SHoP Architects unveils a mixed-use supertall tower in Toronto – The Architect’s Newspaper

Developers Dream Office REIT and Humbold Properties have revealed a SHoP Architects-designed supertall skyscraper that, if approved, will straddle Torontos entertainment and financial districts and soar 79 stories above one of the citys oldest streets. Described in a press release as a true mixed-use tower with 588 residential rental units, over 10,000 square feet of retail, and 660,000 square feet of office space, the projecttopping off at just over 1,000-feet-tallmarks the New York City-based SHoPs first skyscraper project in Toronto. Canadian firm Adamson Associates is serving as executive architect.

Per the developers, SHoP was selected for the project, to be located at 212 King Street West, due to the firms previous successes in melding historic buildings with wholly contemporary structures. As pointed out in the project reveal, SHoP is responsible for the design of two of only three projects in New York City history to incorporate modern high-rises with existing landmarked buildings: The ultra-slender 111 West 57th Street in Manhattan and 9 Dekalb Avenue, an under-construction residential supertall in downtown Brooklyn thats slated to be the tallest in the borough.

As for 212 King Street West, it will celebrate (read: rise directly above) not one but three iconic, low-rise heritage buildings at the site: 212 (the Union Building), 214 (the Canadian General Electric Building), and 220 (the Nicholls Building) King Street West. According to real estate blog Toronto Storeys, Dream Office REIT owns the Union Building while Humbold owns the Canadian Electric Building. Both companies co-own the Nicholls Building.

We are excited to unveil a design that not only honours our citys rich architectural history but injects new energy into the downtown core, said Robert Singer, vice president of 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.

Noting a sensitive, civic-minded approach to skyscraper design, the announcement went on to elaborate on the interplay between old and new at the intersection of King and Simcoe Streets:

When it came to the existing heritage buildings along King Street, the goal was to be respectful and celebratory, skillfully interlocking the residential and commercial floorplates in a way that sparks a dialogue between the historical and contemporary components of the project. Generous setbacks and recessing of the tower are intended to give the buildings at-grade the space needed to maintain and enhance their presence along King Street.

The centerpiece of the vertical megadevelopment will be a so-called civic-scaled atrium that will serve as a year-round public gathering and event space while also doubling as the main office lobby. Express elevators will provide access to rooftop green spaces atop the base-comprising heritage buildings and, below ground, there will also be a direct connection to PATH, Torontos expansive subterranean network of amenity-lined pedestrian corridors that link its downtown office towers with shopping centers, parking garages, and subway stations.

As noted by Gregg Pasquarelli, founding principal of SHoP, the atrium creates a relationship between indoors and outdoors while establishing a visual connection with Roy Thomson Hall, a concert hall that serves as home to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and David Pecaut Square.

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, saidPasquarelli. The soul of the building lies in the intensity of details.

This emphasis on encouraging and expanding civic activity will extend out of the atrium and onto King Street itself thanks to a planned sidewalk-widening effort that will allow for outdoor cafes, greenery, seating, and improved pedestrian circulation.

A virtual meeting in which the public can learn more about the skyline-reshaping development is planned for January 25. And before anything happens, the city, as mentioned, first needs to grant the new 212 King Street West with approval. Its worth noting that Toronto hasnt proven itself to be particularly averse to supertall projects given that there are two superlatively lanky towers, Foster + Partners The One and the Hariri Pontarini Architects-designedSkyTower at Pinnacle One Yonge, currently under construction in the city.

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SHoP Architects unveils a mixed-use supertall tower in Toronto - The Architect's Newspaper