Last August I wrote a BLOG post about the Europa condo building at 308 Palmerston Ave (read it here). I pointed out that although the Little Italy/College Street West area is one of the most sought after in the city, residential condo/loft units in the neighbourhood are hard to come by. One year later, this is still the case.
There are a few new developments in the works (CUBE Lofts near College and Shaw will be finished soon), but it’s still primarily the same three options we had last year; the converted church at 456 College St, Europa at 308 Palmerton Ave, and Ideal Lofts at 301 Markham St.
Ideal Lofts, like the other two buildings, is immediately notable for its excellent location. Both the College and Bathurst streetcars are just steps away, as is everything that the Little Italy area has to offer; great restaurants, pubs, cafes, the Royal Cinema, Soundscapes Music, a 24hr Metro... There's even a Shoppers Drug Mart on the main floor of the building.
Ideal Lofts is also a great example of "soft loft" construction. Whereas a "hard loft" is converted from an already existing structure (an old warehouse, a church, etc), a soft loft building is constructed from the ground up but still implements a number of loft-like features (high ceilings, exposed concrete, floor-to-ceiling windows, etc).
A bit more about the building:
Ideal Lofts was developed by Context Development (also responsible for Tip Top Lofts, Radio City, and MOZO, among others) and designed by Architects Alliance. Completed in 2002, the building has 9 storeys and sits at the south-east corner of Markham Street and College Street. The municipal address is 301 Markham St. Take a look at the Google Street View map here.
At just under 70 suites in total, the building is modest in size and fits in well with its surroundings. Floors 2-5 are comprised of single-level units, while the suites on floors 6 and 8 are 2-storeys. As mentioned above, high ceilings, exposed concrete, and large windows are some of the defining characteristics of the units here. I've included a few extra photos of the building's exterior below.
If you own a suite in the Ideal Lofts building and are thinking of selling, feel free to contact me for an evaluation of your property or for more info on my listing services.
If you're thinking of purchasing a suite in the Ideal Lofts building specifically, or in the Little Italy/College Street West Area in general, feel free to contact me for more info.