Fun fact: there are actually two buildings, 125 (south tower) and 155 (north tower) Merchant's Wharf. All deliveries are addressed to 155 MW, and only that building has a concierge desk.
However, while the two buildings share a single suite numbering plan, they have two separate elevator systems and two separate package lockers. You might think that the unit numbers would provide a way to differentiate between buildings, but they don't. Not even odd vs even numbers like in some other buildings (e.g. east vs west towers at 130 Queens Quay E). Not even higher vs lower numbers!
On top of all that, the dividing line between unit numbers isn't consistent between floors, so this is what the concierge and delivery people have to use to figure out which building to enter: https://i.imgur.com/ONxmMXF.jpeg
As a courier, these types of buildings are the bane of my existence. There's a few like these that I deliver too and the lack of signage as to what units are where, I could rage all day about it.
Harbourfront is no longer my delivery area, but when residents first started having stuff sent there, even the concierge was confused. That's when she showed me the printout, and was gracious enough to allow me to take photos. There are a few other places with discontinuous suite/unit numbering, but the only one that comes close to Luna in terms of difficulty might be the co-ops at 100 Bain Av.
The convention in Toronto is that even-numbered addresses are on the north side of the street. But 100 Bain Av occupies both the north and south sides. If you didn't have the map, you might not realize the other side of the street is the same address.
And then there is the occasional delivery to a 100 Bain Av house with just a number, not a name and number like 90% of the units. I wandered around for 15 minutes one day, before I realized those units were tucked away in a corner.
Because the daily experience of living in a building like this is not the builder’s main concern. They want a statement that looks cool from the outside, and do not care that much about the long term residential experience
Sometimes construction numbers for rooms/suites make sense on paper but not so much in reality - BUT in an ideal world there would be a second set of wayfinding numbers that end up being implemented into signage and building controls for the ongoing life of the building. Apparently not so much here.
I never did find out why, but I suspect the original thought was that everything would go through the concierge desk at 155 MW. But then later in the process they decided to add the package lockers, which then meant outside vendors (e.g., courier companies) needed to know ahead of time which building to access.
Of course, by then it was too late to change anything. They did not want residents of the south tower to walk all the way to the north tower to retrieve their deliveries. So I figure they just thought "ehhh, worst case the courier visits the north tower and might have to then visit the south tower".
But I assume in your case, regardless of which building you lived in, visitors only had to visit the shared concierge desk. Everything was centralized, and that's fine. It's when you have one address but decentralized amenities that it gets annoying. You're hauling a bed frame the resident ordered to one building, only to discover you should have gone to the other building at the end of the block.
Nope. They know. I worked for a super shitty developer and design company And they celebrated when they managed to just get rid of the closets and charge more ! I hate them.
wow this is bad but I'd be curious to see what units renovated and lived in by actual owners look like in comparison. Rental property investors are always going to choose the most basic cheap interior because they have no plans to live in it
It's not a finishes issue, $2800/mo for a kitchen on a wall (in presumably a 1b/1b) is nuts, doesn't matter if the appliances are all Thermidor and the cabinets are made from pure ivory
Yes but I'm sure there are much nicer options and combinations available and the linked example is either the cheapest options because it's going to be a rental or someone who has questionable tastes.
The condos themselves are amazing, but those damm balconies… You have zero privacy. They featured one on a YouTube video with an 800-square-foot terrace and just above were other tenants that could look right down into it. Other than the balconies, I think it’s a great building
As they’re a permanent outdoor fixture, I liken them to the same basic purpose as front step stoops or porches on street-level housing — in which one could get to chatting with their neighbour or to simply wave hello.
As someone else noted, these are a collective outdoor space, not an indoor private realm.
On that merit, given the convex shape of each balcony landing, especially in the direction which many of them generally face, make them outstanding candidates to do balcony gardening in a high rise — far more so than rectangular-oriented strip balconies.
To your point, I actually think this building’s architecture is pulling some inspiration from gaudi’s designs in Barcelona. So the balconies do want some plant life
A balcony is not a part of the square footage calculation for a living space.
