring a variety of local cheeses.

Dave LeBlanc (Globe and Mail columnist) and Shauntelle LeBlanc (designer, Ethel Design)

Serving 60′s themed food

Cigarette Girl

Cigarette Girl

The event featured a memorable appearance by influential hip-hop artist Maestro Fresh Wes, who shared his own life story that tied into the evening’s fundraising efforts. He also surprised the audience with reciting a few lines from his musical hit “ Stick to your Vision.”

CEO of Macquarie Private Wealth Canada,Earl Evans with speaker Wes Williams, Cathy Denyer, President of Big Brothers Big Sisters Toronto, Craig Stovel, Portfolio Manager with Macquarie Private Wealth and Will Mactaggart, Investment Advisor with Macquarie Private Wealth

Guest speaker, Maestro Fresh Wes

Through tickets, private donations, and a silent auction, the event raised close to $150,000. As part of Macquarie’s longstanding commitment to community-building efforts, all proceeds will be going to Big Brothers Big Sisters Toronto and The Children’s Foundation of Guelph Wellington. Check out more photos of from the event below:

Co-Chairs: Craig Stovel, Portfolio Manager with Macquarie Private Wealth in Toronto and Will Mactaggart, Investment Adviser

Earl Evans, CEO and Head of Macquarie Private Wealth Canada

Event Co-Chair Will Mactaggart, Investment Advisor with Macquarie Private Wealth in Guelph

An Ode to Toronto’s ‘Man Men’ Era at Macquarie’s Cocktails for a Cause

Globe and Mail Architourist Dave Leblanc

A Bay Street crowd of 350+ looked mighty dapper October 25, in the exquisite mid-century styled lobby of the former Imperial Oil Headquarters at 111 St. Clair West, mingling with classic cocktails and 60’s themed food in hand for Macquarie Private Wealth’s annual fundraising event.

Standing as a testament to Toronto’s ‘Mad Men’ era, the former Imperial Oil building is one of the few iconic structures in the city designed in classic international style modernism, a style of architecture that was at its height in the late 1950s. Many have come to know the building’s stature for its dramatic two-storey polished marble lobby, which houses the late York Wilson’s “Story of Oil” the most ambitious oil mural ever envisioned in Canada.

This historic venue that represents more than 50 years of commerce in Toronto was a perfect backdrop for the sold out crowd of financial industry guests, who were brought back to the glorious ‘Mad Men’ era with a vintage-themed event. Cigarette girls and white-gloved waiters served a 60′s inspired menu that included Lobster Newburg, Beef Wellington, Oysters Rockefeller and Swedish Meatballs. While sipping on classic vodka martinis made with Absolut Elyx, there was also an opportunity to indulge in a quintessential fondue station featuring a variety of local cheeses.

And, of course, Sharp.

William MacTaggart, investment adviser at Macquarie Private Wealth, thanked guests.

Macquarie Private Wealth hosted a Mad Men-inspired cocktail party for 400 guests on Tuesday, with proceeds going toward Big Brothers and Big Sisters Toronto and the Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington. Kim Graham, principal at Kim Graham and Associates, produced the event and incorporated the 1960′s into every aspect, from the Imperial Plaza venue to the menu.

“The Mad Men theme developed after seeing the space,” said William MacTaggart, an investment adviser at Macquerie, who toured the space with Graham. The Rockefeller family commissioned Imperial Plaza in 1957, and its marble walls, 35-foot ceilings, and gold-leaf tiles are a statement of the period.

Ingrid von Cube, creative director at Appetizingly Yours, referred to Mad Men to refresh her memory and design the 60′s-inspired menu. Bow-tied servers passed Waldorf salad, steak tartar, and beef Wellington, and cigarette girls passed Swedish meatballs and sushi, rolled to look like cigars. Guests helped themselves to the cheese fondue station, and staff from Servers and Shakers mixed Absolut Elyx martinis at the bar.

MacTaggart hoped the event would raise $150,000 for Big Brothers and Big Sisters Toronto and the Children’s Foundation. “You have to do good in the community where you live and work,” MacTaggart said. As of press time, the total was still being calculated.

Last Tuesday night, nearly 400 people attended a grand benefit held by Macquarie Private Wealth at the former Imperial Oil Building at 111 St. Clair Street West. The structure was once the home of Canada’s largest oil company and is one of Toronto’s few iconic structures designed in classic international style modernism. The place was transformed as, “An Ode to Toronto’s ‘Man Men’ Era” for a night of celebrations before the building’s full conversion into “Imperial Plaza” condominiums.

The 21-storey building was once the largest all-welded steel frame building in the world, with the observation deck sitting at almost 800 feet above sea level, still one of the highest heights in Toronto. However, its most famous aspect remains the dramatic two-storey marble lobby which features the mural, “The Story of Oil” by the late York Wilson.
Guests mingled in the lobby with classic vodka martinis made with Absolut Elyx served by white-gloved waiters. The 60′s inspired menu included lobster Newburg, beef Wellington, oysters Rockefeller, Swedish meatballs and a fondue station with a variety of local cheeses.

