Rogers’ first residential venture is coming to Mississauga

Smart technology and community-wide 5G service will be the standard for denizens of M City

Nationalpost.com
May 6, 2021
Iris Benaroia

For more than half a century, the late billionaire media mogul Ted Rogers retained a sizeable piece of land in Mississauga. Through the years, he sold various parcels to real estate developers, save for 15 acres at Burnhamthorpe Road and Confederation Parkway.

“He held on to this piece of property because he liked its location,” says John Anderton, vice-president, treasurer, of Rogers Communications. “It’s blank and beautiful and kitty corner to Square One and the Living Arts Centre,” he says of “the last greenfield site in Mississauga, a centre-ice property.”

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Such amenities coupled by at-your-door transit -- the Hurontario LRT is slated for the area -- make it ripe for a master-planned community. And so, co-developers Urban Capital and Rogers Real Estate Development are transforming the site into M City.

It’s the first residential foray for Rogers, a name associated with magazines and mobile phones, not condo boards.

New York City-based architects Cooper Robertson are M City’s urban planners; Toronto’s CORE Architects and IBI Group are charged with adding a striking new shape to the skyline -- in this case, a set of jagged, 60-plus-storey towers.

At full build-out, M City will have eight towers housing 15,000 people over 6,000 units. M1 and M2, at 61 and 62 storeys respectively, have already crested the 20th floor (residents move in next summer), while the 81-storey M3 by IBI Group is under construction.

“They’re spectacular. They’re taller than the Absolute Towers [an pair of curved condos three intersections away],” says Anderton. “We’re bringing to the table fantastic architecture that is going to change the Mississauga skyline forever.”

The next tower to zip up, the 67-storey M4, by CORE Architects will welcome residents in 2026.

Here, the 954 units will range from 420 square feet to 1,330 square feet. Suites--including one bedroom, one plus den, two bedroom, two plus den, three bedroom and three plus den--start in the low $400,000s.

The building’s exterior, which Babak Eslahjou, principal at CORE Architects described as a “deconstructed podium composed of stacked rectilinear building blocks” resembles an “S” from a bird’s-eye view.

“The shape allows six corner suites per floor,” says Mark Reeve, partner at Urban Capital Property Group. “The plans are fantastic. [Interior design firm] Cecconi Simone are good at creating efficient spaces that are very functional and take advantage of views.”

The firm also designed the 36,000 square feet of amenity space that is spread across three floors of the building, and weaves between the interior and exterior.

A standout is the Zen-inspired Nakaniwa Garden in the courtyard, where a rock sculpture sits atop a water plinth. “We try to be unique with each building,” says Reeve. “In the first one we put in an outdoor skating rink.”

Other amenities at M4 include an open-air saltwater pool, a sprawling outdoor terrace, fitness centre, dual-purpose party room and co-working space, and a playroom.

Outdoors, kids can let loose on the playground at John Bud Cleary Park, where a soccer field adjacent to M City connects to Mary Fix Trail.

“We are also putting a two-acre park, tentatively called M Park, in the middle of our development,” says Anderton. “It’s unique to have a park to the south of our property and green space to the north of it. Our park connects all of that green space.”

M City wasn’t always slated for a residential application, says Anderton. “[Ted] thought at some point it might have a future Rogers office.”

The initial use was to erect CHFI antennas for broadcasting studio signals. “These were actually relocated to the CN Tower, where they exist today,” Anderton says. “And the land sat vacant for a number of years.”

Then, a little over 12 years ago, Reeve and Anderton started to look at it. (When Anderton was hired on at Rogers 14 years ago, Ted Rogers himself used to nudge him about what to put on the site.)

“What’s fabulous is it’s a family asset being married to a public company,” says Anderton.

At the heart of the building is a Distributed Antenna System, or DAS. Exclusive to M City, DAS enhances the cellular and Wi-Fi signals throughout the buildings.

“That’s unique in a residential application,” says Anderton. “We’re probably the first to do it.”

Wi-fi signals typically fade in tall buildings, once you get up to the higher floors. DAS distributes the antennae, “so you have bullet-proof Wi-Fi coverage and internet,” says Anderton -- so no dropped calls in the underground parking lots or elevators.

Each suite will also be equipped with Rogers Ignite Gigabit Internet, offering residents download speeds up to 1.5 gigabits per second, he says.

A 1VALET app, meanwhile, will be used to offer enhanced contactless building access and facial recognition entry. That means digital keys and remote guest access -- no having to leave a key under the mat for a friend -- as well as integration with the smart thermostat in every suite.

“John and I worked together years ago and John knew how talented I was, so he called me,” jokes Reeve about his involvement in the project. “I’ve been in the development industry for 35 years and this is probably the biggest one I’ve handled because it’s so many towers on one property.”

Urban Capital is actually behind a slew of high-rise developments in Toronto and across Canada. Most recently River City by the DVP and Kingsway by the River.

When Anderton and Reeve plunged into the M City project, they discovered Mississauga’s Downtown21 Plan, a document outlining the city’s goal to establish an identifiable downtown.

“It’s interesting Mississauga kind of did things in reverse. The city was built around the Square One retail plaza,” says Anderton. “It didn’t really have a downtown before Plan 21. We’re incredibly proud to be a part of that city building.”

Anderton and Reeve aren’t the only ones chuffed about the development.

“As a city, we have been intentional in our efforts to build vibrant, sustainable and complete communities, where residents have access to housing, transit and cultural and recreational amenities,” says Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “With our downtown expected to double from 30,000 to 60,000 people by 2050, M City will be critical in helping us provide housing options to thousands of new residents in the coming years.”

M4 features 954 units ranging from 420 square feet to 1,330 square feet, starting in the low $400,000s. For more information, visit mcitycondos.com.

Three Things

Sign up the kids for dance, swim or summer day camps at the Mississauga YMCA, which offers child care. Adult can play basketball, do aquatic sports and martial arts. 325 Burnhamthorpe Rd. W.

Horticulturalists will appreciate The Riverwood Conservancy, a 150-acre property with trails. It’s also home to Chappell House Gardens, featuring a lily pond and goldish, and MacEwan Terrace, a two-acre perennial garden. 4300 Riverwood Park Lane

From channa to curry kingfish, Leela’s Roti& Doubles is a local treasure, where it’s best to arrive hungry. 900 Rathburn Rd. W.