HOMES CONDOS

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WE ON2 SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2015 SECTION H

Mark CullenGarden tours, contests blossomas season comes on strong, H8

Ryerson University’s rapid growth in theheart of Toronto has seen the humblepolytechnic institute blossom into a full-fledged urban university. A complement of40,000 students and 2,700 faculty andstaff has meant expanding the facility’sfootprint out around its original smallcore.

Yet, in spite of Ryerson’s emergence as amajor academic player — luring top stu-dents and teaching talent from across thecountry and around the world — there hasnot been a corresponding increase inhousing options within the school’s sur-rounding neighbourhoods.

“Because Ryerson isn’t a residential de-veloper, and because land is scarce anddollars are scarce in downtown Torontofor their operations, they haven’t focusedon matching the growth in the studentpopulation with housing they provide,” ex-plains Shamez Virani, vice-president withCentreCourt Developments. “So it’s reallyleft a big void in the market.”

CentreCourt is seeking to fill that voidwith Grid Condos, a 47-storey project atthe southeast corner of Jarvis and DundasSts., kitty-corner from where Ryerson isplanning to construct a new sciencesbuilding, according to Virani.

Units at Grid — ranging from 415 squarefeet to 640 square feet, with one-, one-bedroom-plus-den and two-bedroom op-tions — are efficiently designed in order toaccommodate multiple student tenants.The base of the building will house theGrid Learning Centre, with dedicated flexspace for study and collaboration, plus afitness centre and terraces.

The project promises to prove attractiveto parents wanting to buy units for theirstudent-children to live in, and to inves-tors who understand the value of owningeducation-related real estate assets, whichVirani notes are virtually “recessionproof.”

Grid isn’t just catering to the Ryersoncommunity. The surrounding area,which the developer has dubbed the“Learning District,” is also home to St.Michael’s Hospital, a teaching and re-search hospital; Everest College, Canadi-an Music Centre, George Brown Collegeand National Ballet School — all institu-tions filled with people, staff and studentsalike who need places to live close towhere they work and play.

CentreCourt began serving this popula-tion with a development it launched lastyear at Shuter and Dalhousie Sts. — CoreCondos. The project’s 221units sold out ina matter of days, demonstrating to thebuilder that the area was ripe for student-focused development.

“We were awakened to what’s happen-ing,” Virani says, noting six months laterhis firm acquired the site for Grid at Jar-vis and Dundas Sts.

They’re not the only group to recognizethe academic-institution-driven poten-tial of this particular intersection. At thenortheast corner, Gupta Group launchedDundas Square Gardens, Toronto’s top-selling condo project last year. On thesouthwest side, construction is nearingthe top of Great Gulf Homes’ 42-storeyPace Condos.

Stepping into the learning curve

Shamez Virani, right, vice-president at CentreCourt Developments with Mansoor Kazerouni, executive vice-president of Page + Steele/IBI GroupArchitects. The Student Learning Centre at Ryerson University inspired the study hub they’ll build at Grid Condos.

NICK KOZAK FOR THE TORONTO STAR

Grid Condos slated for a lively downtown neighbourhood that’s tall on education but short on housing

“You couldn’tfind a seat.That was ahuge ‘Aha!’moment for us.”SHAMEZ VIRANIABOUT RYERSONLEARNING CENTRE

GRID continued on H20

RYAN STARRSPECIAL TO THE STAR

Patron with a passion Janusz Dukszta in 100 artworks, now a documentary, H2 Homebuyer’s sacrifice The house-condo price gap, H11

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H20⎮TORONTO STAR SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2015 WE ON2

>>HOMES & CONDOS

“The residential community isstarting to catch up to what’s hap-pening in the area,” Virani says.

The focal point of Grid Condos willbe its study hubs, an amenity in-spired by Ryerson’s Student Learn-ing Centre, which opened last yearon the former site of Sam the RecordMan, at Yonge and Gould Sts.

“It’s a 21st-century library — not thebooks and stacks of old,” says Virani,who toured the centre with the Griddevelopment team prior to launch-ing.

“It’s a beautiful space with modularfurniture, great for individual workor group work, and you can adapt itand modify as you see fit. They de-signed it with the idea that studentswill come in with their iPads or lap-tops and just find somewhere towork.”

The inspiration came when Viraniand his associates visited. “Youcouldn’t find a seat,” notes Virani.

“That was a huge ‘Aha!’ moment forus,” he says. “It showed us there is ahuge need for spaces and places forstudents to work, study and collab-orate.”

Which is precisely what the GridLearning Centre will offer.

The first level will be an open-con-cept, highly flexible, WiFi-equippedspace with plug-and-play stationsand modular furniture, enabling stu-dents to work either collaboratively(there’ll be a breakout room with aSmart Board interactive white-board) or independently.

