Minto Midtown facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Minto Midtown |
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| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Residential |
| Coordinates | 43°42′20″N 79°23′51″W / 43.705454°N 79.397593°W |
| Height | |
| Roof | 413 ft (Quantum) 541 ft (Quantum 2) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 37 (Quantum) 52 (Quantum 2) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Zeidler Partnership Architects and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill |
| Developer | Minto Developments Inc. |
The Minto Midtown is a large apartment complex in Toronto, Canada. It is located on Yonge Street in the Davisville area, close to Yonge and Eglinton. This complex has two tall buildings called Quantum and Quantum 2.
Quantum is 37 storeys (about 126 meters) tall and was finished in 2007. Quantum 2 is even taller at 52 storeys (about 165 meters) and was completed in 2008. The company Minto Developments Inc. built these towers. The first ideas for the design came from Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. Later, Zeidler Partnership Architects worked on the design and finished the project.
Building History
Building these towers was a big topic of discussion in the neighborhood. They were the tallest buildings in the area at the time.
In March 2000, the company bought the land for the project. By December of that year, they asked for permission to build. Their plan included two very tall towers. It also meant tearing down an older ten-storey building. The proposed towers were much taller and bigger than what the city rules usually allowed.
However, the city's main planner was thinking about changing the rules. These changes would allow more building in the area. The local city councilor, Michael Walker, was strongly against the project. A city councilor is an elected official who represents a specific part of the city. Walker had the support of many local groups, like the North Toronto Tenants Network. This group was made up of people living in the area.
After some delays, the city planned to say no to the project. So, Minto asked the Ontario Municipal Board for help. This board helps solve building disagreements. It often makes decisions that allow development to happen.
Minto and the city council then reached an agreement. Minto agreed to make the towers a bit shorter. They also agreed to give money for social housing and for public transit improvements. This agreement became a new example for future building projects in the city.
The towers still caused strong feelings among some community groups. The debate over these buildings became a big part of the 2003 Toronto municipal election. An election is when people vote for their leaders. The city councilor at the time, Anne Johnston, had helped make the agreement happen. She was running against Karen Stintz. Stintz was very much against the new development. In a surprising result, Johnston lost the election.
Green Building Design
The Minto Midtown complex has a special award called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification. LEED is a rating system that shows how environmentally friendly a building is. Getting "Gold" means the buildings are very good at saving energy and water. In 2009, Minto Midtown was the largest apartment building in North America to get this LEED certification.
Images for kids
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Yonge Street looking south from Eglinton Avenue, 1963. The building on the left was later replaced by Minto Midtown.
