Harbord Towns by Ontario Association of Architects

Harbord Towns

2016 OAA AWARDS | Design Excellence Submission

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

Six townhouses situated toward the western terminus of the variable and changing Harbord Street present an unapologetically bold vision of the present and future of residential design in the City of Toronto.

SCOPE OF WORK Size 12,000sf Program Residential Multi-Unit, New construction Budget Withheld at Ownerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Request Completion October 2015 1

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

TORONTO GREEN STANDARDS

General Project Description Total Gross Floor Area Number of Residential Units Urban Heat Island Reduction: At-Grade

Required

Proposed

N/A

1112.14 m2

14 11 13

Re-Issued for Final SPA

14 09 16

Re-Issued for SPA

14 09 16

Re-Issued for Building Permit

14 08 19

Re-Issued for Building Permit

14 07 17

Re-Issued for Building Permit

Required

Proposed

N/A

243 m2

14 06 20

Issued for Building Permit

Total non-roof hardscape treated for Urban Heat Island (m2)

183 m2

243 m2

14 05 05

Issued for SPA Resubmission

Total non-roof hardscape treated for Urban Heat Island (%)

75%

100%

14 03 17

Issued for SPA Update

14 03 14

14 02 26

Issued for SPA Resubmission

No.

Date

Issue / Revision

Total non-roof hardscape area (m2)

Percentage of non-roof hardscape treated with: a) high-albedo surface material b) open-grid pavement

25% 25%

30% 70%

N/A

Required

Proposed

Available Roof Space (m2)

N/A

235 m2

Available Roof Space provided as Green Roof (m2)

0 m2

c) shade Urban Heat Island Reduction: Roof

Issued for Framing Design

CONTEXT PLAN

SCALE = NTS

North

Available Roof Space provided as Green Roof (%)

Available Roof Space provided as Cool Roof (m2)

235 m2

Available Roof Space provided as Cool Roof (%)

100%

Required

Proposed

79 m2

118 m2

50%

75%

Required

Proposed

Water Efficiency Landscaped area planted with water efficient plants (m2) Landscaped area planted with water efficient plants (%) Urban Forest : Encourage Tree Growth

Required

Proposed

Total number of species planted

Total number of native species

Total number of on-site trees planted Natural Heritage: Site

Total number of native species (% of total species planted)

50%

354 HARBORD STREET Toronto, ON M6G 1H7

Title:

PROPOSED 6 UNITS 3 STOREY + BSMN'T

100%

CONTEXT PLAN, ZONING DATA, GFA CALCULATIONS, TORONTO GREEN STANDARDS Project:

1318

Drawn By:

Scale: Reviewed By:

NTS AD

Drawing No:

A-001

CONTEXT

TORONTO GREEN STANDARDS

Harbord Towns is a project that was developed in response to its context but also as a means of shaping the future of its context. The length of Harbord Street comprises various building types and frontages – residential, commercial, institutional, one storey, three storey – but through changes to zoning the city will encourage more low-rise residential units. By providing a new and financially successful precedent, we believe Harbord Towns will lead the changes that occur in the vicinity, placing the neighbourhood in the vanguard of Toronto’s evolving residential design. General Project Description Total Gross Floor Area

Number of Residential Units

Urban Heat Island Reduction: At-Grade

Required N/A 5+

Proposed

1112.14 m2 6

Required

Proposed

N/A

243 m2

Total non-roof hardscape treated for Urban Heat Island (m2)

183 m2

243 m2

Total non-roof hardscape treated for Urban Heat Island (%)

75%

100%

Total non-roof hardscape area (m2)

Percentage of non-roof hardscape treated with: a) high-albedo surface material

25%

30%

b) open-grid pavement

25%

70%

ABOVE LEFT | The site was previously a gas station. Required Urban Heat Island Reduction: Roof c) shade

Available Roof Space (m2)

N/A

0% Proposed 235 m2

0 m2 0 m2 Available Roof Space provided as Green Roof (m2) BELOW LEFT | Harbord streetscape seen from newly constructed Harbord Towns project. Available Roof Space provided as Green Roof (%)

Available Roof Space provided as Cool Roof (m2)

235 m2

Available Roof Space provided as Cool Roof (%)

100%

Required

Proposed

Landscaped area planted with water efficient plants (m2)

79 m2

118 m2

Landscaped area planted with water efficient plants (%)

50%

75%

Required

Proposed

Water Efficiency

Urban Forest : Encourage Tree Growth

Required

Proposed

Total number of species planted

Total number of native species

50%

100%

Total number of on-site trees planted Natural Heritage: Site

Total number of native species (% of total species planted)

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

CREATIVITY

ns Harbord form wasTowns born of an inquiry into what townhouse units were, and what they could Unit be. 2-5 What if, instead of striving to replicate Harbord Towns’ reinvention of the townhouse

constricted context, or dismembering elements of the home and reassembling them as puzzle pieces in a larger unit, we focused instead on producing optimal living spaces and did not worry about conforming

fully detached homes in a dissatisfying

BALCONY

BALCONY BALCONY BELOW

BALCONY

BALCONY ABOVE

CLOSET

DINING

13’11’’ x 13’1’’

