Our latest update of Lifetime and Menkes' Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences is brought to us by forum member urbandreamer. As the project gears up for its official opening later this summer, we're starting to get a better idea as to how the tower will impact the streetscape. The architectsAlliance designed project occupies a prime parcel of land just north of Bloor on Bay Street, part of a four-block stretch of Bay that has seen rapid development in the past few years.

Project rendering for Four Seasons Hotel and Residences, courtesy of Lifetime and Menkes

View from Bay and Yorkville at Four Seasons Hotel's west facade, image courtesy of Urbandreamer

Project renderings illustrated a street level treatment that was criticized as bunker-like, a 3-storey wall punctuated by rectangular windows and smaller cutouts that did little for street life. While the design has been carried through to reality for the most part, it appears less imposing, in large part due to the expansive windows that increase the podium's permeability.

Southwest corner of Four Seasons Hotel and Residences, image courtesy of urbandreamer

The glass-enclosed southwest corner at Bay and Yorkville Avenue adds to the streetscape, meeting the sidewalk with a soft corner rather than hard wall and allowing those approaching Bay on Yorkville the opportunity to see through the building (once the gigantic advertisement is removed, that is).

Rendering for Yorkville Avenue driveway and courtyard for Four Seasons Hotel and Residences, courtesy of Lifetime and Menkes

Yorkville Avenue courtyard at Four Seasons Hotel and Residences, image courtesy of urbandreamer

Work is progressing well on the courtyard located on Yorkville Avenue; the space will be open to the public, one half being a paved driveway and the other a landscaped garden, complimenting the historic Yorkville Fire Hall next door.

Project rendering for Four Seasons Hotel and Residences, courtesy of Lifetime and Menkes

We're looking forward to the grand opening later this year, marking the end (or the beginning, depending on how you look at it) of one of the most talked about projects here at UrbanToronto. For all of the project renderings, floorplans and building information, head over to the dataBase listing below, and let us know what you think of the project as it nears completion in the comments section, or on the associated project forum.

Related Companies:  architects—Alliance, CCxA, L.A. Inc., Menkes Developments, NAK Design Group