Explorer at Waterview, 58 Marine Parade Dr: Mid-Rise Living by the Lake

Explorer at Waterview is a quieter alternative to the tall towers in Humber Bay Shores. It is 13 storeys on Marine Parade Drive, the street closest to the lake, and its fee covers heating, cooling and parking. It has fewer listings than its neighbours, so when the right suite comes up you need to be ready. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A Monarch mid-rise in the Waterview community

Explorer is one building in Waterview, the cluster of condominiums that Monarch built between Lake Shore Boulevard and the lake. The best-known of them is the Nautilus at Waterview, a 39-storey Graziani + Corazza tower that UrbanToronto followed as it rose in 2010; blogTO notes it was built on the site of the old Beach Motel. Explorer came earlier, registered in January 2007, during the first wave of building that replaced the old motel strip.

At 13 storeys, Explorer is a mid-rise in an area of towers. That matters day to day: 270 suites means fewer people waiting for elevators and a lobby where concierge staff learn your face. The trade-off is views. Upper suites see the lake and the parks, but lower floors face other buildings, so the view varies more than in a 40-storey tower.

Monarch was one of the main builders in Humber Bay Shores during this period, and later went on to develop the Lago site to the west. Buying from a developer that built a whole cluster here means Explorer shares a design language and a street with its neighbours, rather than standing alone.

Suite sizes and what to measure

Condos.ca records suites from about 339 to 3,042 square feet. The low end is unusually small, and I would treat it as either a very compact studio or a record error until you see a floor plan. Most suites that come up are one-bedrooms of 600 to 700 square feet, with two-bedroom and two-bedroom-plus-den plans above that and a few large suites at the top.

Layouts vary across the building, so compare floor plans rather than bedroom counts. I could not confirm ceiling heights or the architect from a reliable source, so measure during your viewing.

Parking is included in the fee. Confirm on the status certificate whether a space comes with the suite you are buying, whether it is owned or exclusive-use, and whether there is a locker. Do not assume a one-bedroom includes both.

What the fee covers

Across the suites currently listed, the fee averages about $1.24 per square foot, and the one-bedroom listings sit at roughly $790 to $820 a month. That is higher than most newer towers on a per-square-foot basis, but the comparison is not like for like.

Explorer’s fee covers heat, air conditioning, water, parking, building insurance and common elements. In most towers built after about 2010, heating and cooling are on a separate meter and parking often carries its own fee. When you add those back to a newer building’s fee, the gap narrows. You still pay your own hydro here.

Put that into a real suite. On a 650-square-foot one-bedroom, $1.24 per square foot works out to roughly $800 a month. A newer tower charging a lower rate might look a few hundred dollars cheaper, but once you add its separate heating and cooling bill and any parking charge, much of that difference disappears. Get the actual figures for the building you are comparing against before you decide.

Explorer is now about 20 years old, which is when larger capital items start coming up in the reserve fund plan. Ask for the reserve fund study, the latest budget and the board minutes, and look for planned work on the garage, roof, windows, elevators and the heating and cooling equipment.

Marine Parade Drive, day to day

Marine Parade Drive runs along the edge of the lakefront parks, so the Waterfront Trail, Humber Bay Park and the Mimico Creek wetlands are a short walk away. For walkers, runners and cyclists, this is one of the best streets in the city. On summer weekends the parks are busy, so visit then too.

Explorer itself is residential, so for errands you will be heading up to Lake Shore Boulevard and Park Lawn Road. Check the data panel for the nearest groceries and restaurants before you assume you can do everything on foot.

That corner is where the biggest change is coming. The City’s Park Lawn Lake Shore Transportation Master Plan, endorsed in 2022, supports the redevelopment of the former Christie cookie site as a mixed-use district with a new Park Lawn GO station, new street connections across the Gardiner and the rail corridor, and a dedicated transit lane on Lake Shore. Expect construction for years, followed by more shops and better transit. The data panel on this page covers transit, schools and nearby food in more detail.

Price per square foot against its neighbours

Condos.ca puts Explorer’s average at about $863 per square foot. That is higher than the older Waterford Towers on Lake Shore, at about $771, and reflects Explorer’s location on Marine Parade Drive and its lower density.

There are three suites for sale and one for lease right now. The one-bedrooms of 600 to 700 square feet are asking roughly $490,000 to $499,000. Large suites here are rare and trade in a different bracket entirely, so do not use one-bedroom prices to judge them, and do not judge a large suite from a single listing either.

With so few listings, comparables are limited. For recent sold prices, see the data panel or ask me for the building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at Explorer at Waterview

The amenities are practical: a concierge, a business centre and meeting room that are useful if you work from home, a party room and guest suites. Condos.ca does not list a pool, so if that matters, look at the full amenity list on the status certificate or at a neighbouring tower.

Jatin’s honest take on Explorer at Waterview

Explorer at Waterview — 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.