Every year when I visit Toronto, I’m struck by how much the city has changed. It’s taller, tighter, and more tantalizing. It's growing up right before your eyes, as they say.

Much of that has to do with a construction boom that is now entering its second decade. And with more cranes than any other city in North America, things won’t be cooling off anytime soon. 


But it’s not just skyscrapers. Toronto’s university campuses are constantly evolving, new public spaces are sprouting up, and the city’s transit infrastructure is making strides. 

READ: A Brief History (and Future) of Canada’s Tallest Residential Buildings

As 2020 draws to a close, we look ahead to what will come to fruition next year. Here are 12 Toronto developments we're excited to see launch in 2021...

One Delisle

One delisle crown rendering c norm li and slate One Delisle

Address: 1 Delisle Avenue

Number of Units: 263

Developer: Slate Asset Management

Architect: Studio Gang Architects, WZMH Architects

Probably next year’s most eye-catching project, One Delisle has been described as an “artichoke” and a “window cleaner’s nightmare.” Those are compliments. It is the Chicago architecture firm Studio Gang’s first development in Canada and represents a welcome shakeup in Toronto’s midtown skyline.  

Form Condos

Toronto developments Tridel

Address: 36 McCaul Street

Number of Units: 190

Developer: Tridel

Architect: architectsAlliance

A couple steps down from OCAD, Form aims to complement its arts surroundings, though with boutique prices. Design-wise, it’s a misaligned stack of air conditioners – in a good way – advertised as “a distinctive masterpiece.” No one can argue against its distinctness. It resembles that Tetris shape you most hate to see and yet somehow fits perfectly.

The Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre

The Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre U of T

Address: 112 College Street

Developer: University of Toronto

Architect: Weiss/Manfredi Architects, Teeple Architects

A $100-million gift to the University of Toronto, the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre promises to “turbocharge the next wave of Canadian innovation.” When it’s done, it will be home to Canadian and international leaders at the intersection of artificial intelligence and biomedicine. Vertical gardens, soaring atria, and collective spaces contribute to the centre’s collaborative environment. 

Aquabella

Aquabella Tridel

Address: 5 Kanadario Lane

Number of Units: 173

Developer: Tridel, Hines

Architect: 3XN, Kirkor Architects Planners

Aquabella’s cool because it’s a waterfront condo without being what all other waterfront condos are. Namely, vertical. Sitting horizontally pretty and literally right on the water at Bayside, the L-shaped Aquabella is reminiscent of the further west King's Landing condos, which some might call iconic. 

19 Duncan

Toronto developments Hariri Pontarini

Address: 19 Duncan Street

Number of Units: 422, 40

Developer: Westbank Corp, Allied Properties REIT

Architect: Hariri Pontarini Architects, ERA Architects

At 58 floors, 19 Duncan is next year’s tallest new address. At its base is the six-storey, heritage-designated Southam Press Building, which was built in 1908. Meanwhile, the giant monolith atop would not be out of place in Simcity 4. Nine stories are reserved for office space and a couple more for a hotel and shops. The rest is primed for living, with 462 units to call home.

8 Wellesley

Toronto Developments CentreCourt/Instagram

Address: 8 Wellesley Street

Number of Units: 599

Developer: CentreCourt, BAZIS

Architect: IBI Group

Toronto's newest entry to the luxury condo market will be a 55-storey tower standing on the corner of Yonge and Wellesley. It's most unique contribution to the skyline? Perhaps the large illuminated glass portal that will sit atop the building's angled cutaway like a beacon. 

The Rosedale on Bloor

Toronto developments The Rose Dale on Bloor/Instagram

Address: 387 Bloor St E

Number of Units: 508, 188

Developer: Gupta Group

Architect: IBI Group

With a name like Rosedale on Bloor, it's gotta be regal. And it is. North and East-facing residents will enjoy views of the Rosedale Ravine while those facing South and West can marvel at magnificent views of the downtown skyline. That’s on top of the indoor pool, yoga and fitness centre, theatre, and upscale rooftop terrace. 

The Well

Screen shot 2020 12 17 at 1 The Well Toronto

Address: 410 Front Street W

Number of Units: 1700

Developer: RioCan REIT, Allied Properties REIT, Diamond Corp, Tridel, Woodbourne Canada Management, Inc.

Architect: Hariri Pontarini Architects, architectsAlliance, Wallman Architects, Adamson Associates Architects, BDP, Pickard Chilton

The Well is essentially an entire neighbourhood – three million square feet of retail, office and residential space – as well as a magnet of sorts. It aims to “draw people from down the street and across the globe to eat, shop, work, live and play in Toronto.” Detractors will call it a glorified mall, while proponents see it as a much-needed makeover of that odd space on Front Street formerly home to the grubby old Globe and Mail headquarters.  

Vita on the Lake

Toronto developments Mattamy Homes

Address: 70 Annie Craig Drive

Number of Units: 489

Developer: Mattamy Homes, Biddington Group

Architect: Graziani + Corazza Architects

Look at all that greenery! Just steps from Humber Bay Park and that wonderful white arch bridge, Vita on the Lake brings high-rise living to the Mimico waterfront. It comes complete with a full yoga and fitness studio and rooftop pool with lounges, not to mention unparalleled views of Lake Ontario and the Toronto and Mississauga skylines.

357 King West

Toronto developments 357 King/Neighbourhood picture

Address: 357 King Street W

Number of Units: 324

Developer: Great Gulf

Architect: BDP Quadrangle

Located in the prime of the Entertainment District, 357 King West takes inspiration from every new building in its immediate vicinity and rolls it into one. There’s a tall lobby, a terrace cut into the building about three storeys up, a couple of slanted support beams, and, on top of that, a very tall tower cut in half with each side sporting a different design.  

100 Queens Quay at Sugar Wharf

Toronto Developments Menkes

Address: 100 Queens Quay East

Storeys: 25

Developer: Menkes Developments

Architect: B+H Architects

Sugar Wharf is shaping up to be the next CityPlace. The 4.5 million square foot mixed-use tower at 100 Queens Quay is part of a major development by Menkes that also includes two of Canada’s tallest residential buildings, which will open in 2022. Worth mentioning: the address will be home the new LCBO headquarters and accompanying flagship retail store. 

Union Station?

Screen shot 2020 12 29 at 11 Toronto Union/Instagram

Address: Front Street between York and Bay Street

Developer: City of Toronto, Metrolinx

Architect: NORR Architects & Engineers Limited, EVOQ Architecture Inc., Zeidler Architecture Inc.

Toronto’s most ambitious ongoing infrastructure project turned 10 this year. Originally slated for completion in 2015, the earliest we might see Union Station in all its revitalized glory is sometime in 2021. With around 250,000 people passing through daily, it is by far Toronto’s most visible “new” development. Crazy to think that Maple Leaf Square, which sits at the station’s south exit doorstep, was just an idea when construction on the new Union began. 

Development Projects