71 Rebecca St | 97 m | 30 fl | Proposed

[Crapht]

It certainly has potential. Potential to be hideous or potential to be one of the nicest towers in town. I'm not sure anything proposed is going to look nicer than McMaster Residence at King/Bae. I would like to see plans and renders before judgement. At first glance it appears to be very slabby-ish but upon closer look there is a number of angle details going on like the vertical jut-out that runs the full height and the 13th storey changes from the 12th. Another colour could do wonders for this but so far I'm alright with it and hope it only improves. Build it!

[SteelTown]

It looks like the building has some depth to it, a few set backs that seems to have some angles and not a straight set back. With the cubical design and the depth, this could be an interesting building.

I don't like that solid glass piece that is midway. What's the point of it?

[TheRitsman]

No idea where that previous render came from. These are from DRP. If someone wants to grab high quality pictures from the PDF feel free. It seems they are doing an internal mall design on the first floor? Interesting decision and quite old. Reminds me of the building at 181 Main St W. These designs never seem to work well with internal access only retail.

[Innsertnamehere]

That’s just an internal lobby hallway. All the CRUs have street access.

[Chronamut]

Ahh MUCH better - recessed white grids only end up looking discoloured and dated over time anyways..

It's still generic looking, but a better sorta generic looking, with colour

And I like that internal lobby area

[anactualalien]

This proposal is hard to get excited for when I remember the horrendous park in front of it.

[ChildishGavino]

Originally Posted by anactualalien

This proposal is hard to get excited for when I remember the horrendous park in front of it.

Hopefully the woonerf will make it better

[TheRitsman]

Originally Posted by anactualalien

This proposal is hard to get excited for when I remember the horrendous park in front of it.

I think that 250 staring right at it may cause a few complaints that may increase the likelihood the city redoes it in 5-10 years.

[Chronamut]

I just find it interesting concerning the park that they turned a parking lot into a sorta paved area with round thingies and some places for maybe trees.

It still feels like a parking lot to me.

[drpgq]

Yeah that park makes me appreciate classic park landscaping a lot more. I think it will look better once the trees that have been planted mature but not that much better.

[TheRitsman]

Originally Posted by drpgq

Yeah that park makes me appreciate classic park landscaping a lot more. I think it will look better once the trees that have been planted mature but not that much better.

Whoever designed this park should feel shame, I agree. Even if it had been pavers instead of asphalt it would have been better. Look to Gore and Gage.

It doesn't help that there are currently 5 or 6 tents set up in the park and that the city didn't water the trees this summer.

[Dr Awesomesauce]

Originally Posted by TheRitsman

Whoever designed this park should feel shame, I agree. Even if it had been pavers instead of asphalt it would have been better. Look to Gore and Gage.

It doesn't help that there are currently 5 or 6 tents set up in the park and that the city didn't water the trees this summer.

It was designed with public input because, well, apparently the City can't be bothered having a landscape architect do what they were trained to do?

[Pipedreams]

Originally Posted by TheRitsman

I think that 250 staring right at it may cause a few complaints that may increase the likelihood the city redoes it in 5-10 years.

This park is one of the main reasons I don't let get myself excited about our city projects any more - I didn't even realize you could screw up a park so badly as this unusable piece of ashphalt turned out to be. It's impossible for me to understand how this could have been seen as a community meeting space, or a green space within a downtown of surface parking lot. I hope the people who allowed the vision of a downtown park to be destroyed see these posts and realize what a disaster it was and make the next park look more like a park

[ZTrade]

Originally Posted by Pipedreams

This park is one of the main reasons I don't let get myself excited about our city projects any more - I didn't even realize you could screw up a park so badly as this unusable piece of ashphalt turned out to be. It's impossible for me to understand how this could have been seen as a community meeting space, or a green space within a downtown of surface parking lot. I hope the people who allowed the vision of a downtown park to be destroyed see these posts and realize what a disaster it was and make the next park look more like a park

I'm joining the hate bandwagon on whoever designed those parks too. A grade 8 class could have done a better job and I feel the same way you as you now about the cities ability to handle any future projects. I would really like to know who gave the green light for this ugly ass park.

My thoughts on this new condo, sure it'd be generic in Mississauga but this will add something new to the skyline in Hamilton. We'll see in 20 years whether Hamilton turns into another glass-box skyline, but I doubt it. I think we'll have a good mix with these dozen or so proposals going through combined with the existing stock.

