Artworks Tower, 130 River St: Daniels’ Regent Park Tower, Honestly Rated

Artworks Tower is the building I point to when a buyer wants east-downtown newness from a developer with a long track record in the neighbourhood. Daniels has been rebuilding Regent Park for close to two decades, and this 32-storey tower at Dundas and River is one of the later pieces of that plan. It is a sensible buy, but it is not a quiet one, and you should know why before you book a showing. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A late chapter in the Regent Park rebuild

Regent Park is being rebuilt in phases as a mixed-income neighbourhood, with Daniels as the development partner. Artworks Tower belongs to the third phase, on a block bounded by Dundas, River Street and Tubman Avenue. It was planned as a two-building condominium complex: the tower on the River Street end and an 11-storey companion, marketed as Artsy Boutique Condominiums, toward Tubman.

Construction moved quickly through 2020. By April of that year the three-level underground garage was nearly finished and the ground floor slab was going in, and the tower was completed in 2022. The name is a nod to the role the arts have played in Regent Park, something Daniels leans on heavily in its marketing.

One thing to understand up front: the same building is also marketed by Daniels Gateway, the company’s rental arm, which advertises suites here for lease. Owner-occupiers, investor landlords and a developer-run rental program in one tower is a different mix from a building that is almost entirely owner-occupied. It is not a red flag on its own, but ask the manager how many suites are held as rentals and how that affects the board and the rules.

Quadrangle’s design and the green features you will not see

Quadrangle designed the tower, with KIRKOR Architects and Planners as architect of record and Brook McIlroy on the landscape. The base reads as a ground floor plus two equally sized podium levels, with the tower rising to about 106 metres above Dundas. Daniels describes the lobby as gallery-like, in keeping with the name.

The more useful detail is in the City of Toronto’s Green Standard file. The building was built to Tier 2, the higher voluntary level, and the City lists about 23% energy cost savings over the code baseline. Heat and cooling come through a district energy system, each suite has its own energy recovery ventilator, and the glazing and insulation are high-performance. Low-flow fixtures cut potable water use by about 30%.

For an owner, that matters in two ways. A well-insulated envelope and an ERV in every suite usually mean more comfortable rooms and steadier bills. District energy also means your heating and cooling is billed differently from a building with its own boiler, so ask how those charges are metered and passed on.

Suites, bikes and parking

Suites range from studios to three-bedroom-plus-den plans, roughly 366 to 1,138 square feet. The small end is genuinely small, which suits a first-time buyer or a pied-à-terre more than a couple who both work from home. Standard features include air conditioning and a five-appliance package.

This is a building designed for people who do not drive much. The City file shows 489 bicycle parking spaces, 424 of them for residents, against 14 car-share spaces and a handful of EV and EV-ready stalls. The garage is three levels deep. Not every suite comes with a parking space, so confirm parking and locker details for the unit you want before comparing prices.

Accessibility is better than average. The City lists 78 barrier-free suites in the building, which is worth knowing if you are buying for a parent, planning to age in place, or simply want wider doorways and an easier bathroom layout. Ask the listing agent whether a given suite is one of them, because it is rarely spelled out in the listing.

Living at Dundas and River

The address puts you on the east side of the rebuilt Regent Park, where the newer towers, the central park and the neighbourhood’s community and arts facilities sit within an easy walk. Dundas Street East carries you west toward the core, and the Don Valley is a short way east beyond River Street.

Regent Park is still mid-transformation. Several blocks around this one are slated for more construction in later phases, so expect cranes, lane closures and changing views for years. Some buyers see that as upside, since a finished neighbourhood usually lifts values. Others simply do not want to live next to an active site. Decide which you are before you buy.

How the numbers compare

The building average sits around $951 per square foot, which is about what you would expect for a 2022 tower on the eastern edge of downtown. You are paying for newness and for a developer with a long record in the area, not for a discount.

Active asking prices currently run from about $310,000 to $990,000 across four sale listings. Monthly fees on those listings range from about $376 to $837, or roughly $0.83 per square foot. That is mid-pack for a new downtown tower, but because heating and cooling come through district energy, compare total monthly costs, not just the fee line.

Four sale listings against eight for lease tells you this building currently has more activity on the rental side. That fits the investor and rental-program mix, and it means a buyer has a reasonable choice of resale suites without the oversupply you see in some newer towers.

Building specifications

Amenities at Artworks Tower

There is no pool, which keeps long-run operating costs down. The co-working room and the garden plots are the amenities residents actually use day to day, and the kids’ zone and arcade make it friendlier to families than most downtown towers.

Jatin’s honest take on Artworks Tower

Artworks Tower — frequently asked questions

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