Bayside Development

Designed for People First

Once complete, Bayside will be a vibrant, sustainable neighbourhood, with mews and small streets that promote a sense of closeness and community all year round. The neighbourhood’s main street — Merchants' Wharf — provides connections to nearby public spaces, including Aitken Place Park, Sherbourne Common, the Martin Goodman Trail, the Water’s Edge Promenade , the future Parliament Slip and Villiers Island. It will also help reconnect the city to its waterfront, with a mix of residential and commercial development overlooking the lake.

Aqualina

The first of four residential buildings in the Bayside development, Aqualina, was completed and welcomed residents in 2018. Located on the east side of Sherbourne Common, and designed by world renowned architects, Arquitectonica, the building is defined by a series of distinctive cubes made of glass and steel with angled windows and balconies to maximize views of the skyline and lake.

In 2020, Aqualina became the first high-rise residential building in Toronto to earn LEED Platinum certification. Among many other sustainability features, the 363-unit development in Bayside has a rooftop photovoltaic array that captures solar energy to offset the building’s energy consumption and uses variable refrigerant flow systems for more efficient heating and cooling. Aqualina also earned the Canadian Green Building Council’s Inspiring Home award for its NetZed suite, a unit designed to produce more energy than it consumes.

Aquavista

In 2019, Aquavista was the second residential building designed by Arquitectonica completed and occupied in Bayside. The building’s curvaceous, uniquely expressive shape is comprised in a series of stepped terraces and balconies, oriented towards the lake to maximize water views.

Within Aquavista lies The Artscape Bayside Lofts, creating a total of 227 condominium units and 80 affordable rental units in the building. These affordable lofts, designated specifically for artists and their families, were developed in partnership with the City of Toronto, Hines/Tridel and Artscape. They will be reserved for artists and their families for as long as the units exist.

Aquabella

The third phase of the Bayside community, Aquabella, which was completed in 2021, is a one-of-a-kind building that adds visual excitement to the waterfront skyline. Designed by 3XN, the L-shaped building creates a unique silhouette from its distinctive stepped garden terraces along the upper levels. The terraces enliven the building with texture, colour, depth and variety and provide residents with lavish outdoor spaces and unobstructed views of the lake.

Aquabella is pursuing LEED Platinum status by incorporating a variety of sustainability measures. These measures include reducing potable water consumption by over 50%; storm water cisterns to capture rain for the building’s plants, which are all either drought tolerant or native plantings; energy efficient suites; and electric charging stations for residents with electric vehicles. During construction of the building, special attention was paid to ensure a portion of the construction materials contain recycled content or have been locally sourced, and at least 75% of construction waste was recycled.

Aqualuna

Located at the eastern edge of Bayside, Aqualuna, the fourth and final condominium development is currently under construction and is expected to begin occupancy in 2024. Designed by 3XN, Aqualuna’s architecture enhances the urban environment and maximizes water views for the residents, while respecting the views of the surrounding buildings. To achieve this, sweeping terraces and balconies that extend out from two peaks create an angled grid, which allows the facades to look past each other and maximize views of the lake.

T3 Bayside

Two office buildings designed by 3XN, T3 Bayside I and II, will provide opportunities for residents to live, work and play in the community – a growing demand in Toronto’s downtown core. Breaking ground in 2020, the 251,000-square-foot T3 Bayside I is the first of the two 10-storey mass-timber buildings to be constructed. Located on the southeast corner of Queens Quay East and Merchants' Wharf, the buildings will offer flexible office, event, and co-working facilities, and will enrich the neighborhood with a vibrant ground level incorporating retail on all sides. Once T3 Bayside II is completed, the two buildings will create more than 500,000 square feet of office space.

T3 Bayside is designed for the current and future needs of the community, with a focus on efficiency and sustainability. T3 Bayside I is expected to be the tallest mass timber office building in North America upon its completion in 2023 and both buildings are targeting LEED Gold certification. By using sustainable wood instead of standard building materials, T3 Bayside will store or prevent more than 10,000 metric tonnes of carbon emissions - the equivalent of taking 2,708 cars off the road for a year.

Selecting a Master Developer for Bayside

To select a private sector development partner for Bayside, Waterfront Toronto followed a detailed two stage Request for Qualifications (RFQ) and Request for Proposals (RFP) process. The RFQ was launched in March 2008 and promoted broadly to draw the highest calibre private sector developers from around the world. RFP submissions from the four shortlisted proponents were received in November 2009.

Submissions were reviewed based on a set of criteria stemming from Waterfront Toronto’s long term policy objectives and overall vision for East Bayfront. The criteria included both financial and city building measures such as vision, design and development concept, and sustainability plan.

Known for its design focus and longstanding commitment to sustainability, Waterfront Toronto selected Hines as the developer of the Bayside site. As the world's largest privately held real estate firm, Hines has the breadth of experience, network of expertise and financial strength required to ensure the timely development of this large and complex waterfront site.

 A Leader in Sustainable Development

With a tremendous track record for energy efficiency and innovation, sustainable development is an integral part of the Hines model. In line with the firm’s longstanding commitment to sustainability, Hines has been a leader in the growth of the LEED program since its inception and in other sustainability initiatives such as the ENERGY STAR® program.

In addition to meeting or exceeding Waterfront Toronto’s Mandatory Green Building Requirements, Hines is planning a number of strategic green programs for Bayside, including the implementation of the Hines GREEN OFFICE Program, which enhances the sustainable features and operations of employer spaces in commercial buildings.