For all the hype and excitement we've seen regarding the West Don Lands development in the past year, it came as a bit of a shock that there's been little to no mention of the recent launch of registration for Dundee Kilmer's Canary District. Only recently given a name, a website for the project describes the Canary District as "The Largest Urban Village in Toronto's History", but no further information has yet to be released.

Aerial view of West Don Lands Development, image courtesy of Waterfront Toronto.

There seems to be quite a bit of confusion as to what exactly the Canary District is — the name implies an agglomeration of buildings, with some UrbanToroto Forum members speculating that the name is in reference to an entire block of development, seen in the rendering above. Others suggest it's being applied to a single, large-scale building situated within the block. Without any confirmation of either, we're hesitant to pinpoint what exactly the project name is in reference to.

Site of future Canary District, image by Edward Skira.

View of Clear Spirit condos, image by Edward Skira

Regardless, UrbanToronto headed down to the site and snapped some photos before construction begins. Located just north of the Distillery District, the block is currently bounded by Trinity Street, Front Street, Mill Street and Canary Street. The images above also show the construction progress on Dundee Realty and Cityscape's Clear Spirit, designed by architectsAlliance with interiors by Chase Architecture. The building peeking out on the far right of the images is where the proposed Gansevoort Hotel and Condos will be located.

Site of future Canary District, image by Edward Skira.

While the site appears to be quite empty and derelict, it does contain a few buildings of importance, namely the Canary Restaurant. Closed down years ago, the lonesome building can be seen above, it's distinct wraparound corner and unique architectural features making it easily recognizable.

We're keeping our eyes peeled for more information on Dundee Kilmer's Canary District, whether it ends up being a building or a more comprehensive block plan. As vague as the project description is, it certainly sparked some interest, and is setting up itself up to be quite an interesting development. For more insight on the project and to join the discussion, post a comment below, or see what forum members have to say on the project thread here.

Related Companies:  Arcadis, architects—Alliance, Dream Unlimited, Goldberg Group, Groundwater Environmental Management Services Inc. (GEMS), Gupta Group, Isotherm Engineering Ltd., Jablonsky, Ast and Partners, Monir Precision Monitoring Inc., StrategyCorp, The Fence People, TUCKER HIRISE Construction