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Extensive renovations are now underway at 33 Yonge and once complete, the office tower will incorporate the natural elements inspired by a nearby park while adding a hospitality vibe.

At almost half-a-million-square-feet and 13 storeys, the landmark building is located near Yonge and Front streets, at the junction of two neighbourhoods in Toronto’s downtown core.

The location is near the financial district, Union Station and serves as a gateway to the St. Lawrence Market.

In addition to the new look, the building is also getting a new name: Berczy Square. The design will draw inspiration from the adjacent Berczy Park, a popular park in the city.

“We just started, scaffolding went up,” Steffan Smith, executive vice-president, asset management at (GWLRA), told the Daily Commercial News.

“We are renovating the ground floor exterior, so the front door and the back door out to the park. The front door goes to the financial core which makes the building unique that way. It’s right on the border.”

GWLRA is undertaking the renovations and rebranding on behalf of its owners, the Great-West Life Canadian Real Estate Investment Fund No.1 and the London Life Real Estate Fund. The renovations commenced this summer and are expected to be completed by the fall of 2025.

Design brings the outside in

Renovations are being made to modernize the façade and the lobby.

Designed by Dialog, the renos are intended to create a sense of community, with a design that evokes feelings of pause and escape, a release stated.

The lobby features a “dramatic” entrance, a natural stone front desk area, a pond surrounded by seating under hanging moss pendants, a wooden deck in the middle section of the lobby and a fireplace feature.

“With the renovations, we’re really bringing the outside in and adding a hospitality feel to it.

“It feels more like a hotel and less like an office building,” said Smith. “We have a fire feature that is water vapour to cut down on emissions and pollutants in the air.”

Smith said the commercial office market is evolving and projects like Berczy Square will meet the needs of today’s workplaces while setting a new standard for amenities and design.

“The building was built in the early ‘80s and we purchased it in early 2000,” Smith noted, adding it had not undergone a major renovation. “COVID allowed us to really look at the asset that we had and there were major changes both in the office and the retail…It had amazing bones.”

They started by looking at tenant experiences.

“We really started to look at exactly what tenants would be looking for when they came back downtown. All these conversations with the retailers started at that time,” he added.

Unique trellis feature will have plants

The elevator bay will be wrapped in a unique, trellis-like structure.

“This lobby is 13 storeys within an atrium, so there is natural light that floods in right to the core of the office building which it makes it unique in the city of Toronto,” said Smith. “What it has allowed us to do is we are looking at running a nine-storey trellis with plantings all the way up. That trellis holds a 10-storey digital wall that will be used for art and programming.”

The façade upgrades were designed by and are intended to bring a feeling of warmth and uniformity. Wood soffits, warm lighting and consistent materiality are being introduced to both entrances and the outdoor patios lining the podium.
“We’re using a 70 per cent recycled aluminum and VOC free, solvent free. Then we’re using that with new lighting features to really backlight the underside of the asset as you walk into both the front door and back door entrances,” said Smith.

In terms of green or sustainable aspects, there are some elements in the building that will be reused.

“The most sustainable thing I think we did was to use what we had and not send anything additional to the landfill,” said Smith. “We kept the original floor. We thought that terrazzo floor stood up, the colours were attractive.

“It’s always easier to start new but we didn’t have to go back and repour that floor.”

A big part of the project is the addition of five new or refreshed restaurants to the building, including the latest offering from the team behind Giulietta and Osteria Giulia, three concepts from Canadian stalwart O&B and Café Landwer’s ninth location.

Follow the author on X/Twitter @DCN_Angela.