Tag Archives: Roncesvalles Village
Contemporary condo pays tribute to the past
383 Sorauren offers modern interpretation of industrial chic
Ryan Starr – Toronto Star
For Bill Gairdner, the launch of 383 Sorauren represents a maiden voyage of sorts, the first condo he’s developed since striking out on his own just over a year ago.
383 Sorauren, a 10-storey mid-block masonry building designed by Peter Clewes of architectsAlliance, is meant to be a modern interpretation of the old warehouses that dot Roncesvalles Village. (Next door to 383 Sorauren is Robert Watson Lofts, a turn-of-the-19th-century factory that was converted into condos several years back, with much of the original gritty character kept intact.)
383 Sorauren will have 144 units that range from 470-square-foot studios to 1,500-square-foot three-bedroom-plus-den penthouses. There also will be four, two-storey, two-bedroom townhouses located along Sorauren Ave.
Prices range from $250,000 to $899,000. Occupancy is scheduled for 2016.
The project, which went on sale this week, had over 700 registrations as of late March. Gairdner — who left Freed Developments at the end of 2011 to launch his own firm — sees that as a significant vote of confidence for his inaugural condo effort. (His partner on the project is Martin Niro of Centrestone Urban Developments.)
“It’s the first boutique launch of the season, so a lot of people are keeping an eye on it,” Gairdner says as he strolls through the half-finished 383 Sorauren presentation centre a few weeks before the project’s official opening.
“It’s a totally different market (compared with previous springs),” he acknowledges. “But if anything the market has been speaking loud and clear that this is the kind of product it’s still interested in.”
“We designed this building to attract end users. It might have a slower absorption schedule, but I’m fine with that.”
True Neighbourhood
Residents at 383 Sorauren will have plenty of transit options, including the Dundas and College Street streetcars, and a GO train connection at Bloor and Dundas. (Unfortunately the condo has a railway corridor running behind it, but so do Rosedale mansions, Gairdner points out.)
The building is a five-minute stroll from a revitalized Roncesvalles Avenue, which offers a parade of hip restaurants, bars, coffee shops and galleries. “I feel like it’s the first neighbourhood when you head west from downtown that feels like a neighbourhood but still has the urban flair and feel for people who don’t necessarily want the Kingsway or High Park,” Gairdner says.
383 Sorauren’s suites, designed by Johnson Chou, will have terraces or balconies and nine-foot ceilings, with 10-foot ceilings in the two-storey penthouse suites.
The building will have a fitness centre and a terrace with an outdoor lounge, barbecues and a dining area that backs onto Sorauren Park, located just south of the property (where there’s a farmers’ market every Monday evening.)
The project’s masonry warehouse look is a tribute to the area’s industrial past. “We didn’t want to put up some fancy glass box in the middle of this neighbourhood,” Gairdner says. “That would be really out of context.”
At the same time, he stresses, 383 Sorauren isn’t going to mimic the older architecture either. “We want to tip our hat to that kind of structure because it’s beautiful,” he says, referring to the Robert Watson project next door. “But we still want to do a building that’s modern and cool that speaks to our generation and time.”
Finding Freed
Gairdner got his break in the development business from Peter Freed, King West’s condo king.
Fresh out of university and looking for a job in the industry, Gairdner introduced himself to Freed back in 2004, in the elevator of the condo where they both lived (Freed’s 66 Portland). “I said, ‘I bought into your condo, I’ve always wanted to get involved in the business, and I’d really appreciate the chance to chat with you,’ ” Gairdner recalls.
Freed gave him his email address, and Gairdner, now 30, says he “chased him down for about six months before he finally agreed to give me a job.”
Gairdner started off doing anything that fell off Freed’s desk, and before long had gotten a crash course in all aspects of the condo biz. “It was such a small organization that I was doing things well beyond my years,” says Gairdner, who eventually became Freed’s vice president of development. “I got the best education going because it was hands-on and Peter was doing a lot of really exciting things.”
In 2011, Gairdner decided to go solo. His mission: to develop his own brand of “cool buildings where real human beings want to live.”
“I had this entrepreneurial hunger. I wanted to see if I could actually do it (on my own),” he says. “I think I always knew I could, it just seemed risky.”
To mitigate risk on his first foray, 383 Sorauren, Gairdner has surrounded himself with an A-team of Toronto condo consultants, including architect Peter Clewes and designer Johnson Chou. “I’ve got great partners, a great team and I’ve also done this a bunch of times,” Gairdner notes. “So for me it doesn’t seem like an insurmountable task.
