Babak Eslahjou, Core Architects Principal (pictured below), tells World Architecture News about the firm's boutique apartment development in Toronto, 210 Bloor, a winner in the WAN Awards Americas Future Projects – Residential category.
What does it mean to win a WAN Award?
It offers numerous benefits, significantly elevating CORE's professional profile. Such recognition enhances our credibility and prestige, positioning CORE as an innovation and design excellence leader within the industry.
The award also provides media exposure and can foster valuable industry connections, potentially attracting new clients and projects. Additionally, the award highlights CORE's commitment to quality and creativity, reinforcing our reputation for delivering outstanding architectural solutions.
What aspects of your project are you most proud of?
There is so much to be proud of in this project. There have been so many challenges and unique scenarios that have been overcome in pushing this project to its current stage. Due to the targeted clientele, the project is at a greater degree of coordination than is typical for a project at this stage, with detailed input from structural, MEP, interior design and the envelope trade to ensure that what is being sold can be achieved to the smallest detail. Therefore, we are high in confidence that the evocative renderings will be realized.
What were the biggest challenges?
The biggest challenges are yet to come as we work towards construction. Ensuring the final building details match the design intent will be a recurring challenge. We have been fortunate that the client (Tribute Communities) has been supportive of the intricate design direction and have engaged the trades early on so, as a team, we can make certain the direction is achievable. However, the closer the project comes to reality, the finer details will need to be continually reviewed to guarantee the built form matches the design intent.
The site itself is unusual given that it is less than 13m wide. Coordinating with consultants to fit all the required MEP spaces has been a challenge, but compared to designing the vehicular storage and movements, it was a breeze. Vehicular access is limited to the north east corner of the site through an existing easement. The brief included maximising the number of parking spaces for large cars so that each apartment could have a minimum of two spaces. We briefly looked at automated systems, but due to the limited number of these systems installed in Ontario, it was decided to proceed with a more traditional system that the client had a greater degree of confidence in. Due to the limited width of the site, the space left over after vehicles only allowed for shoring to be provided on one side. The existing neighbouring basement on the west allowed excavation without shoring for a few levels, but this was not sufficiently deep to allow all required parking stalls to be provided in parking stackers. To alleviate the requirement for extensive underpinning it was proposed that only the east side of the basement would be excavated below the level of the neighbouring basement and cars would rise out of this pit when required.
The ground floor elevation was also a great challenge to incorporate a suitable residential entrance with retail, gas tree and exits in a tight space
Could you tell us a bit about how you made the best use of a difficult site?
The site was not only narrow but glazing locations were limited to specific areas. The design of the plan was highly strategic to take advantage of the areas where glazing was permitted. The central location of the core allowed for suites to be accessed directly from the elevator and secondary rooms were located where only smaller areas of glazing were permitted which allowed the large expanses of glazing to be reserved for the main living room and principle bedrooms.
The judges praised the facade, can you tell us a bit more about this?
The design was inspired by the extension to the ROM. Just like the crystalline form wraps around an existing building, the tessellated triangular design envelops the two long elevations and begins to wrap around balconies. The module of the triangle was informed by the maximum commercially available glass which then impacted the overall dimension of the building. Multiple glass types will be used with slight changes in colour and reflectivity to provide a dynamic façade reminiscent of a crystal. There will be reminders of the building envelope within the suites as the diagonal mullions will be on show in all suites where glazing is provided on the east or the west.
Have you entered the global WAN Awards?
Yes!