Two Towers Top Out at Transit City Complex in Vaughan

Source: UrbanToronto

The cluster of towers in the nascent Vaughan Metropolitan Centre skyline includes a new focal point, with milestones recently reached in construction of the Transit City complex in SmartCentres’ SmartVMC, a 100-acre master-planned community around the area’s eponymous subway terminal. The first phases of Transit City—being developed by SmartCentres in partnership with CentreCourt—include a trio of 55-storey condominium towers designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects, two of which have recently topped out.

Facing east to Transit City, image by Forum contributor DarkSideDenizen

The complex’s north and south towers have reached their final heights of 176.17 metres, with the former’s crane recently removed and the latter’s soon to follow. Cladding installation has reached the north tower’s pinnacle, with just six rows of the tower’s balcony dividers remaining before the aesthetic is complete. Four levels of exterior finishes remain to be installed on the south tower.

Facing northeast to Transit City, image by Forum contributor DarkSideDenizen

To the east, the third tower now stands roughly 45 storeys tall, set to match the 55-storey height of its siblings in the coming months. As forming progresses up top, cladding installation now encloses over 30 floors of the tower.

Facing north to Transit City, image by Forum contributor DarkSideDenizen

All three towers at Transit City have overtaken the nearby twin towers of the Expo City community’s Nord East and West and their shared heights of 140 metres which briefly held the crown as Vaughan’s tallest buildings, having themselves only taken the crown recently after overtaking the Expo City community’s first two towers as that city’s tallest. Transit City’s crown is also likely to be short lived, as CG Tower, an even taller building is in the works at Expo City—the two communities developing a back and forth race for Vaughan’s tallest. Another tallest for Vaughan could come at 7028 Yonge Street at Steeles, on Vaughan’s border with Toronto, if it’s approved.

As work moves into the later stages for the initial three towers, three more buildings are on the way as part of the community’s next phase. Early construction activity is priming the site of TC4 and TC5, a pair of 45- and 50-storey CentreCourt and SmartCentres condominium towers, which are being constructed along with a 35-storey purpose-built SmartLiving rental building. Views of the site captured at the end of April, below, show a hive of activity in the middle ground below, with the completed shoring phase paving way for excavation and tieback installation, and two of the initial towers in the background.

Late April view of excavation for next phases of Transit City, image by Forum contributor DarkSideDenizen