The Yards at Fort York, 20 Bruyeres Mews: Parking in a Low Fee

The Yards at Fort York is the building I point to when someone tells me downtown fees are out of control. This 2015 Onni tower at Bathurst and Fort York Boulevard carries fees in the high 70s per square foot with parking included, and it is one of the few towers in the area where a three-bedroom suite actually comes up for sale. It is not flashy, and it sits beside the Gardiner, but the numbers are hard to argue with. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Onni’s second phase, built on a seven-storey base

The Yards was the second phase of Onni’s Fort York community, following Garrison at the Yards across Bathurst at 169 Fort York Boulevard. Both were designed by Wallman Architects, and gh3 did the landscape. Onni is a Vancouver developer, and this cluster was one of its early Toronto projects.

The building is a 28-storey tower set on a seven-storey podium. The podium keeps the street wall at a human scale along Bruyeres Mews, and the tower above is mostly glass, with long horizontal balconies and brick at the base. Wallman described it as a transparent marker at the western edge of downtown, and from the Gardiner that is roughly how it reads.

When UrbanToronto first covered the project in 2011 it was pitched at 409 suites. The registered building has 412, so there was some shuffling of layouts between launch and completion. That is normal, but it is a reminder to work from the registered floor plan for your suite, not marketing material.

A rare supply of three-bedroom suites

Most towers in this pocket stop at two bedrooms. The Yards runs from about 452 sq ft one-bedrooms up to roughly 1,550 sq ft, and current listings include three-bedroom-plus-den suites alongside the usual one-bedrooms and two-bedrooms.

That matters because families and downsizers who want to stay downtown have very few options here that are not townhouses. If you need three real bedrooms within walking distance of King West and the waterfront, this building should be on your short list, and the large suites are where I would expect the least competition from investors.

The small end is the usual investor product: one-bedrooms in the 500s and one-plus-dens in the 600s. Those rent well, which is a safety net if your plans change.

Living next to the Gardiner and the Fort York lands

Be honest with yourself about the location. The Yards sits immediately south of the Gardiner Expressway on Bathurst, and suites facing north or east will hear it. Suites facing south and west look toward the lake and the newer low-rise blocks of the Fort York neighbourhood, and they are the quieter side.

The upside is that the City has spent heavily around this site. Onni’s own materials list a pedestrian bridge, a new public library and the extension of Fort York Boulevard among the nearby public investments, and the historic fort and its grounds are a few minutes’ walk. The retail at the base, anchored by a Tim Hortons, covers the coffee run.

Transit, schools, walkability and nearby food are covered in the data panel on this page, so I will not repeat them here. What I will say is that this is a location you either value for its access to King West, the lake and the highway, or dislike for the traffic. Visit at rush hour before deciding.

Where it sits in Onni’s Fort York cluster

Onni now has several buildings within a few blocks: Garrison at the Yards, The Yards, Local at Fort York and Fortune at Fort York. They share a developer and, in places, an architect, but they are separate corporations with different fee structures and very different prices per square foot.

That gives you a rare chance to compare like with like. The Yards and Garrison are the older pair, built around 2013 to 2015, and they trade at the same average price per square foot. Local and Fortune are newer and trade at a clear premium. If you are choosing between them, the question is whether newer finishes and amenities are worth roughly $100 to $200 more per square foot to you.

For most of my buyers, the answer depends on suite size. If you need three bedrooms, The Yards is often the only one of the four with real inventory. If you want a one-bedroom and newer finishes, the newer buildings are worth a look, but run the fee numbers first.

What The Yards costs, and why the fee is the story

The building average is about $823 per square foot, the same as Garrison at the Yards next door and well below Onni’s newer Fortune at Fort York at about $909 or Local at Fort York at about $1,015. For a 2015 concrete tower with parking in the fee, that is a reasonable entry point.

Six suites are listed for sale, asking between $445,000 and $999,000. One-bedrooms in the 500s ask between $445,000 and $535,000, and the three-bedroom-plus-den suites ask between $975,000 and $999,000. That spread gives you real comparables at both ends.

Fees on current listings average about $0.77 per square foot, with monthly fees ranging from $419 to $876. That includes heat, air conditioning, water, insurance and parking. Garrison next door runs closer to $1.28 per square foot on current listings, so the difference over five years is not small. Confirm that the suite you are buying actually has a parking spot, and whether suites without one pay a lower fee.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Yards at Fort York

The amenity list is modest for a 412-suite tower, with a concierge, guest suites, a media room, meeting space and a barbecue patio. That is part of why the fee is low. If you want a pool or a big gym in the building, look elsewhere; if you want lower carrying costs, this is the trade.

Jatin’s honest take on The Yards at Fort York

The Yards at Fort York — frequently asked questions

Looking at King West, Liberty Village and CityPlace more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.