Reserve Properties and Westdale Properties have teamed up with singer-songwriter Pharrell Williams on a residential development at Yonge and Eglinton.
The pair of condos, branded “untitled,” will also include architects IBI Group and Interior Designers U31. Williams has collaborated on other buildings around the world, such as the Youth Centre in Virginia Beach with Oppenheim Architecture + Design. This project, however, marks Williams’ first foray into the multi-residential sector.
“The partnership was born out of a desire to do something really unique for Toronto and architecture as a whole,” says Sheldon Fenton, president and CEO, Reserve Properties. “We believe by bringing in a cultural icon with vision and ideation from outside the realm of real estate it will allow us to break the mold in terms of what has traditionally been done. The experience has been off the charts and beyond our expectations.”
Design meetings held over the past year saw Williams collaborate on everything from the vision and architectural façade to the overall interiors and furnishings.
“The opportunity to apply my ideas and viewpoint to the new medium of physical structures has been amazing,” Williams said in a press release. “Everyone at the table had a collective willingness to be open, to be pushed, to be prodded and poked, to get to that uncomfortable place of question mark, and to find out what was on the other side. The result is untitled and I’m very grateful and appreciative to have been a part of the process.”
The brand untitled captures the idea that physical space is only a backdrop.
“To live your life untitled means not having to live up to something or perform beyond a standard. For the standard to literally just be this beautiful matrix that allows people to create their own world,” explained Williams. “How could we as designers ensure the essentials were really thought out and expertly crafted, but delivered in a way that left everything else up to the imagination of the person occupying the space.”
“Pharrell pushed us towards designing spaces that felt universal,” added Fenton. “Instead of dictating a lifestyle onto our purchasers and residents, we aimed to create harmonious spaces that could serve as the backdrop to their lives. That lens was applied throughout the entire building until we ended up with something that felt both timeless and singular.”
Reserve Properties and Westdale Properties have previously teamed up on Line 5. This new venture will feature 750 units, split between two towers and a joint-podium.
“Yonge and Eglinton is in the midst of a tremendous transformation that is unlike anything else happening in North America”, added Mitchell Cohen, chief operating officer, Westdale Properties. “We were one of the first to invest in the area and to see just how far midtown has come since then has been a highlight. As developers with a long track record in this neighbourhood, collaborating with Pharrell is about pushing ourselves to do better. But it’s also an opportunity to give back to a community that has given us so much.”
The project is slated to launch in 2020.
Photo of rendering by Norm Li