I like the indoor-outdoor access for commercial, wish this place was 40 floors instead and have good hope for the empty lots around it. The new police investigation unit and half a dozen new condos should spruce up that area of Downtown.

[Chronamut]

The problem with these areas is there is a certain flow to the city and there are areas that people simply don't GO to - this is one such area - when the restaurants and shopping stop people don't really have much need to go further to meander unless it's condos to go home to.

I feel like this park space was just an excuse to put something somewhere. It's not in an area that people are intentionally going to go to. Maybe when more condos go in that area? But yeah it's like the city says "oh this seems like a great center for people to meet in" without looking to see if it's an area where people would ACTUALLY go to.

Like the area above jackson - or the sculpture area and blvd area in front of city hall - do people "hang out" there? No it's just empty wasted space. As soon as the majority of the "hangout" space is largely paved and not green, people don't want to be there. They want escape areas that don't remind them of the city - not a paved place with a few boxed in areas for foliage.

It's why gore park and gage park attract people - it's an actual park - an escape from the city. They coulda done this park half of what they did with all the silly little domes but added way more nature to make it feel like an escape from the city. Instead they got lazy. Or maybe they think this is genuine effort in which case that's just sad (my personal opinion of course).

[TheRitsman]

Originally Posted by Chronamut

The problem with these areas is there is a certain flow to the city and there are areas that people simply don't GO to - this is one such area - when the restaurants and shopping stop people don't really have much need to go further to meander unless it's condos to go home to.

I feel like this park space was just an excuse to put something somewhere. It's not in an area that people are intentionally going to go to. Maybe when more condos go in that area? But yeah it's like the city says "oh this seems like a great center for people to meet in" without looking to see if it's an area where people would ACTUALLY go to.

Like the area above jackson - or the sculpture area and blvd area in front of city hall - do people "hang out" there? No it's just empty wasted space. As soon as the majority of the "hangout" space is largely paved and not green, people don't want to be there. They want escape areas that don't remind them of the city - not a paved place with a few boxed in areas for foliage.

It's why gore park and gage park attract people - it's an actual park - an escape from the city. They coulda done this park half of what they did with all the silly little domes but added way more nature to make it feel like an escape from the city. Instead they got lazy. Or maybe they think this is genuine effort in which case that's just sad (my personal opinion of course).

This park could have been a nice evening spot after the restaurants, a place to propose, or a place to get refuge from the sun after lunch. I think to parks like Central Park, obviously not in scale, but in grandeur and beauty.

[Chronamut]

Originally Posted by TheRitsman

This park could have been a nice evening spot after the restaurants, a place to propose, or a place to get refuge from the sun after lunch. I think to parks like Central Park, obviously not in scale, but in grandeur and beauty.

That would be our equiv. of gage park in hamilton- and yeah I pictured big stately trees in this area - bringing it back to nature.

[Crapht]

I don't go to a park to escape from the city. Parks are just an integral part OF the city. I won't defend this park but the city knew it needed some public space if it intended to approve condos in the area. It will actually be a great spot once there are people living in the area. It just seems lonely now as it is still surrounded by parking lots. My biggest concern is the trees. I seem to recall one of those circles being filled with bricks and covered with top soil then planted with trees. There may not be alot of soil there for those trees to grow big. Poor work.
Anyway, build something incredible at this location. DO IT!

[TheRitsman]

Originally Posted by Crapht

I don't go to a park to escape from the city. Parks are just an integral part OF the city. I won't defend this park but the city knew it needed some public space if it intended to approve condos in the area. It will actually be a great spot once there are people living in the area. It just seems lonely now as it is still surrounded by parking lots. My biggest concern is the trees. I seem to recall one of those circles being filled with bricks and covered with top soil then planted with trees. There may not be alot of soil there for those trees to grow big. Poor work.
Anyway, build something incredible at this location. DO IT!

Perhaps a better example is Place Simon-Valois



https://maps.app.goo.gl/FHHSDq8hbZD3EtDY7

[bvbborussia]

I feel the need to pile on. This park is awful in design and as Chronamut says it doesn't flow naturally that people will gather in that space. That might change with the arrival of this condo across the street but at the moment it's in no man's land.

The moment is was completed my first thought was, "They'll be ripping this up and starting over in 5-10 years."

Once the trees mature and provide more shade it will surely improve but at the moment it's very bad and I can't understand why they would choose this sort of a concept over something more traditionally urban.

Someone referenced Montreal in an earlier post and they have these types of small parks all over the city and anyone one of them would be an improvement on this.