“It’s just a refreshing experience being able to do it on your own versus doing it for someone else.”
The Details
Location: 383 Sorauren Ave.
Developer: Gairdloch Developments & Centrestone Urban Developments
Architect: Peter Clewes, architectsAlliance
Interior design: Johnson Chou
Size: 10 storeys
Suites: 144
Prices: $250,000 to $899,000
—————————————————————————————————–
Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
—————————————————————————————————–
Incoming search terms
Related posts:
- Tribute Communities Celebrates Topping Off of Innovative Queen & Portland Condominium What makes Queen & Portland so unique is that it...
- Attention to details pays off in unique loft building Careful thought went into 37-unit, live-work project Large-sized suites ran...
- Toronto Condo Profile: New Aria project an unforgettable tribute to design and quality From New Homes & Condos Magazine Take three experienced and...
- Condo of the Week: 363 Sorauren Avenue The Robert Watson Lofts at 363 Sorauren Avenue offer some...
- Housing gamble pays off At the time, the old Massey Ferguson tractor factory in...
Roncesvalles Village
One of the hottest Toronto real estate markets in recent memory has been the Roncesvalles Village neighbourhood located in Toronto’s west end. The fact this market is booming really comes as no surprise, as Roncesvalles Village has been growing steadily in popularity over the years. This growth has been somewhat under the radar until this year as the neighbourhood has recently garnered a lot of attention from the media due to the redevelopment along Roncesvalles Avenue.
Roncesvalles Village is located in the southwest part of Toronto. It is defined as an area between Roncesvalles, Macdonell, Queen and Dundas. Once part of one of Toronto’s wealthiest districts, it has mature, treed streets, good quality housing stock with numerous Victorian and Edwardian homes, good schools, vibrant shopping district, easy access to public transportation and the highway, and is only a short walk from High Park.
Roncesvalles Village is home to some of Toronto’s most vibrant shopping and dining districts. The once-strong Polish flavour has been largely replaced by Roncesvalles Avenue’s quaint organic cafés, Thai restaurants, toy shops and greengrocers on every corner. 21 new businesses have opened in the last year. It is also within walking distance of Toronto’s waterfront parks, the Western Beaches and Boardwalk.
Roncesvalles Village Real Estate Map
This bustling hood is said to have the largest concentration of young families in all of Canada. Besides being kid and pet-friendly, this happy hood is a mini-paradise for locavores looking to nosh on some super fresh foods. The area continues to have a strong Polish flavour as well as being balanced by a slow but steadily emerging unique retail mix that includes many quaint coffee spots, eateries, weekend farmers market, bookstores and of course the restored Revue movie theatre.
Pedestrian-friendly Roncesvalles Village has definitely morphed into a destination location. So if you’re looking to live in a place that allows you to walk to anything and everything worthwhile such as High Park and the lake, this hood is it.
The Roncesvalles Avenue redevelopment was a long drawn out affair but it appears to have been worth the wait as this commercial strip has never been more vibrant and is now firmly ensconced as one of Toronto’s landmark neighbourhood shopping destinations. The iconic Toronto streetcar still glides up and down Roncesvalles Avenue only now it shares the road with new bicycle lanes and revamped pedestrian walkways. The streetscape has also been enhanced with places to sit down and native tree plantings.
Roncesvalles Avenue Streetscape
Homebuyers have taken notice of all the changes in Roncesvalles Village and judging by all the homes sales recorded this year, they like what they see. There are three key amenities Roncesvalles homebuyers appreciate: the homes are within walking distance High Park; you can walk or bicycle in just a few minutes to the waterfront; and Roncesvalles Avenue itself is so convenient with everything you need close by.
As far as housing stock goes you generally have a mixture of well-maintained Victorians and Edwardians. You have your general mixture of semi-detached, detached, and row homes that dot each unique street. The real estate options in Roncesvalles Village are varied and provide many options. East of Roncesvalles Avenue the houses are a little smaller – which suits the first time buyer. Move-up buyers can find larger detached homes on the west side of the neighbourhood. Many of these homes are multi-plex with the owner renting out apartments. Having a tenant is a great way to help offset house payments and expenses.