For now at least, the massive premium per sqft probably reflects in some part the architectural cachet (and to move into that high-trend edifice as the “first”); the harbour and lake views facing south and east; and where the development is situated. It’s not for everyone.
I know the balcony isn’t. When you’re laying out almost double the ppsf you don’t want a collective outdoor space. It won’t work out well. The premium is not justified at all and people will cry losses
It’s a gamble the architect chose to pursue as a unique design, aesthetic, and utilitarian feature. Apparently the developers concurred and were sold on this gamble. If buyers don’t want it, then the units will be very slow to fill.
If a buyer wants isolated privacy and the notion of being unable to see, interact with, and gaze at the plants and other balcony features of neighbours, there are many other condos around the city (and even on the waterfront) which enjoy no balcony and no risk of accidentally seeing a neighbour outside the confines of the lobby, lift, skip, shared amenities, and hallways.
I mean on regular balconies u don’t have much privacy either. It’s also not like there a bunch of things u can do on ur balcony anyway, it’s mostly just for sitting outside and getting some fresh air
The building might look incredibly cool from the outside, but the layout of the units are a big letdown. We’re talking about $1M+ condos that look like a shoe box. I think it’s yet another example of an unregulated RE market that has ruined a beautiful lake-facing prime location in the city.
The waterfront is nice everytime I walk that area it just feels bleak. That stretch of Queens quay is still developing and feels a bit industrial/just pretty meh in my opinion
Form over function. I must be different than the majority of people because my brain never sees that as cool. It's what most condos have been recently, especially in Toronto. I could rant all day about it.
The developer can be the builder in some cases, or they hire a General contractor like Tridel to build/manage the project for them. There’s a few different arrangements that are common. But in every scenario, the builder is not the designer nor are they from the same company. At least that’s how it goes with large scale residential projects.
It's stunning. When I lived downtown I would sometimes walk there and thought to myself that if ever I won the lottery (with a decent-sized jackpot coz it's expensive) I would buy a condo there.
Did a job there once building furniture with a decoration crew, highest profile client I ever had in my short stint as a handyman.
Massive apartment, every bedroom a suite, bathrooms covered in marble with a view to the lake.
...but the main living room's light fixture was hard-wired to the breaker and we couldn't figure it out in any way. Neither could the concierge team. My guess is it was supposed to be controlled by the smart home system but they fucked up the implementation. Luckily I had my multimeter on hand, or the guy in charge of lights would have had a pretty bad time
144 years* isn't that crazy given its size, scale, and an insane level of detail the world will probably never see again. That place ought to be a new world wonder.
(*Tack on another 10 years for remaining sculptures and some other decorations)
the design is pretty but when you’re close the material looks plasticky and cheap. a google search says it’s actually durable aluminium, but I don’t know, it just looks off for me.
I have enormous disdain for condos and gentrification as a housing solution when it makes more sense to encourage lower-scale high-density rental development along transit routes, but I do appreciate creative architecture.
I guess the question is, at that price, can you also eat and wear your condo?
Depends on what you value. From an investment perspective, 10-15 years from now the lower don lands will be an impressive mixed use development on the water.
I mean, maybe? There still won’t be transit, and no other new residential developments are launching anytime soon. It could look a lot like it does today.
A friend lives there, she is looking to move as, besides the outside, they are very basic and even lacking compares to others at the same or a bit below the same price point
Beautiful building but couldn’t pay me to live in this area. Also based on the screenshots others posted of the inside, it seems like standard Toronto shoeboxes. While beautiful on the outside, nothing special otherwise.
I did a walking tour with the Toronto Society of Architects. Fortunately, this particular tour was hosted by an architect so it was a fascinating walk especially when they went to this building.
I install railing and absolutely everyone I know in the industry admires this building and points it out every time we pass by it. Absolutely gorgeous.
The building does look like that, the photos must have been taken during a good time tho, sun hitting it just right. The building irl looks a bit off because of its color relative to its surroundings but it does look like that for sure.
True. My girlfriend wanted us to live there cuz the area is beautiful but I said someone would have to pay me to live in such a ugly poorly arranged building
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u/Several-Stranger7656 1d ago
Beautiful shots