King Plaza, 92 King St E: All-Inclusive Fees by St. James Park

King Plaza is the building I show people who want an old-Toronto address on King Street East and a monthly bill with almost no surprises in it. It is a 1991 tower of 212 suites, a short walk from St. James Park, the cathedral and St. Lawrence Market, and its fee covers hydro, heat and air conditioning. The fee looks high until you account for that, and the building is old enough that you need to read its paperwork carefully. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

An early-nineties tower on the old King Street East

King Plaza went up in 1991, a decade before the condo boom changed the downtown skyline. At 17 storeys it is a modest tower by today’s standards, and it sits in the stretch of King Street East where the city’s nineteenth-century commercial buildings, St. James Cathedral and St. James Park still set the tone.

That context is the reason to buy here. You are in the oldest part of Toronto, between the Financial District to the west and St. Lawrence to the south and east, in a building with a concierge and a garage. Most of what is newer on this stretch is either a hotel conversion, a luxury project at a much higher price per square foot, or a large tower further east.

I could not find a reliable record of who developed or designed King Plaza, and condos.ca leaves the developer field blank. If that matters to you, the corporation’s original declaration and the building’s permit history are the places to look.

Hydro, heat and air conditioning are in the fee

This is the single most important fact about King Plaza. Condos.ca lists the fee as covering common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, building insurance and water. In most downtown buildings from the 2000s onward, hydro is on your own meter and you pay for your heating and cooling separately.

Across the suites listed for sale when I checked, fees worked out to roughly $1.08 per square foot a month. Next to a newer tower quoting $0.65 to $0.75, that looks expensive. Add a realistic monthly hydro bill back onto the newer building, plus heating and cooling, and the gap narrows considerably.

The trade-off is that a bulk-metered building spreads energy costs across all owners, so a neighbour who runs the air conditioning all summer is partly on your bill. Ask whether the board has studied sub-metering, and look at how the utility line in the budget has moved over the last few years.

Parking is listed as a garage amenity, but condos.ca does not show parking as included in the fee. Confirm whether the suite you are looking at comes with a space and a locker, and whether either carries a separate charge.

Suites, corners and what owners have done with them

The suites I saw listed sat in the 600 to 999 square foot bands, with one-bedroom-plus-den and two-bedroom-plus-den plans. That is a more generous footprint than the typical downtown one-bedroom built in the last fifteen years, and dens in buildings of this era are usually closer to a real room than a hallway nook.

Many suites here are on their second or third interior. Listing descriptions describe renovated kitchens, new flooring and updated bathrooms, and they single out corner suites for their walls of windows. Expect a wide spread in condition, and price it accordingly: an original 1991 interior and a fully renovated one are different products in the same building.

Exposure matters on this stretch. Some suites look over King Street and the low heritage buildings around it, while others face neighbouring walls. Ask which way the suite faces and what is next door before you fall for the photos.

Daily life between the market and the Financial District

The appeal here is walking. St. Lawrence Market, St. James Park and the cathedral are a few minutes away on foot, and the Financial District and the PATH are close enough that many owners never need the car they are paying to park. Restaurants along King, Church and Colborne are part of the daily rhythm, and the automatic panel on this page lists what is closest.

This is a downtown street, not a quiet one. King Street East carries streetcar traffic, and the area is busy into the evening, especially around the restaurants. If you are a light sleeper, a higher floor or a suite away from the street side is worth paying for.

The area keeps changing at the edges. The city has been reviewing larger proposals on King Street East within the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood Heritage Conservation District, so expect cranes and construction in the blocks around you over the coming years. That is normal downtown, but it is worth knowing before you buy a view.

What King Plaza costs

When I checked, three suites were for sale, with asking prices from about $469,000 to $660,000 across one-bedroom-plus-den and two-bedroom-plus-den plans. That is a sensible entry point for King Street East, well below what the newer luxury buildings nearby ask per square foot.

The fee is the number to study. At roughly $1.08 per square foot a month across the active listings, it is high on paper, but it carries hydro, heat and air conditioning. When you compare King Plaza with a newer tower, compare the total monthly cost of living there, not the fee line alone.

Asking prices across the listed suites varied a lot more than their sizes did, and that spread mostly reflects condition and renovation. Use sold data, not asking prices, to judge a specific suite. I can pull it for you through my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at King Plaza

The package is practical rather than resort-style: a concierge, a rooftop deck that listings describe as having barbecues and skyline views, a party room, a meeting room and a fitness room. There is no pool to fund, which helps a 35-year-old building keep its long-term costs under control.

Jatin’s honest take on King Plaza

King Plaza — frequently asked questions

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