AGE

OPEN TO ABOVE

BALCONY BELOW

CLOSET

BEDROOM 2 11’6’’ x 14’11’’ DINING

DINING

13’11’’ x 13’1’’

to conventional expectations? The result is rear. Despite the 14 feet width, there is no 2,100that sq.houses ft. Interior +suggestion sq. 2,100 sq.ft.2,100 ft.Balcony sq. +ft. +inTerrace sq. Interior ft. Balcony 2,100 +lit,sq. sq. ft.+ B one cohesive building six units, of Interior constriction the brightly each approximately 2,000 square feet. They open interiors that provide graceful views abut the street at the front, and elevate their onto the surrounding neighbourhood. outdoor spaces in generous terraces at the

13’11’’ x 13’1’’

BALCONY BELOW BALCONY BELOW

BALCONY BELOW

CLOSET OPEN TO ABOVE

OPEN TO ABOVE

BEDROOM 2

11’6’’ x 14’11’’

CLOSET

OPEN TO ABOVE

OPEN TO BELOW BEDROOM 2

11’6’’ x 14’11’’

CLOSET

KITCHEN

KITCHEN 10’11’’ x 14’3’’

10’11’’ x 14’3’’

H RM.

SEATING AREA

LAUNDRY DN W/D

KITCHEN 10’11’’ x 14’3’’

DN LAUNDRY

W/D

UP UP

DW UP

UP UP

WIC

WC LINEN CLOSET

LINEN CLOSET

LINEN

MASTER CLOSET BEDROOM

MASTER BEDROOM

13’11’’ x 10’0’’

SKYLIGHT

SHOWER

W/D

ENSUITE

DN LAUNDRY SHOWER

WIC

DN W/D

KITCHEN 10’11’’ x 14’3’’

SKYLIGHT

LAUNDRY

MECH RM. F

SEATING AREA

ENSUITE

OPEN TO BELOW

11’6’’ x 14’11’’

13’11’’ x 13’1’’

GARAGE

BALCONY BELOW

ENTRY

LIVING

13’11‘’ x 14’7’’

CLOSET

CLOSET ENTRY

LIVING

13’11‘’ x 14’7’’

LIVING

13’11‘’ x 14’7’’

Lower Level

BEDROOM 3 11’6 x 10’6’’

CLOSET

Main Floor

CLOSET

13’11‘’ x 14’7’’

11’6 x 10’6’’

6’8’’ x 9’3’’

CLOSET

LIVING

BEDROOM 3

OFFICE BASEMENT

CLOSET

13’11’’ x 10’0’’

Second Floor

BEDROOM 3

11’6 x 10’6’’

CLOSET

11’6 x 10’6’’

CLOSET

TERRACE

CLOSET

TERRACE

Third Floor 3

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

SUSTAINABILITY To reduce construction time and construction waste the townhouses were designed as prefabricated, panelized wood structures. This process, whereby walls, floors and roof panels were factory built, flat packed, and brought by truck to the site, allowed framing to be erected in a few weeks and meant there was zero waste at the end of this part of the construction process. LEFT + BELOW | Prefabricated wall panels being erected on site, March 2015.

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

ABOVE | Framing completed with prefabricated panels, April 2015. LEFT | Project completed, October 2015.

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

Having second-floor living spaces is unconventional in Toronto and it works beautifully. Many other new houses in Toronto have big front windows â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but in those houses, people always have their window shades closed. Here, you have a real view, the living room overlooks the street and the neighbouring houses from a height. 6

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

LEFT | Each unit includes an office on the ground floor, having presence along the front facade. ABOVE | The third floor master bedroom ensuite features a skylight to allow for the central space to be awash in natural light.

2016 OAA AWARDS | DESIGN EXCELLENCE SUBMISSION Harbord Towns

GOOD BUSINESS Slated to be developer Oben Flats’ first completed project in Toronto, all parties understood that Harbord Flats would establish the company’s brand. Considering the site was oddly shaped (90 feet at the front, 60 feet at the rear), was tied down by zoning restrictions, and looked unlikely to supply what conventional wisdom suggested was necessary for urban townhouses, Oben Flats staked their investment squarely on the power and possibilities of innovative design. Synergy between developer and architect, and the innovative use of wood panelization, led to a commercially successful and efficient project – Harbord Towns was built in nine months, meeting and in many cases exceeding the client’s lofty expectations.

LEGACY Creativity – from a reinterpretation of the townhouse form to the means by which it could be produced on an uncommonly sized site – is the prime legacy of the Harbord Towns. As the City of Toronto begins to encourage residential construction on its avenues, Harbord Towns has aimed to demonstrate how rethinking the expectations of a dwelling that is neither house nor apartment is necessary to producing the best living spaces within. In addition, our dedication to sustainability and constructability means we have created a prototype that is far more durable than conventional townhouses. We expect to see this project as the leading edge of a trend.