Galleria on the Park Progressing as First Phase Towers Top Off

Construction of the largest development on Dupont Street is progressing apace, and work is progressing on multiple phases of the densely populated Galleria on the Park, which Almadev created as a master plan. Located on the south side of Dupont Street between Dufferin Street and Emerson Avenue, the aging Galleria Shopping Center will deliver eight new buildings totaling nearly 3,000 units as part of the extensive redevelopment through the completion of each construction phase.

Looking southwest towards the Galleria on the Park community, image courtesy of Almadev

Beginning with a look at Galleria 01 and 02, the first phase building, designed by Core Architects, features two towers of 24 and 29 floors respectively, above a common podium. With construction beginning in the summer of 2020, the towers have reached their final height after peaking in mid-June. With the concrete work now complete, both cranes remain active and support the progress of the facade cladding, which is now installing the outer cladding on the west sides of both towers.

Looking east at Galleria 1 and 2 above Dupont Street, image by UrbanToronto Forum contributor yyzfa

Looking at the building from the east, we can see that the facade cladding progress is lagging behind on the east facade, while the first parts of the outer shell have appeared on the south tower in recent weeks.

Cladding of the east side of Galleria 1 and 2 progresses, image by AlbertC, contributor to UrbanToronto Forum

West of Galleria 01 and 02, the new Wallace Emerson Community Center rises above its site on the western edge of the campus. The new community center was incorporated into the larger Galleria plan as part of a land transfer with the City of Toronto that resulted in a larger parkland dedication. The new community center will replace the existing concrete building, accessed from Dufferin Street, and will remain in use until the new center is completed. The large, irregular plan of the structure is difficult to see at this stage, but the two volumes we see in the foreground and background of the image below will eventually be joined as the construction progresses.

The community center framework is assembled in separate volumes, image by Bilbo, UrbanToronto Forum contributor

With Perkins&Will handling the design of this part of the project, Andrew Frontini, director and director of the company’s Toronto office, shared a preview of the building’s siding model on Instagram in late April. The metal cladding has been treated with a highly reflective terracotta finish that is said to appear in different colors depending on the direction of light.

Preview of community center siding model, image by Instagram @frontiniarchitect

Finally, in the north-east corner of the site, during excavations for the second phase of the Galleria III tower, a huge pit was discovered that once contained a McDonald’s. With the preparatory work now nearing completion, we can see that caisson walls have been erected around the site and thoroughly reinforced with ties while the remaining excavation work is being completed on the western edge of the pit. The single crane is now joined by a second on the north side of the pit, and both are working swiftly to create the concrete foundations for the Hariri Pontarini Architects-designed tower, which will rise 31 stories.

Looking northeast across the excavation for the Galleria III tower, image by ADRM, contributor to UrbanToronto Forum

With construction progressing well across the Galleria on the Park site, subsequent phases that will further shrink the rest of the mall are expected to begin before the end of the year.

UrbanToronto will continue to monitor the progress of this development, but in the meantime you can learn more from our database file linked below. If you wish, you can join the discussion in the dedicated project forum thread or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.

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