Beyond the Sea and Star Tower, 15 Legion Rd: Three Towers, Big Suites

Beyond the Sea and Star Tower is the complex I suggest to buyers who want a large suite near the lake and do not want to pay new-tower prices for it. Empire Communities built three towers of 26, 37 and 44 storeys on the west side of Mimico Creek, with peaked roofs that make them easy to spot from the Gardiner. The fee per foot is high, and the reasons are worth understanding before you buy. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

Three towers with a Palace Pier pedigree

E.I. Richmond Architects designed the complex, the same firm associated with the Palace Pier towers further east on the waterfront. You can see the family resemblance in the peaked roofs and the more traditional profile, which set these towers apart from the flat-topped glass slabs around them.

The complex rose in stages. The 26-storey North Tower went up first, followed by the 37-storey South Tower and finally Star Tower, the tallest at 44 storeys. Condos.ca lists 831 suites under this entry, which suggests the towers share one corporation or at least one listing profile. Confirm in the status certificate exactly which towers TSCC-2194 covers before you rely on any building-wide figure.

Scale cuts both ways. Eight hundred-plus households spread the cost of a big amenity package and a large staff, but it also means a busy lobby, a big garage and a lot of units competing at resale. It also means board decisions affect a very large number of owners, so read the minutes to see how the corporation handles big projects.

Colonnade suites, live-work units and Urban Towns

The podium is the most interesting part of the design. Empire built three kinds of low-rise homes into it: Colonnade Suites with higher ceilings on the third and fourth floors, two-storey Live-Work units with their own street entrances at grade, and four-storey Urban Towns along the Mimico Creek side with patios, balconies, third-floor decks and a direct connection to the underground garage.

Those podium homes are a rare product on the waterfront. A buyer who wants a townhouse feel with condo services, or a small business owner who wants a street-facing work space below their home, has very few options in Humber Bay Shores. Before you buy a live-work unit, check the zoning and the declaration for what business uses are actually permitted.

In the towers, the suites run larger than the neighbourhood norm. Condos.ca lists sizes up to about 2,536 sq ft, and the active listings include three-bedroom plans as well as one-bedrooms. The size range condos.ca shows starts around 781 sq ft, yet one-bedrooms under 600 sq ft are on the market, so treat that range as approximate.

The Blue Water Club

Amenities are grouped as the Blue Water Club, which includes an indoor pool and a large party room, with a central atrium off the lobby and outdoor space on the podium roof. Condos.ca also lists a gym, library, media room, concierge and visitor parking.

A pool in a complex this size is a real draw, and it is one of the reasons I group this complex with Lago and South Beach rather than with leaner towers like Key West. As always, ask when the pool and mechanical equipment were last refurbished and what the reserve fund study says about them.

The quieter end of the waterfront

Legion Road sits on the west side of Mimico Creek, at the western end of the Humber Bay Shores strip, which makes it a little calmer than the cluster of towers around Marine Parade. The creek trail, Humber Bay Park and the lake are close, and Mimico’s Lake Shore strip of shops and restaurants is to the west.

Across Park Lawn, the former Christie site at 2150 Lake Shore Boulevard West has a phased master plan for about fifteen towers, a new GO station, parks and community facilities. For owners here it promises better transit and services in time, along with years of construction nearby.

A high fee per foot that includes almost everything

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $774 per sq ft, which is below the newer Humber Bay Shores towers and in line with buildings of this age. Fees across active listings average about $1.25 per sq ft, which is high.

Part of that is the inclusion list: heat, air conditioning, water, parking and building insurance are all covered, so you are not adding a heating bill or a parking charge on top. Part of it is the cost of running a pool, an atrium and three towers. When you compare with a newer building at 60 or 70 cents a foot, add back heat, cooling and parking for a fair comparison, then decide whether the gap is worth the space.

Only three suites are listed for sale right now and none for rent. Asks for the one-bedroom and one-plus-den listings run from about $420,000 to $519,000, and the larger three-bedroom on the market is priced well above that. Recent sold figures are in the data panel on this page.

Thin inventory in an 831-suite complex tells you something. It suggests owners here tend to stay, and in my experience the large suites rarely come up. If you want a three-bedroom near the water without moving to a house, it is worth setting up an alert and being ready to move when one appears, rather than waiting for a choice of several.

Building specifications

Amenities at Beyond the Sea and Star Tower

The Blue Water Club gives you a pool, a big party room and outdoor space, which is a full package by waterfront standards. In a complex with this many residents, ask how bookings work for the party room and how busy the gym gets at peak times.

Jatin’s honest take on Beyond the Sea and Star Tower

Beyond the Sea and Star Tower — frequently asked questions

Looking at Humber Bay Shores, Mimico, the Queensway and central Etobicoke more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.