Canary District is only a few months away from occupancy!

For the last four years, we’ve been popping in at Dundee Kilmer’s Canary District (former Athlete’s Village for the Pan Am/Parapan Am Games) in the east end of Toronto to walk the grounds and keep you up to date on one of Toronto’s most highly anticipated master-planned communities.

Just a few months before occupancy is scheduled, we had another opportunity to walk the grounds with Dundee Kilmer President, Jason Lester, to check out the post-Games progress.

Jason Lester, President, Dundee Kilmer

Before heading out to tour the site, Lester pointed out three of the other market condo blocks on the scale community model, explaining that the north block will be developed first, then the one directly south of it. The third block on the southeast corner of the site will go to market 2018/2019.

“Every single building that’s going to go in here is going to be a great design without any doubt,” Lester said. “It’s not just this part of the West Don Lands, but even what River City has done; I think this is the highest designed neighbourhood anywhere in Toronto.”

Interesting design for a condo that should hit the market in 2018/2019

The first two market condos in the community, Canary District Condos and Canary Park have a total of 810 units combined, and over 700 of them have sold. Clearly, people have recognized the high quality building designs, strategic community layout, and great potential of this east end neighbourhood.

YMCA pool

Our first stop was in the YMCA where we got poolside. This YMCA is one of the largest in Toronto and features two pools, a running track, a fitness area, and a large sports court. “People who work and live in the Distillery District, Corktown, St. Lawrence Market, and even those close to Regent Park will all come to this Y,” Lester said.

The green roof at the YMCA was recently completed, and we got to head up there and check it out. Lester pointed out the flooring on the roof and explained how the YMCA will have programming on the roof, perhaps outdoor yoga.

YMCA green roof

“The entire community is built to a LEED Gold Standard, and the City of Toronto has different levels called Tier 1 and Tier 2, and we’re at the highest level, which is Tier 2, so it’s one of the most sustainable communities in the City of Toronto,” Lester mentioned.

When it comes to preparing the condo units for owner occupancy, EllisDon, the construction team, is hard at work. There are about 350 to 400 workers onsite every day working tirelessly to have the units ready for occupancy, which is scheduled to take place at the end of March and beginning of April.

YMCA running track

At the time of occupancy, everything will be ready, including the condo units, the condo amenities, many of the retail spaces, and the YMCA. There is going to be a sudden surge of people and the community will come to life for the first time, all at once. It will be an interesting sight after visiting the community as a construction site for so many years.

Canary Park unit

When the condo units were prepared for the athletes, temporary flooring and partition walls were installed. The units are currently being outfitted with all the final features and finishes. Lester explained, “We’re taking out the temporary partition walls, putting in the final flooring - some wood and tile - we’re putting in the kitchens, doing all the corridors, all the trim and finishes, and we’ll be finishing up with the amenity spaces.”

Canary Park one+den model

Back in October, we had the opportunity to tour one of the model townhomes at Canary Park, and this time we got to check out a one+den model. The M model features a 631 square foot floor plan with a 93 square foot balcony. A few of the features and finishes include 9’ ceilings, custom designed European-style cabinetry, a stacked washer and dryer, engineered hardwood flooring, and quartz countertops.

View from a penthouse unit at Canary Park

The townhome model is the H floor plan, which is 1,302 square feet and features two bedrooms and a spacious den. All of the interior features and finishes in both models are standard, so what you see is what you get, quality wise.

Canary Park model townhome

Visit Canary District today!

In order to tour the two model units at Canary Park, you need to contact the presentation centre and book an appointment. If you’re serious about making a move to one of Toronto’s most masterfully planned communities as early as spring 2016, then you definitely need to see the models and walk around the community!

First-time homebuyers should also see what Canary District has to offer because of the innovative MyHome program. According to Lester, there are around 10 units still available through the program.

Canary Park

The presentation centre is located at 398 Front Street East and is open Monday to Thursday from 12 pm to 6 pm and on weekends from 12 pm to 5 pm. You can call 416-603-7576 to book your private tour.