Matthew said:
@Brian @Dumitru @AndyB @Roy... lots of people talking about Monde and River City. What aspects of them do you think make them the best projects of the year?
For Monde, the architecture is top notch and simply stunning. A few things that stand out for me:
-The tall and narrow podium running alongside the park, with its terraced sides and what looks like a grand atrium running the length of the interior.
-The alternating parallel/perpendicular balconies will be a first in the city, and a unique opportunity for better views around the building face itself.
-The wide mix of uses from residential to retail and office space.
I'm looking forward to seeing how they finish off the podium and the glass tower
River City:
-The predominant use of black and white cladding which differentiates phase 1 from phase 2 is visually striking, as well as the alternating 'boxes' of phase 2. I can't wait to see how this turns out!
-This project is pretty much trailblazing and setting the tone for future developments in the neighbourhood, and the design looks like they're immediately swinging for a home run in the first inning.
If I were in the market right now looking to purchase, I would consider these two projects for their long term investment potential and hold onto them. Early purchasers will be putting up with construction and incomplete infrastructure in the meantime, but if these neighbourhoods are fully built out to Waterfront Toronto's complete vision, I think there's no doubt in my mind that the investment will have been well worth it by then.
I also think that these waterfront areas will turn out to be more family friendly than what we've been seeing going up on the west side. While that isn't exactly a consideration at this stage in my life, the coming decade will see vast parts of both these neighbourhoods built out and occupied, very likely coinciding with the time when today's younger generation (currently living in studios and one bedrooms), will have gotten married and will be starting to have kids. If the intention for some of them will be to raise a family downtown, than what better place will there be than the recently built out mixed use neighbourhoods right on the waterfront with a lot of the amenities a young family might need right at their doorstep, and not too far from downtown jobs as well?
I think these properties will likely appreciate in value quite handsomely, and those looking to put their units back to the market then will probably see a lot of interested buyers looking to get into these newly 'established' neighbourhoods.
