357 King West Condos

357 King Street West, image retrieved from submission to City of Toronto

In 2014, Toronto’s Entertainment District had one more condo on the market than the market could bear, and Great Gulf put its plans for Tux Condos at the southwest corner of King and Blue Jays Way back on the shelf. Three years later, a Site Plan Application has been resubmitted to the City, with a somewhat reworked design by Quadrangle. Great Gulf has dropped the name Tux,  and now proposes to build 357 King Street West with rental apartments in place of condominium units.

Now proposed with two more floors, some other design revisions have been made to the 42-storey tower. Notably, a cutout planned for the 7th storey and above has been moved down to the 3rd storey. Its copper-coloured ceiling appears to have been muted in tone somewhere, and a copper stripe running up the building between the black and white cladding sections has been deleted. Also of note, the twin columns which supported the building above Tux’s cutout have been replaced with paired V-shaped columns.

Architectural plans for the revised submission show that the third floor will house much of the building’s indoor amenities, including a pilates studio and the sheltered outdoor space shown in the image above. A roof terrace amenity will occupy the eastern portion of the 42nd floor, offering views into the heart of Downtown Toronto.

The newest set of planning documents also lists the materials that will be used to clad the tower. At ground level, 357 King West will be finished in a mix of black masonry panels with clear, bird-friendly fritted glazing. Above the third-floor cutout, the building’s east and west halves take on contrasting tones, with the east half bearing a dark aluminum panel finish, and the west half will use a combination of white aluminum panels, spandrel glass, and metal louvers. Multiple tones of aluminum panels will clad the tower’s windowless west wall.

357 King West Condos Highlights:
-Walkscore of 100/100
-World-class public transportation, with a transit score of 100/100
-Surrounded by shopping, dining and entertainment
-Close to schools
-Nearby parks include Clarence Square, Simcoe Park and St. Patrick’s Square