A model for millennial living
Line 5 Condos will offer Uber lanes, lobby coffee, and bikes parking spots
Trying something new in an established, favourite neighbourhood has turned out to be a shared focus for both a millennial homebuyer and a condominium developer.
Line 5 Condos — named for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT due to open in 2021 on Eglinton Ave. — is a new, two-tower residential project just north of the transit line.
“We’ve had our offices in the Yonge and Eglinton neighbourhood for more than 25 years and we have always been looking for the right opportunity there,” says Shane Fenton, chief operations officer for Reserve Properties. The firm has partnered with Westdale Properties on the development.
“It’s so nice to have a project of this size and scale right in our own backyard, and it’s nice to have the opportunity to be part of shaping and moulding how the neighbourhood grows. It’s nice to put our fingerprints on it,” says Fenton.
Those fingerprints include some forward-thinking features and amenities directed at how millennials live in and around their homes. For instance, the 928-unit project, with 33- and 36-storey towers, will have storage areas for food deliveries — both hot and cold. Nearly 900 bicycle parking spots will outnumber the 268 vehicle spots. Peloton and Prama will be offered in the fitness areas.
Fenton says an array of features on offer are deliberate, chosen according to “the fundamental shift in the last couple of years in the way we, especially Generation Z, live their lives.”
The building will also have space for a retail coffee and juice bar on the ground floor that will let residents grab their morning caffeine before they step outdoors and into their day.
“Minutes count today and we allow you to make those minutes what you want them to be,” Fenton says.
Peter-Paul Du Vernet is also happy to see the company in the neighbourhood. The Toronto lawyer raised his family in the area and helped his daughter purchase a condo suite in Rise Condominiums, a Reserve building at Bathurst St. and St. Clair Ave W. Now, Du Vernet is helping his son, who will soon graduate from university, purchase a suite at Line 5 Condos.
“My daughter purchased a pre-construction unit in her favourite area of the city and I’ve encouraged my son to do the same,” he says. “Reserve Properties has the knack of being ahead of the curve on development.
“It’s a long timeline,” Du Vernet says of the 2022 occupancy date, “but you have to look ahead.”
His son John-David, 22, has his name on a two-bedroom unit on the 30th floor of the north tower, with a storage locker, for a price in the $700,000s.
“There are really four reasons I fell in love with Line 5: Its location, transit, the amenities and accommodations to a modern lifestyle,” says John-David. “I grew up in the area and I’m fond of it.
“Line 5 is so close to the subway and the new LRT, so it will be super easy to travel northsouth or east-west. The building itself will have about 32,000 square feet of amenities, which is pretty first-class. I especially love the outdoor pool and outdoor theatre — but there’s a spa and a gym, too,” he says.
Along with the party room and art studio, Line 5 Condos will feature a zen and yoga garden, a steam room and Jacuzzi, and a gym with access to ondemand systems such as Prama and Peloton — about 10,000 square feet of fitness space. As well, an outdoor pool and movie theatre are in the plans.
“The design of the building re- ally accommodates the contemporary lifestyle,” says JohnDavid. “There are dedicated lanes for Uber pickup, which is awesome if you’re going someplace that’s not on the subway line.
“The hot and cold food storage area is also great, because if I’m on my way home from work and want to order out because I’m too exhausted to cook, I don’t have to worry about the food spoiling or getting cold if it gets to my place before I do. That’s a pretty unique aspect — I’ve never seen it done before,” John-David adds.
The development will also house an 8,000-square-foot WiFi-equipped co-working space with plans to turn it into a social club at night.
“Even though a lot of people work from home today, it’s still nice to get out of your condo,” Fenton says “This space can’t be rented privately. It’s a place for residents to interact and build community.”
All of this in a location that Fenton says he’s convinced will soon be “the heart of Toronto.”