Vaughan shopping plaza to be replaced by massive new futuristic community
Blogto.com
March 23, 2023
A suburban shopping plaza is set to disappear, as developers have filed plans with the City of Vaughan to build a massive multi-tower community with striking buildings that would loom tall over surrounding cookie-cutter housing.
Purchased in 2022 by a group led by developer Almadev, the 4.73-hectare block is located at the northwest corner of Rutherford Road and Sweet River Boulevard, east of Highway 400 and just across the street to the north of the Vaughan Mills outlet mall.
The current plaza at 3300 Rutherford Road is home to a handful of tenants, including a location of The Keg, sporting goods store Decathlon, and Big Al's Aquarium Supercentres.
All businesses and surface parking on the site today would be torn down to make way for a complex with seven towers ranging in height from 17 to 35 storeys, containing a combined 3,047 residential suites
According to plans, the tenure is proposed as "a mix of residential condominium and rental buildings," intended to "provide housing diversity and will accommodate a range of one, two, and three-bedroom units to meet the diverse life cycle needs of a diverse population."
The project team has hired architects BDP Quadrangle to design their new community, and the resulting vision combines design elements like massive glass reveals, undulating waves of balconies, and even a knife-point skyline peak for the community's tallest tower, referred to in plans as the Landmark Tower.
All of the new residential density is to be supported by a pair of new public roads dividing the community into quadrants, and a network of parkland and privately-owned publicly accessible spaces totalling 0.65 hectares of public realm contributions.
Despite the futuristic vibe, documents submitted with Vaughan city planners reveal that the project would be heavily dependent on car infrastructure, and intends to build a massive parking garage accommodating a whopping 2,451 spaces for residents and visitors. Over 3,000 bicycle parking spaces are also included in the proposal.
Homeowners living in the adjacent subdivision housing may be surprised to learn that the proposal site is situated along what has been identified by the Vaughan Official Plan as a Primary Intensification Corridor, dictating that lands be planned with mixed-use intensification with densities supportive of current and future-planned transit infrastructure.
These same subdivisions could prove to be an asset for north-facing residents of the planned towers, as they will act as a development barrier preserving some pretty spectacular views of Canada's Wonderland, situated roughly 800 metres north of the site.
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