Medallion Corp's 561 Sherbourne project, a 43-storey Page + Steele/IBI Group Architects-designed purpose-built rental tower, is helping to modernize Toronto's St. James Town community through improvements to the local public realm. With the tower now topped out and rapidly closing in on completion, much of the activity on site has shifted towards the creation of new spaces down at street level, as well as work on restoring the complex's three existing rental towers.
561 Sherbourne on the St. James Town skyline, image by Forum contributor 111
The removal of the construction hoist from the north face of the tower will be among the last steps in finishing up its exterior. (The hoist can be made out on the left side of the building in the evening shot above.) To complement the new tower, the three older rental towers in the complex will be undergoing exterior restoration work, including painting of the bare concrete. A recent photo from the site shows different tones being tested on the complex's north tower.
Paint being tested on the complex's north tower, image by Forum contributor 111
The complex's frontages along Sherbourne Street to the west and Bleecker Street to the east are being fully reimagined. The new rental tower—which rises from the former footprint of a No Frills grocery store—will have a replacement grocery store and a residential entrance included along its Sherbourne frontage. Exterior finishes for this frontage are already largely in place, and include tan brick and stone materials.
Exterior finishes at the base of 561 Sherbourne, image by Forum contributor 111
On the east side of the complex, the former footprint of an elevated concrete structure that bridged the complex over Earl Street and which occupied the bulk of the site's Bleecker Street frontage, is being replaced with new townhomes, bringing a much friendlier face to Bleecker.
Townhomes taking shape on Bleecker Street, image by Forum contributor stjames2queenwest
Further to the south, an entire block of Bleecker Street from Wellesley to Earl Street/St. James Avenue was recently fenced off to allow the start of construction on an expansion of the Wellesley Community Centre. This expansion will replace the lawn with an indoor pool.
Site of Wellesley Community Centre fenced off for the start of construction, image by Forum contributor stjames2queenwest
You can check out our database file for 561 Sherbourne for updated renderings and project facts. Let us know what you think about this project by leaving a comment in the space provided at the bottom of this page, or join in on the conversation in our associated Forum thread.