In April 2020, a penthouse at KING Toronto sold for $16 million, the highest condo sale in Toronto that year or the year after. In recent weeks, developers Westbank and Allied released KING Toronto’s final set of penthouses.
On Toronto’s King Street West, KING Toronto, a mixed-use development now under construction, stacks terraced units into four “mountain peaks” that overlook a central courtyard. Each unit faces out at a 45-degree angle, creating an undulating appearance that contrasts with typical flat building facades. Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and inspired by Moshe Safdie’s Habitat ’67 and Pierre Chareau’s Maison de Verre, KING Toronto offers downtown Toronto a distinctly different architectural style.
KING Toronto’s six penthouses sit atop its four peaks. The name of each penthouse reflects the custom designs by BIG. Treehouse features an indoor mature planted tree, for instance, while Bibliothèque has a two-floor library. The final two penthouses are the Glass House and the Sanctuary.
The Glass House is a 3-bedroom, 3.5-bath unit with 2,919 interior square feet and 640 exterior square feet. A gray marble fireplace forms the centerpiece of the main double-height living room. Dark steel elements include a staircase and floor-to-ceiling wine storage. The Glass House also includes a library, in addition to a series of terraces and balconies.
The Sanctuary is a 3-bedroom, 2.5-bath unit with 2,026 interior square feet and 516 exterior square feet. It keeps with the modern industrial theme of its neighbor, the Glass House. Likewise light-filled and open, the Sanctuary also has multiple glass-block walls and features a floating fireplace in blackened steel and a staircase of deep black oak.
When complete, KING Toronto will include 440 residential homes and 150,000 square feet of workspace and retail.
Building Team:
Architect of record: Diamond Schmitt
Mechanical engineer: Reinbold Engineering Group
Electrical engineer: Nemetz (S/A) & Associates Ltd.
Structural engineer: RJC Engineers
General contractor/construction manager: EllisDon
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Construction employment shrinks in 319 of the nation's 336 largest metro areas in July, continuing months-long slide
Construction workers in communities across the country continued to suffer extreme job losses this July according to a new analysis of metropolitan area employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. That analysis found construction employment declined in 319 of the nation’s largest communities while only 11 areas saw increases and six saw no change in construction employment between July 2008 and July 2009.
| Aug 11, 2010
Leggat McCall/Commodore Builders/O’Hagan “15 Days” earns LEED Platinum
The ambitious “15 Days” project that teamed up Leggat McCall Properties, Commodore Builders and Audrey O’Hagan Architects, LLC last September has just been certified LEED-platinum by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) – the first and only commercial interior work in Boston to earn that distinction.
| Aug 11, 2010
Harvard Public Library
Harvard, Mass.
Five years ago, the town of Harvard, Mass., which lies about 30 miles west of Boston, faced two problems. First, its iconic public schoolhouse, known as Old Bromfield, which was built in 1877, had become outdated. So, too, had its public library, which had no room to grow on its site.
| Aug 11, 2010
Green consultant guarantees LEED certification or your money back
With cities mandating LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for public, and even private, buildings in growing numbers, an Atlanta-based sustainability consulting firm is hoping to ease anxieties over meeting those goals with the industry’s first Green Guaranteed.
| Aug 11, 2010
Skanska, Turner most active in U.S. hotel construction, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 50 Hotel Contractors based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
An American perspective: skyscraper architecture goes modular in the UK
At 25 stories, Victoria Hall, a new modular high-rise in the city of Wolverhampton, England, is the world’s tallest building constructed principally off-site. The ground floor is site-built, but the other 24 stories are assembled from 383 individual modules shipped over from Cork, Ireland. The mixed-used complex, designed by O’Connell East Architects of Manchester and developed by Victoria Hall Ltd., will house students at the University of Wolverhampton.
| Aug 11, 2010
Architecture Billings Index bounces back after substantial dip
Exhibiting a welcome rebound following a 5-point dip the month prior, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) was up almost 6 points in July. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the July ABI rating was 43.1, up noticeably from 37.7 the previous month.
| Aug 11, 2010
Gilbane, Whiting-Turner among nation's largest university contractors, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 50 University Contractors based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit /giants
| Aug 11, 2010
70% of Qualified Trade Association Members Attain “Green Brick Specialist” Designation in Comprehensive Training Program
The Brick Industry Association (BIA), the national trade group representing distributors and manufacturers of clay brick and suppliers of related products and services, has announced that 70% of its eligible members have passed the industry’s first-ever online training program, “Sustainability/Green Building Design and Brick.”