The highlight of the night was the appearance of rapper, Maestro Fresh Wes, who shared his life story with the crowd as well as a few lines from his motivational song “Stick to Your Vision”,which tied into the evenings fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters Toronto and The Children’s Foundation of Guelph Wellington. Through ticket sales, private donations, and a silent auction, the event raised close to $150,000 for the cause.

Event Coordinators: Will Mactaggart, Macquarie Private Wealth (left of centre) with Kim Graham & Associates Public Relations (L-R: Ali Lawee, Kim Graham, Riva Finkelstein, Ali Maldoff)

CEO of Macquarie Private Wealth Canada,Earl Evans with speaker Wes Williams, Cathy Denyer, President of Big Brothers Big Sisters Toronto, Craig Stovel, Portfolio Manager with Macquarie Private Wealth and Will Mactaggart, Investment Advisor with Macquarie Private Wealth

Featured speaker Wes “Maestro” Williams and event guest

Globe and Mail Architourist Dave LeBlanc

What’s old is new again at Imperial Plaza in Toronto. The building is being celebrated for showcasing the glitz and glamour of an era long ago.

When you talk to David Feldman, president and CEO of CamrostFelcorp, about the former Four Seasons hotel (soon to be the Yorkville Plaza residences), the word “iconic” comes up a lot. As in: it’s “an iconic building” in “an iconic location” with an “iconic history.”

The building has dominated the corner of Avenue Road and Yorkville Avenue since the early ’70s, and in that time has housed a long list of highprofile guests, from Gwyneth Paltrow and the Rolling Stones to Oprah Winfrey and Nelson Mandela.

“From the beginning it’s been a favourite setting for A-list glitter parties and starstudded events,” Mr. Feldman says. But the Four Seasons’ symbolic celebrity status is not the reason he decided to take on the conversion of the hotel into a luxury condominium – Mr. Feldman has a personal connection to the building, even having hosted his own family gatherings there.

“I remember coming from London when I was just starting my career and I admired the design – in my eyes it has always been a glamorous building,” he says. “That initial connection brought me back years later and is what gave me the inspiration to take this venture on.”

Instead of tearing the building down and starting from scratch, Mr. Feldman was determined to work with the existing structure. To that end, he enlisted the services of the firm behind the original design, WZMH Architects in Toronto. “We’re going to take the bare bones of the building and improve and modernize it into something that will be a future landmark for Yorkville,” Mr. Feldman says.

The interior will be completely refurbished to feature pied-à-terre, one-and twobedroom suites beginning in the mid-$300,000s (an accessible price, Mr. Feldman points out, given the multi-milliondollar suites native to the Yorkville neighbourhood). But the building’s exterior, most notably its Brutalist-style architecture, will remain intact.

“Our vision is first and foremost to ensure that the overall character and identity of the building is preserved,” lead architect Brian Andrew says. “The Four Seasons is very much a product of its time – a late mid-century modern style with strongly articulated forms executed in [a rough finish] béton brut concrete. It has a strong, weighty feel with clearly defined windows and columns, and a very structured composition of podium, tower and rooftop – all of this will remain.”

What will change is the addition of a glass podium overlay, featuring two storeys of opaque and transparent enamelled glass designed to anchor the building and define a new retail space at ground level. “We wanted to open up the base of the building by putting in retail stores and restaurants, to make it livelier and to change the ambiance of the corner,” Mr. Feldman says.

“The glass podium will respect what is already there, while adding a touch of today,” Mr. Andrew explains.

The Four Seasons’ history and high-end location also informed the design of its refurbished interior. “We took a lot of the idea for the design from the character of the building that people are drawn to, incorporating both classic, historic looks and a luxurious, contemporary feel,” says Matthew Davis of the Design Agency.

Classically styled suites will feature a “nostalgic,” lighter colour palette with intricate textures, detailed cabinetry and moulding, he says. Suites finished in a more contemporary style feature a darker, grey-washed palette, clean lines and flat-panel veneer.

The building’s bay windows, unique in today’s condo market, set up a rhythm for how the suites were configured, says Mr. Davis, who custom designed built-in benches to showcase the windows.

“The windows not only create a unique feel in the interior of the suites, but are such an important part of the exterior image of the building, creating strong vertical articulated shafts of glazing that contrast with the panels of concrete,” Mr. Andrew says. “They really are the point of contact between the interior and the exterior.”

The layout of many suites includes gallery walls for showcasing art and floor-toceiling glass with sliding doors to divide rooms or open up the space, creating a more modern aesthetic, Mr. Davis says.

“A lot of love and pain went into the floor plan alone,” he says, adding that emails between designer and developer often flew back and forth into the wee hours. “We’d be constantly adjusting and moving walls ever so slightly to carve out the perfect, most livable space.”

The new Yorkville Plaza residences are slated for occupancy in 2014. “We’re going to transform this legendary hotel tower into a world class experience with a residential address,” Mr. Feldman says. “It’s such an iconic building, it would have been a shame to tear it down.”

