Toronto Bayside

Toronto, Canada

In a city of great neighborhoods, Bayside will be Toronto’s next “destination” district. Developed by Hines, it is the first downtown neighborhood on the lake, it welcomes all and provides the Torontonians a waterfront community that is mixed-use, high-density, and has the urban fabric offering a host of different “places”. A mixed-income waterfront precinct of the highest quality, Bayside can be used and enjoyed in all seasons and all times of day, with a broad mix of daytime and evening activities. The open spaces offer a great variety of environments and experiences, while always maintaining an intimate human scale. Residents and visitors alike will be charmed by neighborhood’s small, intricate alleyways, courts and mews that provide a continual source of visual surprise and delight. They are all interlinked yet diverse – defined by a series of lively places and destinations, including retail-lined streets, parks, courtyards, an enhanced promenade, public terraces and interior winter gardens. Even during the cold winter months, this neighborhood will be a thoroughly walkable place.

Here, the buildings and open spaces share symbiotic relationship, one complimenting the other. The perpendicular buildings to the water’s edge maximizes the exposure of open spaces to the winter sun and summer breeze, at the same time providing uninterrupted views of and public access to the lakefront from the landside. The design of these “finger” buildings itself is unique and truly responds to the orientation: water view, solar pattern and prevailing winds. In contrast, the lower bar buildings (parallel to the water’s edge) shield the very open spaces from harsh winds coming off the lakeside and northwest direction.

With its lively street life, place-specific architecture and enviable proximity to the water, Bayside offers a rare combination of urban excitement and extreme livability. There is no other like it – unique, original, and distinctly Toronto.

For more information on the project, please visit Waterfront Toronto and Hines.