Toronto Condo and Real Estate Blog

From New Dream Homes and Condos Magazine

Soon, Menkes Developments and Lifetime Urban Development Group will introduce Lumiere Condominiums on Bay, a dazzling new lifestyle option in downtown Toronto.

Brilliantly situated on Bay Street across from College Park, Lumiere Condominiums will offer residents convenient access to the College subway station and a 24-hour Dominium supermarket. Suite owners will be able to walk to Ryerson University, the University of Toronto, Queen’s Park, and many of the city’s major hospitals, opening the door to a quick pedestrian commute for those who work at these facilities.

A brisk jaunt south on Bay and residents can be at Nathan Phillips Square for a special event or ice skating or at the Eaton Centre for fabulous shopping. Then they can make their way back up on Yonge, accessing the eclectic wares along the well-known stretch.

Walking a few blocks north of Lumiere Condominiums, residents can access the coveted high-end shops and boutiques in Bloor/Yorkville. And, of course, with a convenient streetcar or subway ride, they can reach Kensington Market, Chinatown, Old Cabbagetown, and a multitude of other Toronto landmarks.

Lumiere Condominiums’s vivid glass-clad exterior will soar to 30 storeys and will encompass 330 suites with ultra-modern layouts. The two-storey lobby’s art deco surroundings will greet residents and guests in glamorous style, and will include 24-hour concierge service.

Among the building amenities will be an indoor pool with cabanas, an outdoor patio and sundeck, a multi-purpose event room complete with catering kitchen, a games and entertainment room, a screening room, and two luxurious guest suites. Fitness enthusiasts will appreciate Lumiere Condominiums’s state-of-the-art exercise facility with men’s and women’s change rooms, showers, and saunas, plus a fully equipped gym with separate cardio and weight areas, and a yoga/meditation room. For pure relaxation and spectacular entertaining, the building will include a landscaped rooftop patio with barbecues, seating, and a sundeck.

The Lumiere Condominium suites themselves will surround owners in impressive features and finishes, such as nine-foot ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows, engineered wood flooring in the foyer, living/dining room, kitchen, and den, 40-ounce broadloom in the bedrooms, porcelain tile flooring in the bathrooms, and a custom-designed bathroom vanity by munge//leung: design associates, including a marble vanity top and semi-recessed sink.

Fabulous kitchens will feature custom-designed kitchen cabinetry by munge//leung: design associates, a granite countertop with ceramic or porcelain tile backsplash, plus seven brand-name appliances. These include a stacked washer and dryer and five European kitchen appliances (built-in cooktop, wall oven, microwave, fridge, and dishwasher). The fridge and dishwasher will have striking custom wood panel fronts that match the kitchen cabinetry.

Lumiere Condominiums will truly offer enlightened living on Bay. One-bedroom, one-bedroom-plus-den, two-bedroom, and two-bedroom-plus-den suites start from $189,990.

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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information

By Amy West - New Dream Homes and Condos Magazine

This quaint Toronto neighbourhood, popular with tourists and residents alike, is home to an academic crowd, outdoor leisure activities, trendy antique stores, and restaurants.

The Beaches was first settled by the Ashbridge family, who came to Canada from Philadelphia in 1793. Ashbridge’s Bay Park is named after these pioneers. The Ashbridges and a handful of other families farmed this district until the latter part of the 1800s, when many properties were subdivided. At that time, large parcels of land were set aside for local parks.

By the 1920s, the City of Toronto was expanding eastward and the Beaches was subdivided for year-round residential development. Woodbine, Kew Gardens, Scarboro, Balmy Beach, and Victoria Park collectively became Toronto’s playgrounds by the lake. These amusement parks also attracted summer cottagers to the area.

The Beaches looks and feels more like a lakeside resort town than a city neighbourhood. Its most famous landmark is the boardwalk, which is skirted by the Martin Goodman Trail, spanning the city’s waterfront all the way to the Humber River. In the summer, thousands of locals and tourists flock here to stroll along the boardwalk, exercise along the trail, relax by the water, or shop and dine at the colourful stores and restaurants along Queen Street East.

The social centre of the Beaches is Kew Gardens, which hosts annual events including a Christmas tree and menorah lighting festival, a jazz festival, and an arts and crafts show. Kew Gardens also has one of Toronto’s most active tennis programs, with 10 floodlit courts. This park also has a baseball diamond, an ice rink, a children’s playground, a wading pool, and a concert bandstand.

Ashbridge’s Bay Park is a great spot for family picnics and windsurfing. It’s also a popular spot for beach volleyball. Glen Stewart Park off Queen Street has a picturesque ravine and nature trail. Donald Summerville Pool at the foot of Woodbine Avenue overlooks the lake and includes an Olympic-sized pool, a diving pool, and a children’s pool.

Queen Street East is the most commercial of the Beaches shopping districts. Many of its stores and restaurants have a beach motif that caters to the tourist trade. The shops on Kingston Road also have a beach flavour; however, they attract a more local client base than the stores on Queen.

The Beaches is also home to the greatest variety of architectural housing styles of any Toronto neighbourhood. The tree-lined streets that wind their way down to the lake accentuate the charm of these homes. Many of the original frame cottages built in the latter half of the 1800s and the early 1900s have been modernized and are still standing. However, the majority of homes were built during the 1920s and ’30s.

The former Greenwood racetrack site, located at the foot of Woodbine Avenue, is now the site of a large new home development known as The Beach. This large collection of heritage-inspired custom-built homes will include detached, semi-detached, and townhomes. Also included in this mix will be a handful of low-rise condominium apartment buildings.

Bus or streetcars routes run along Queen Street, Kingston Road, Gerrard Street, Victoria Park Avenue, Main Street, and Woodbine Avenue. All surface routes connect to Toronto’s rapid transit lines and subway stations. Motorists have the convenience of the Don Valley Expressway, the Gardiner Expressway, and Lake Shore Boulevard.

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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information

From New Dream Homes and Condos Magazine

This exclusive enclave collection of 74 freehold city townhomes in Etobicoke beckons with regal appeal. Located at the southeast corner of The Queensway and Islington Avenue, Queenston Gates is Regal Crest Homes’ coveted community that offers lavishness in a convenient setting just outside the city limits.

The townhouses are now over 70% sold and well under construction, with first occupancies slated for November 2006. Now is a great time to buy, with the GST reduction affording you more luxury for your dollar.

Residents of Queenston Gates will enjoy living just minutes from downtown Toronto, where fine dining, live theatre, and the city’s many rich cultural venues await. Those who choose to live here will find it easy to access the Gardiner Expressway, the QEW, Highway 427, the subway, and other convenient public transportation routes.

With a park and community centre just down the road and shopping and services all around, owners at Queenston Gates will enjoy the outdoors and keep active close to home. This popular location is only a few blocks from Lake Ontario, Colonel Samuel Smith Park, Sherway Gardens, and the Humber College lakeshore campus.

These townhomes showcase both traditional and modern architectural styling with attractive brick and stucco detailing. Interiors will surround owners with sumptuous standards that include an oak staircase, imported ceramics, lavish ensuites, and upgraded kitchens. Plus, each townhome is crafted with Regal Crest’s renowned construction quality.

Freehold townhomes range from 1,762 to 2,286 square feet and start from $361,990. For a limited time, receive $15,000 of free upgrades from Regal Crest’s décor centre.

For more than 40 years, Regal Crest, “The Quality Builder,” has been meeting and exceeding homeowners’ needs by focusing on design excellence and integrity.

Isn’t it time you treated yourself like royalty?

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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information