From left to right, the Designer Guys, Matt Davis and Anwar Mukhayesh along with President/CEO of Camrost-Felcorp David Feldman and Chief architect of WZMH Architects Brian Andrew in front of the Four Seasons Yorkville tower, which will be converted into condominiums in Toronto, Ont., The Globe and Mail

Last summer, it was the conversion of the very ‘Mad Men’ 1950s Imperial Oil building at St. Clair Avenue West and Avenue Road into condominiums; this summer, it’s the Brutalist, late-1960s Four Seasons building at the corner of Yorkville Avenue and Avenue Road: is David Feldman on a one-man mission to save Toronto’s stock of mid-century modernism?

Perhaps not, but it’s worth noting that in 2007 Menkes Development Ltd. filed an application to demolish the building and replace it with two tall towers. One, at more than 50 storeys, would have popped up like a pimple on the Queen’s Park roofline when viewed from College Street; not surprisingly, this caused an outcry in the heritage community and a long discussion on the protection of view-corridors.

“I didn’t like the idea of tearing it down,” says Mr. Feldman, adding that Yorkvillers will now enjoy “two years less disruption.” Calling the building an “iconic structure,” his company, Camrost-Felcorp, firmed up the deal to purchase it earlier this year, and, if all goes according to plan, new owners will call the former hotel home sometime in 2014.

In fact, Mr. Feldman is so convinced this building is an icon – the editors of the 2007 book Concrete Toronto affectionately call it “a mountain” – he’s hired the architecture firm originally responsible for its creation in 1969, WZMH Architects, to oversee its 21st-century transformation. “When David called, it was an amazing opportunity for us to be involved in the project,” says Brain Andrew, a 30-year veteran at WZMH and one of the firm’s principals. “We’ve been involved in the area in a certain sense for 40 years: we did Hazelton Lanes, our offices used to be at 99 Yorkville … and we’ve seen a lot of the transformation and coming of age of Yorkville.”

This building, it could be argued, was the most visible face of that cultural shift from hippie hangout to tony shopping destination and film festival hotspot when it opened for business in 1971, but it didn’t start life as a Four Seasons.

Built originally as a Hyatt Regency, Four Seasons founder Isadore Sharp didn’t acquire the property until 1978: “To be able to have a hotel [in Yorkville] was important to us, so we were in the process at the same time of looking for a site to build a hotel and this one came to our attention,” he says. And, despite the emergence of his company into a global brand by the late-1970s, Mr. Sharp remembers hotel co-owners Ken Field and Dick Shiff (of Bramalea Ltd) had to convince the big boss, Jay Pritzker – creator of the Pritzker Architecture Prize – to let the Four Seasons rebrand it.

“Once we bought it we made major changes to try and get it as close to a Four Seasons as we could,” remembers Mr. Sharp. One major alteration was to increase room size, so the count went from 620 down to 338; his wife, Rosalie, handled the interior redesign of the rooms in addition to the ballroom.

Of course, the room count will change yet again to a number somewhere halfway between those two figures after it’s been determined how many two-bedroom units will be ordered over the smaller one-bedrooms and pieds-à-terre, notes David Feldman. What is certain is that prices will start in the pocketbook-friendly mid-$300,000s, like at Imperial Plaza, “which is incredible for Yorkville,” he offers.

Retail at the building’s base will change also, but Mr. Feldman hints it will be welcome, as he’s already been “approached by a number of world-class retail institutions” and “restaurants from New York.” Former Art Gallery of Ontario curator David Moos is working on the addition of a sculpture park for the Avenue Road side of the base.

So, with that much change, should those who enjoy the building’s muscular Brutalist lines be concerned? While early renderings by WZMH show much larger retail openings, the distinctive flared columns will remain visible in all their groovy bell-bottomed glory. And despite much of the second floor’s chunky ‘broken-rib’ concrete being covered by an “overlay” of large enameled glass screens, it will most likely be possible to glimpse it underneath, since the screens will feature a mixture of opaque and transparent sections with creative backlighting. This will give these original elements the look of being in “a vitrine” explains WZMH’s Mr. Andrew: “The trick is getting the balance right so you don’t lose the image and the presence of the building.” To that end, the tower itself will remain relatively untouched, with only the corner balconies being glassed-in to increase floor space inside the units.

While many consider Brutalism rather, well, brutal as compared to the much sleeker Mad Men style of Modernism, Isadore Sharp calls his former hotel “a very handsome building” and all indicators suggest that Mr. Feldman, Mr. Andrew and the Design Agency’s Matt Davis and Anwar Mekhayech (hired to handle the interior revamp) are of a similar mindset.

This is good news for those of us who appreciate Yorkville’s recent architectural past. The only thing that’s off the mark, in my humble opinion, is the decision to name the suites “Manhattan,” “Paris,” “Milan,” “London” and the like. While obviously meant to indicate the sorts of places from which potential buyers might hail, I’d argue that naming suites after the area’s legendary 1960s coffee houses – the Riverboat, the Penny Farthing, the Purple Onion, Chez Monique and the Mynah Bird to name but a few – would honour the neighbourhood’s cultural past as well.