A 32-storey luxury tower may soon rise across from the Summerhill LCBO
The neighbourhood has maintained a village vibe for decades despite sitting on a wealth of transit
Midtown’s next luxury tower is coming into focus. On Tuesday, Woodcliffe Landmark Properties shared designs for the Summerhill, a 32-storey mixed-use tower planned for 1196–1210 Yonge Street and 2–8 Birch Avenue. The residence would be steps from the historic North Toronto station—home to one of the city’s most famous LCBOs—and Summerhill station.
It would also bring 62 new homes to one of the city’s most affluent areas—and notably, all are set to be two- or three-bedrooms. While the city desperately needs more family-sized units, there have been murmurings about the units being unaffordable for the majority of Torontonians.
According to Woodcliffe, the building, designed by Architects-Alliance, will come with expansive terraces, 10-foot ceilings, boutique office space and ground-floor retail. And it won’t erase what’s already there, featuring preserved heritage façades at the base. Lead designer Peter Clewes, in a statement, said the project is “about creating a building that belongs to its neighbourhood” and described it as a contemporary take on luxury focused on “the lived experience of residents rather than spectacle.”
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The tower underscores a bigger shift underway along Yonge. Districts surrounding subway stations are being targeted for intensification, even in neighbourhoods that have traditionally seen little high-rise development. Summerhill fits that bill, having maintained a village-like feel for decades despite sitting on a major transit corridor.
Zakiya Kassam is a writer and fact checker whose work has appeared in Post City Magazines, This Magazine and Now Toronto. She was previously the associate editor at Storeys.
