Tyler Anderson / National Post

tuart Hamilton has spent area teems with students, young most of his adult life professionals and spunky sen- S nestled comfortably at iors like Mr. Hamilton seeking the intersection of College and something special. Even pop Yonge streets in downtown star Madonna dropped by, lead- and is continually im- ing a highly publicized workout pressed with how the neigh- class at ’s Hard Candy Fit- bourhood has transformed. ness (Aura residents get free “When I moved in we had membership). At 42,000 sq. a completely straightforward ft., it’s the high-end gym’s first view of the hospitals [along North American location and University Avenue],” recalls says a lot for the ’hood’s new- Mr. Hamilton, who lives with found cachet. his sister. “Now you can barely According to developer see them because all of these Riz Dhanji, vice-president big high-rises have gone up.” of sales and marketing, Can- Mr. Hamilton moved to derel first took notice of the Toronto from Regina in 1948 area in 2001 when it acquired and first meandered the dis- ’s parking lot and trict while working as an ush- started planning a two-tower, er at the Eaton Auditorium 1,100-unit project at Bay and atop College Park. When a Gerrard streets. As he recalls, sixth-floor unit became avail- the area needed some help. able in the adjoining apart- “It was very derelict,” he says.

POST HOMES POST ment building, the young “There wasn’t much activity. It man moved in, piano in tow. was a little bit rundown. Yonge He spent the next 23 years Street wasn’t moving much. We National Post working out of a studio in the wanted to create something Saturday building’s recreation room great. [Property management April 12, 2014 and carved out an impressive firm] GWL Realty Advisors career as a pianist, vocal coach wanted to create exposure to and host of CBC Radio’s Satur- its College Park retail and bring day Afternoon at the Opera. some big businesses and resi- NP As he recalls, the College dential in there.” Park area was a good place to Before long, it became nationalpost.com live back in the day because, as what Mr. Dhanji calls “a mini he puts it, there wasn’t much underground city” connecting action “and they were anxious Canderel’s Residences of Col- Find your home to get anybody, even me with lege Park to College Park itself at nationalpost. a piano and singers.” But time and the officer tower at 777 changes everything, and he Bay St. When word got out com/homes couldn’t be happier. that Canderel has purchased “It’s now quite an experi- another parking lot at Yonge ence to live here,” says the and Gerrard and was intend- 84-year-old, who still teaches ing to build Canada’s tallest condos masterclasses at University of residential tower, investors Toronto’s opera school. “When scrambled and 700 of the 985 I first moved in, the building units sold within a month. alarming had ceased being Eaton’s and Canderel also added 180,000 it wasn’t very busy. There were sq. ft. of retail, including Mar- Who’s responsible some shops but few patronized shall’s and Bed Bath & Beyond for checking on them. Now you can’t move!” as well as a trendy wine bar He’s not kidding. The neigh- and restaurants. smoke alarms? bourhood surrounding Col- Today, many Aura dwellers Canderel’s Riz Dhanji, top, beside Aura; resident Derrick Lai at Yonge and Gerrard. PH3 lege Park has come into its are well-paid professionals own since the glory days of the working at MaRS Discovery Eaton Auditorium. It began District, the downtown hos- reinventing itself after the pitals and in the financial dis- famed Eaton’s trict. There’s also a growing decor store closed its doors in the number of students and emp- 1970s and shoppers ventured ty nesters drawn to the area uphill battle? south to the . By overnight for its upbeat vibe. the 1980s, the new College Derrick Lai is one of them. How to give a Park had offices, boutiques, The architect grew up in dated staircase a 10-storey rental apartment success Markham but yearned to live building, the courthouse and downtown once he finished some drama. PH3 a subway concourse — with With its then-dingy university. He tried out Yonge the original architec- and Eglinton, Fort York and ture remaining intact. By the ambience, the College Liberty Village before realizing early 2000s, another redesign he wanted to be in the heart of wooed such big-name stores as Park area went ignored the action — and to never have for sale Winners and Metro. In 2003, for many years. Though to ride a packed subway again. the famous music hall got a He figured that Aura would facelift and became , it’s taken a decade, it be a good investment prop- mid-mod a swanky event venue. Sobeys erty given its proximity to the mansion arrived in 2011, and the follow- seems that suddenly Eaton Centre, the subway, the ing year Loblaws grocery store hospitals and campus life. The With a staircase opened to great fanfare in the there are compelling singleton is now happily en- worthy of nearby reasons to revisit it sconced in a 27th-floor, 700-sq.- building. ft. one-bedroom-plus-den (“On Frank & Ava. Today, with Canderel’s By Suzanne Wintrob a clear day I can see all the way PH8 78-storey Aura condominium ­— to Mississauga,” he declares) Canada’s tallest — newly topped and has no plans to move. off and 600 units occupied, the See college on Page PH6

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Visit our Presentation Gallery Today at 156 Avenue Road I 416.323.0100 Monday - Friday by appointment only Saturday and Sunday 12 – 5pm Prices and specifications are subject to change. E.&O.E. April 2014. 23361 MenkesLife menkes.com PH6 nationalpost.com post homes NATIONAL POST, Saturday, April 12, 2014 We wanted to create something great.… College Park has now become a destination to live in. With all the hospitals and universities, people want to live close by. It’s a walking neighbourhood. — Riz Dhanji, vice-president, Canderel

the Eaton Chelsea Toronto last sum- space including a $5-million infin- mer and is undergoing a major reno- ity pool on the 66th floor that’s one vation to keep pace with the area’s of the highest in the western hemi- revitalization. sphere. coming “It ripples across the entire buck- The developer has also pledged et,” says Mr. Garner. “… Over time, as $3-million under the City of Toronto’s these brands change and the differ- Section 37 for the redevelopment of full circle ent demographic is in the area, you’ll a three-acre park within the College start seeing the high street change. Park boundaries of College, Gerrard, The once-popular College Park block saw It’s only a matter of time. We at the Bay and Yonge. Scheduled for com- BIA will be very focused on find- pletion in Fall 2015, the aptly named some rough times, but is re-emerging ing brands that are needed in the College Park will once again have area and we’ll start working with the benches, a boardwalk, an event pa- other building owners and develop- vilion, a skating rink, a water feature ers in the area to help that evolu- and some much-needed greenery. Mark Garner, executive director and tion of brand and that experience on “[College Park] has now become college chief staff officer of the Downtown .” a destination to live in,” Mr. Dhanji Continued from Page PH1 Yonge Business Improvement Area, Canderel’s next venture is a says. “We’re getting some amazing the “high street retail on Yonge” is 66-storey tower called YC Condos, rental values and retail values that “When I lived in [near evolving considerably given Aura’s set to soar one block north at Yonge are incredibly high. With all the hos- Fort York] I felt like I lived on an is- presence and the announcement and Grenville streets and draw pitals and universities, people want land,” says Mr. Lai, 31. “… Here there that Saks Fifth Avenue and Nord- hundreds of additional faces to the to live close by. It’s a walking neigh- are more things to do, more people, strom will soon set up shop in the ’hood. The luxury building boasts bourhood. Canderel is proud that more energy. It’s more lively.” Eaton Centre. Even the Delta Chel- five floors of penthouses with suites we’ve built up this neighbourhood Naturally, the rejuvenation has sea — Canada’s largest hotel, with starting at more than $1-million, from nothing to what it is today.” been good for business. According to 1,590 guest rooms — rebranded as as well as 17,400 sq. ft. of amenity National Post YC Condos will have 66 storeys.

For advertising information call: T: 416.442.5665 l 1.866.256.POST (7678) POST HOMES F: 416.386.2663 l E: [email protected]

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