Skyline rulings revert to form
Timing is everything, they say, and in Toronto, it couldn’t be worse.
Just two days ago, civic leaders were chuckling with glee after the province promised to hand over new powers to council. Finally, the mayor and others informed us, we have been recognized for the Big City we really are. But then Toronto East York Community Council assembled yesterday to ponder several development proposals.
Apparently, no one told its members that Toronto would soon be an official metropolis. Reverting instantly to form, the community council rejected a series of projects that would change the skyline, most notably the Sapphire, a 90- storey hotel/ that would be the city’s tallest.
Developer Harry Stinson had expected the worst, and true to form, the council turned him down unanimously.
Certainly, the architecture doesn’t stand as tall as the skyscraper itself. The design is both ostentatious and awkward; it’s the kind of building one associates with Shanghai, Dubai or some such place. But that was never the issue. Council, like the citizens it represents, never got beyond the question of height. And at 342 metres, the Sapphire is definitely tall. By contrast, First Canadian Place, the tallest tower in Toronto since 1975, is 298 metres. Keep in mind, however, that Stinson is hoping to build on the corner of Temperance and Sheppard Sts., in the heart of the downtown core.
If tall buildings don’t belong here, then where?
Community council’s decision, also taken yesterday, to kill the proposed 24- storey tower at the Tip Top Tailor site at least is justified by the fact it’s on the water’s edge.
Councillors expressed concern the Sapphire would cast a shadow on Nathan Phillips Square, our sacred civic space. Who knows, maybe it would. What about the concrete bunkers across the road from city hall, the altogether unfortunate Sheraton Centre and Thomson Building? They’re not as tall as the Sapphire, but they do cast a shadow. They also exert a deadening effect on the city, sucking life from the sidewalks they address with utter indifference. As these slabs make painfully clear, the problem isn’t necessarily height but a whole raft of other factors — how the building meets the street, how it relates to its surroundings, and whether it gives more to the city than it takes. A building can be tall and do all these things well. A building can be short and do all these things poorly.
Perhaps the best way to make sense of the community council’s response is to understand it was behaving in the best NIMBY tradition of Toronto. Nathan Phillips Square is a councillor’s front yard, if not his backyard, and they’d prefer it if shadows could be cast somewhere else.
“ We got thrown out completely,” Stinson said after the meeting. “ I’ll go to the Ontario Municipal Board. We’ll file the appeal as soon as possible. Besides, the planner’s presentation was full of mistakes. The tower would cast shadow on Nathan Phillips Square for roughly three months of the year, and that shadow crosses the square in two hours.”
Also interesting was how much more municipal politicians care about stopping new buildings than in preserving those that already exist. Just last month, it approved the demolition of the important 1960 Bata Shoe Building, with only a single dissenting vote. Next on the city’s hit list will be that famous Don Valley landmark, the 1963 “half-round” building formerly known as Riverdale Hospital. By coincidence, the community council was also brought up to date yesterday on the project, now called Bridgepoint Health Centre. This bizarre property also includes the Don Jail ( new and old), a lawn bowling club and several smaller structures.
Despite objections from local residents and heritage groups, the city seems set to allow the demolition of the half- round to make way for a new hospital. Ironically, with its views north up the valley, the semicircular structure would make a beautiful condo. The good news is the jail will be saved, though some worry that its legacy will leave the neighbours in darkness.