In the last 6–10 years or so some decent condo/ loft stock (Robert Watson Lofts, Feather Factory Lofts, High Park Lofts) has emerged. This includes church conversions (The Abbey Lofts on Sunnyside Avenue). As far as new condos in the area, Howard Park Avenue east of Roncesvalles Avenue will be accommodating 2 new condos along that chunk of Howard up to Dundas.
Robert Watson Lofts on Sorauren Avenue
Falling in love with Roncesvalles Village is the easy part – finding and securing a home is more challenging. There is healthy competition for houses in this neighbourhood with homes selling over list price and averaging only a week-and-a-half on the market (keep in mind, many houses hold back offers for a week).
Most the houses sell on the day they take offers. You have semi-detached house in Roncesvalles selling for around three-quarters-of-a-million. The smaller entry level semis can occasionally be found in the low $600s, while the larger renovated homes can get close to a million.
Detached sales make up about a third of the Roncesvalles Village home sales with the average price of a detached home pushing the million dollar mark. If you are lucky, an entry level detached house can sometimes be found in the $700s. But most detached houses in this neighbourhood sell for much higher than that, with some larger detached houses selling for twice as much.
Real Estate in Roncesvalles Village
Where parking is concerned, lane-access parking as well as permit parking are the norm here. Like many older areas in the city, this one boasts many well-renovated homes as well as homes in need of some eventual TLC.
—————————————————————————————————–
Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416−388−1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
—————————————————————————————————–
Incoming search terms
West Toronto Real Estate
The West End of Toronto is bounded roughly by Ossington Avenue to the east, St. Clair Avenue to the north, the Humber River to the west, and Lake Ontario to the south. The West End covers a vast swath of Toronto and includes ethnic enclaves and quiet, residential neighbourhoods inhabited largely by recent immigrants to Canada. In recent years, the West End has undergone explosive growth and gentrification, and is quickly becoming one of the hottest areas in the city in which to live.
The neighbourhoods of the West End are some of the most diverse in the city, owing largely to its significant immigrant population. Traveling west along the 506 College streetcar from the downtown core takes you through some of the city’s most colourful and unique neighbourhoods.
From the early 1900s, Italian immigrants who worked in railroad and road construction began buying up affordable Edwardian-style homes and opening up shops along College Street, in the area now known as Little Italy. Recently, the neighbourhood has become popular with young professionals because of its great restaurants and cafes, vibrant nightlife, and proximity to the downtown core. More recent Italian immigrants have chosen to settle a little farther north, along St. Clair Avenue, in an area known as Corso Italia.
West End Real Estate
Further west along College from Little Italy is Little Portugal, which is the best place to find an authentic churrascaria in the city. Keep going west and, before long, you’ll come across Roncesvalles Village, named after a valley in northern Spain, which, oddly enough, is the heart of the city’s Polish community.
After you’ve tired yourself out from all the culinary delights you’ve tasted along the way, you can take the streetcar to the end of the line — High Park — Toronto’s very own Central Park.
The trip along the 501 Queen streetcar from the downtown core is a little different. It’s almost a lesson in gentrification and urban renewal, as it travels through some of the city’s formerly derelict neighbourhoods that have, in recent years, become its most trendy locales.
Extending westward is the ultra-hip West Queen West neighbourhood, a derelict industrial area that has recently been revitalized and turned into lofts, home to many of Toronto’s young artists and musicians. The area is home to many of the city’s hottest bars, lounges and cafes, including the ever-popular Drake and Gladstone Hotels.
As renters are being priced out, West Queen West is quickly merging into neighbouring Parkdale, a notoriously crime-ridden part of town that is becoming the new “it” neighbourhood, with its antique shops and quaint Victorian-style homes.
On the north end of High Park you’ll find The Junction, so named because of the railroad lines that meet in this neighbourhood. To the west of the Junction lies Bloor West Village, a residential area that’s popular with young professionals and new families. Quaint shops, lovely grocery stores with fruits and flowers piled high outside and a wide variety of restaurants line Bloor Street from Jane to Runnymede, while older houses, many in the American Craftsman style, line the area’s side streets.
Visit the neighbourhoods of West Toronto for yourself:
- Bloor West Village
- Brockton Village
- Carleton Village
- Davenport Village
- Earlscourt
- High Park
- Parkdale
- Roncesvalles Village
- Swansea
- The Junction
- Wallace-Emerson
- West Toronto Junction
—————————————————————————————————–
Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416−388−1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
—————————————————————————————————–
Incoming search terms
