On the map: 60-storey tower joins skyline at Harbourfront

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With the CN Tower as one of its closest neighbours, the pressure for Q Tower to hold up architecturally was significant.

“If you imagine a postcard image of Toronto looking north from Lake Ontario, what (you’re going to) see after Q Tower (is built) is going to be completely different,” says Brian Brown, principal of Lifetime Developments. “We really wanted to make that architectural statement since it had such a prominent place in the skyline.”

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Lifetime Developments has teamed up with DiamondCorp on the project, a 900-suite structure in the Harbourfront neighbourhood located at 200 Queens Quay West. The sophisticated design, as Brown describes it, emerged from both firms imagining the possibilities together with Wallman Architects.

“We really wanted this building to stand out from the other structures around it,” says Brown. He describes the resulting look as “timeless” and dynamic, given the way the contours of the structure shift with the light.

The building itself will be in walking distance from some of the city’s best-known amenities, says Ty Diamond, president at DiamondCorp. “Just being in the central waterfront, we are in immediate proximity to Union Station, the financial district, Scotiabank Arena, CN Tower, Billy Bishop Airport. You could even be in Boston, New York or Chicago in an hour’s time.”

A new City of Toronto public park is being installed to the west of the property as a feature along Simcoe Street. “This will be an extension of the front of the building at the pedestrian level,” says Brown, describing it as “an additional green space where residents can walk their dogs or socialize. There will be some combination of sitting areas and we’ll plant additional trees as well.” With retail facing the park, Brown says, he sees a grand restaurant at ground level in the future.

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Inside the building, artwork will be exclusively produced by Michael Moebius. As Brown explains it, the connection to Moebius’s art evolved out of playing with the name Queens Quay. “We had this idea of a royal theme – (and) the image of the queen blowing bubble gum came to mind,” he says, recalling Moebius’s well-known trope. (The famous faces the artist has depicted blowing bubbles include Queen Elizabeth, Clint Eastwood and Marilyn Monroe.) It will be Moebius’s first North American partnership.

For the interiors, the designers at U31 have created a look Brown calls “rebellious chic,” a nod to both the British monarchy and to Moebius’s subversion of formality. The lobby area features deep colours and “rich materiality” as well as 11 elevators to shuttle people to their units in the sky. The lobby itself, he says, is “a pretty big space, comfortable for the quantity of residents we will have here.” There will also be ground-floor retail and a pet-washing station nearby.

With units ranging from studios to three bedrooms, the developers hope Q Tower will attract a variety of buyers, including investors and end-users.

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Indoor amenities will include a co-working space, a gym and residents lounge, as well as a 6^th-floor kid zone. There will be an outdoor pickle ball court, an outdoor dining area with a pizza oven, and a playground. There’s also a third-floor residents lounge with an outdoor BBQ area.

Construction begins in the fall of 2024, with occupancy slated for 2030. Sales launched at the end of October. Parking spaces will be limited to those occupying the 2- and 3-bedroom suites.

Units start at $599,990 for just under 400 square feet. For more information or to register, visit qtower.ca

 Three things

With pub-style brunch and pints from an extensive tap wall, The Goodman Pub & Kitchen is a neighbourhood haunt. 207 Queens Quay W.

Take a sunset cruise aboard the 165-foot, three-masted schooner the Tall Ship Kajama and see the Toronto skyline from Lake Ontario. 235 Queens Quay W.

Book a ticket for one of the many dance or theatre performances at Harbourfront Centre’s Fleck Dance Theatre, which also hosts readings during the Toronto International Festival of Authors. 207 Queens Quay W.

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