The Soho Centre was the first new large scale mixed-use building to be built in the trendy Queen Street West District of Toronto. This development fundamentally changed the commercial lease rates and property values along Queen Street West, the impact of which is still being felt today in neighbourhoods as far west as Parkdale.
The development was comprised of a single retail tenant, Club Monaco/Caban, on the ground and second floors with office spaces on the third and fourth floors, and a single level of underground parking for twenty-two vehicles. Acknowledging the existing courtyard and recesses of the adjoining high-rise residential building, the Soho Centre is terraced on the third and fourth floors to the north. Access to natural light and privacy for the neighbouring residential units and the courtyard are thus maintained. At each level, the terraces feature continuous soft landscaping in planters.
The primary entrances for both the retail and offices are located on Queen Street. The fourth floor is setback from both Queen and Beverley Streets to reduce the massing to better reflect the existing streetscape on Queen Street. The facades on Queen and Beverley are organized vertically to differentiate the internal uses. The stone cladding on the third and fourth floors emphasize permanence, whereas the comprehensive floor to ceiling glazing found on the ground and second floors emphasize transparency and openness. This openness is particularly evident in the evening, as the vitality of Queen Street appears to extend into the Soho Centre.
Our services included input in all aspects of the project from preliminary development investigations, planning approvals, design development, production of construction documents, overseeing of construction and right through to tenant fit-up coordination.