The first level will include a café andterrace space, as well.

“If you’re a student living in thebuilding, you can come down and befully connected in a vibrant environ-ment with other students,” Viranisays.

“And you won’t have to fight for aseat.”

The second amenity floor at Grid,with a fitness centre and entertain-ing space with terrace, will focus ontwo things he jokes are “critical” tostudent life: “looking good and hav-ing fun.”

Grid Condos also will have twoguest suites and retail space at the

ground-floor level.Suites will have 8-foot-6 ceilings

and laminate flooring. Kitchens willcome with composite stone or gran-ite countertops and stainless steelappliances.

Bathrooms will have porcelainfloor tile, a bathtub and glass-framedshower enclosure (depending on thefloor plan).

For architect Mansoor Kazerouni,Grid strikes a personal chord.

“I have a daughter at McGill Uni-versity,” notes the executive vice-president with Page + Steele/IBIGroup. “So it’s interesting to design aproject while I’m living that experi-ence. It makes me super appreciativeof what it means to be providingsomething like this for students.”

Kazerouni points out that both thedevelopment’s name and its designwere inspired by the street grid onwhich it will be built.

“Jarvis and Dundas are an integralpart of Toronto’s defining grid. It

goes back to the old Town of Yorkgrid,” he explains.

The idea of the grid is expressed onall sides of the building, as a way of“connecting it with the city,” he says.The north and south sides will havebalconies that provide a “strong hori-zontal rhythm” while yielding viewsof the surrounding Garden Districtand Lake Ontario, respectively.

The east and west sides of the build-ing — particularly the west side fac-ing Jarvis — will be articulated with agrid interspersed with sections of re-cessed windows, creating a “zigzag-ging graphic pattern at a large urbanscale that will be visible from greatdistances,” Kazerouni notes.

The condo tower will have a whitegrid, while the podium will feature adarker pattern, helping to visuallyground the structure, its architectpoints out.

“It will be a bold urban gesture,” hesays with pride. “And it will definitelybe recognizable.”

Grid Condos to be a ‘bold, urban gesture’GRIDS from H1

The open-concept Grid Learning Centre will be WiFi-equipped with plug-and-play stations for students to work.

Location: Dundas and Jarvis Sts.(southeast corner)Developer:CentreCourt Developments IncArchitect: Page + Steele/IBIGroup Architects; interior design: esQuape DesignSize: 47 storeysUnits: 528; from 415 square feetto 640 square feetPrice: From the mid-$200sInfo: gridcondos.com

> GRID CONDOS

An artist’s rendering of the lobby at Grid Condos. A study hub will be thefocal point of the condos, catering to Ryerson University students.

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TORONTO STARTHURSDAY, APRIL 9, 2015

DRESSING UP

GLOSSYEYES

Test drivingthe high-shineshadow trend

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WEEKENDUPDATE

FRESHCOATBillowy fabricsand new cutsgive the trencha modern,feminine lookpage 6

SPRING NAIL REPORT

FRENCHTWIST

Inspired by the rise of the neutral nail, beauty editorRani Sheen travelled to Paris for a French manicure en France.

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page 4

We’ve all watched it happen: A sporty, down-to-earth girl falls in love with a prince and becomesan impeccably dressed, perfectly coiffed member ofBritish royalty. If you’ve ever wondered what Kate,William and Harry are joking about at royal appear-ances, wished for an invite to a birthday party atBuckingham Palace or fantasized about joining themat the royal skiing compound in Klosters, Switzer-land, The Royal We is for you. Characters based on theyoung royals are the focus of the third novel by JessicaMorgan and Heather Cocks, writers of the blog GoFug Yourself and two YA novels, Spoiled and Messy.While there are familiar elements of reality, thecharacters are pure fiction (Bex, a young American,meets future king Nick while studying at Oxford),and Morgan and Cocks let their imaginations runwild to concoct the hijinks that go on (unless Kateand Harry really have been locked in a closet, drunk,together…). We had a three-way phone chat withthem from their homes in L.A.

Why did you focus on Kate for this book?Heather: Imagine falling in love with a guy in collegewhen you’re that young and all of a sudden you’re theDuchess of Cambridge. To imagine the emotionaljourney that came with that and how amazingly sheappears to handle it, we were like, there has to bemore going on under the surface.

How does Kate’s life compare those ofother celebrities?Heather: Kate always has to have her game face on,more so than celebrities who can have a bad day onthe red carpet or can look sad or mad or whatever.I think if she were ever to have a bad day and let itshow, she would really take it.

Continued on page 7

BOOKS

ROYALWATCHERSThe gals behind hilarious celebrity blogGo Fug Yourself explore Kate Middleton’sinner life (and eyebrow evolution)in a new novel

BY RANI SHEEN

KATE SPADE SPRING 2015

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