INDX condo captures the spirit of the bachelor
We’re talking about a fully functional babe lair here, to borrow a phrase from the 1992 comedy film Wayne’s World.
A typical suite in the recently announced INDX condominium tower features an open design and clean right angles. The minimalist kitchen — its black counters lending it a lean, virile look — is meant to sleekly stay out of the way. The closet is an armoury for an array of pricey suits, with velvet-lined drawers to cushion cufflinks and watches. The floor-to-ceiling windows offer a view of a city that waits to be conquered, and you can raise a toast to that effect with a glass of bubbly fetched out of the wine fridge (it’s included as a standard feature).
Lifetime Developments has designed the “modern-day bachelor pads” of INDX as a must-get for the go-getter. The Toronto-based developer hopes the high-rise, to be built near Bay and Richmond, will become a sought-after stepping stone for a certain kind of buyer: young, upwardly mobile singles — mostly male — who work in and around the financial district as they navigate the early years of careers in such high-power, high-salary fields as finance and law.
The ideal buyer is someone “who lives in the core, works in the core, entertains in the core. They want everything [within] a short distance,” says BrianBrown, Lifetime’s vice-president. “By being affordable in the financial core, we are really gearing ourselves to the demographic of people who are trying to move up in their careers. They are working many, many hours and they don’t want to be spending a lot of time driving to work.”
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The suite! Sharp and earthy toned, INDX will appeal to males who work in the condo's financial district.
Indeed: They want the party to start right after work finishes, living the old “work hard/play hard” cliché.
The suite! Sharp and earthy toned, INDX will appeal to males who work in the condo's financial district.
Indeed: They want the party to start right after work finishes, living the old “work hard/play hard” cliché.
The appearance of the building itself, to be located at the corner of Sheppard and Temperance streets, will embody that downtown-dwelling dichotomy. By day, the INDX building will wear a smart but conservative guise. A restrained, Art Deco-influenced podium at street level is intended to complement the heritage Graphic Arts Building next door. The 54-storey tower will feature a fairly conventional glass-enveloped design — glossy without being flashy.
After dark, however, four rectangles of icy blue light will shine into the night sky from each of the north and south sides, announcing the tower as a hot place to be.
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When completed, INDX will be the only strictly residential tower in the very heart of the downtown core, developer says.
The site was once destined for the Sapphire Tower, developer Harry Stinson’s doomed 60-storey-plus vision. After acquiring the property late last year (it’s a parking lot presently), Mr. Brown says Lifetime immediately began to think about a more conservative concept for the space. It seemed logical to target younger financial district workers who would like to live within walking distance of the office.
When completed, INDX will be the only strictly residential tower in the very heart of the downtown core, developer says.
The site was once destined for the Sapphire Tower, developer Harry Stinson’s doomed 60-storey-plus vision. After acquiring the property late last year (it’s a parking lot presently), Mr. Brown says Lifetime immediately began to think about a more conservative concept for the space. It seemed logical to target younger financial district workers who would like to live within walking distance of the office.
When completed, he says INDX will be the only strictly residential tower in the very heart of the downtown core. And it will be more affordable than the norm in a neighbourhood in which the alternatives are condo-hotel concepts such as the Trump Tower and 1 King West.
Units go on sale in March, with prices starting in the $200,000s. When residents finally take possession — an event projected for December 2015 — they’ll enter an environment that looks like it was built on the instructions of a men’s lifestyle magazine. In the lobby, a shoe-shine stand will add a sense of retro masculinity, and the retail outlets will be chosen with the theme in mind (a barber shop, perhaps?). A cigar humidor service is being considered.
The amenity floor, atop the podium, will feature poker and billiards rooms, a video golf simulator, a gym, and a large private party bar that extends to an outdoor patio with a barbecue.
INDX’s bachelor-friendly vibe was inspired by changes in the area over the past decade, Mr. Brown says.
“It’s become more resident-friendly — I think if you looked at the financial core 10 years ago, no question people would have hesitated to live there. But now if you walk around there, even on a weekend, it’s not a ghost town like it used to be,” he says.
And with more restaurants and bars in the area, a new breed of people use the core as a residential neighbourhood. “Our suites are where [they] sleep and sometimes entertain, but the building amenities and neighbourhood amenities are an extension of the home,” Mr. Brown says, imagining the life of an INDXer.
That means the suites themselves — primarily one-bedroom and one plus-dens — can be spare and simple.
