The Canary District is a planned neighbourhood in Toronto's West Don Lands mixed-use development.[1] The area was formerky industrial land, cut off from the city by an elevated roadway and two rail corridors, sitting in a floodplain. Six initial buildings initially served as the 2015 Pan American Games Athletes' Village for the 2015 Pan American Games.[2] Those buildings were then finished and converted to private residences. More buildings have since been constructed for private residences, with Front Street lined with stores, businesses and restaurants.
For decades an iconic restaurant, the Canary, was located in the Cherry Street Hotel, a heritage building on the southeast corner of Cherry and Front streets, the gateway to the new district.[3] The restaurant mounted a large neon Canary, and developers chose to name the new development after the iconic restaurant.
Description edit
Canary District is bounded on the west by Cherry Street and on the east by the Don River; on the north by Eastern Avenue and on the south by the railroad tracks. The natural focal point of the area is Corktown Common Park.
There are no separate dwellings in the area; all the residences are either condominiums or rental housing. There more than a dozen building developments — most now complete but several are still under construction or in the pre-construction phase.[4] Once all the planned developments are complete there will be more than 6,000 apartments in the district, making for a population of more than 10,000. The area also includes the Cooper Koo YMCA,[5] a student residence owned by George Brown College,[6] and an indigenous health hub run by Anishnawbe Health Toronto.[7]
Construction edit
The project is developed by a joint venture, Dundee Kilmer Developments, formed by Toronto-based real estate company Dream and Kilmer Van Norstrand Co. Construction companies Ledcor Group of Companies and EllisDon have completed the construction on the project. All buildings in the district are built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold standards.[8]
The first residential buildings ready for occupancy at the western end of the district served as the Athlete's Village.[9][10] The apartments that housed the athletes were not fully finished. The apartments' wood flooring was installed after the games were over, so the athletes gear wouldn't damage the floors' finish. Since the athletes dined in central cafeterias the apartments' kitchens was used as an additional bedroom, with the kitchen fittings installed when the games were over. A total of 787 units were completed in time for the Games. Conversion from athlete's housing was completed in April 2016 and the first permanent residents will move into the buildings in May 2016.[11]
In conjunction with the residential development, Corktown Common park was built as a barrier to flooding from the Don River, which forms the eastern boundary of the area. The Distillery Loop and Cherry Street branch was added to the existing 504 King streetcar line. Several heritage buildings were preserved, including the original Canary Restaurant building (a former 1850s school), the CN Police building, and the Dominion Foundry Site were preserved.
In 2020-21 the Government of Ontario issued a Minister's Zoning Order (MZO) for the Dominion Foundry Site and attempted to demolish the heritage buildings on it in preparation for sale to Aspen Ridge, a prominent development company owned by the de Gasperis family. [12] [13][14] The public protested the demolition and successfully stopped the plan.[15] The site was purchased by Aspen Ridge in March 2022 and a development plan preserving the remaining heritage buildings is going forward.[16][17]
References edit
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Christopher Hume (October 2, 2014). "Canary District planning lets derelict area soar: Hume". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
The main east/west axis of the Canary District, which extends from the Don River to Cherry St. south of Eastern Ave., is Front St. It now runs east to the newly configured Bayview.
- ^ Mitanis, Marc. "The Finishing Touches: Touring the Canary District". Urban Toronto. Urban Toronto. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^
Amy Dempsey (May 30, 2012). "Is Toronto's newest neighbourhood named after a yellow bird?". Toronto Star. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
Some might think so. But others will recognize the name as a throwback to the legendary diner that for decades occupied the corner of Front and Cherry Sts. The Canary Restaurant — which served up cheap and greasy grub to truckers and warehousemen, cops and junkies — set up shop in the old brick building in 1965, when the area was an industrial hub.
- ^ "Urban Toronto". Urban Toronto. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ "Cooper Koo Family YMCA". YMCA Greater Toronto. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ "The George Student Residence". George Brown College. January 20, 2020. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ "Anishnawbe Health Toronto". Anishnawbe Health Toronto. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ Ledcor, Group of Companies. "Canary District". Ledcor.com. Ledcor Group of Companies. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
- ^
"Canary District promotion makes it easier for new buyers to land a nest". National Post. April 15, 2013. Archived from the original on April 25, 2013. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
The waterfront site will host the athletes of the Pan Parapan American Games in 2015, before becoming a master-planned residential community, designed with sustainability and innovation in mind.
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Dakshana Bascaramurty (February 6, 2015). "The Canary District: Here comes Toronto's instant neighbourhood". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on February 7, 2015. Retrieved February 22, 2015.
From the outside it appeared a polished complex of two mid-rise towers – but the interiors looked more slapdash, a dormitory of kitchenless suites and tiny bedrooms that will soon house bunkbeds.
- ^ "The next phase of the West Don Lands is coming to life!". Waterfront Toronto. April 7, 2016. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
- ^ "Ontario Regulation 595/20: ZONING ORDER - CITY OF TORONTO under Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13". Government of Ontario. October 22, 2020. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020.
- ^ Infrastructure Ontario (October 2020). 153-185 Eastern Avenue – Demolition of Four Structures (PDF). Heritage Impact Assessment. p. 6.
- ^ "Ford government selling Dominion Foundries land, but isn't revealing buyer". CBC. February 22, 2021. Archived from the original on February 22, 2021.
- ^ "Agreement reached on Dominion Foundry after demolition halted". The Toronto Star. August 21, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ "What's going on with Toronto foundry property 2 years after demolition crews moved in?". Toronto City News. January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
- ^ "West Don Lands: Blocks 17 & 26". Urban Toronto. Urban Toronto. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
External links edit