May Tower I, 1 Lee Centre Dr: Concierge, Pool and an All-In Fee

May Tower I is the building that finished the street wall on Lee Centre Drive, and it is the one I suggest to buyers who like the Hillsborough Court towers next door but want a concierge and a slightly newer building. Like its neighbours, it bundles almost every utility into the fee. Very few suites come up for sale, and that shapes how you buy here. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

The third tower of the Lee Centre plan

A June 1998 City of Toronto planning report describes May Tower as the third tower of Lee Development’s project, following the two Hillsborough Court towers, and says it was meant to continue the urban street edge on this part of Scarborough City Centre. It was under construction at the time.

The same report split the site into two condominiums: a commercial corporation of 11 ground-floor retail units, known as 118 Corporate Drive and 3, 5 and 7 Lee Centre Drive, and the 261-suite residential corporation above. So you are buying into a tower with shops at its base but a separate owner group running them.

May Tower II at 11 Lee Centre Drive followed in 2002 as its own corporation. When you read the status certificate, look for the shared-use agreements the City required between the corporations on this block for driveways, parking, servicing and recreational facilities, and check how costs are split.

Generous parking and an all-inclusive fee

The 1998 report records 376 parking spaces for the 261 residential suites, which is about 1.4 spaces per suite. That is far more than a new Toronto tower would provide, and it is one reason the building appeals to two-car households.

Condos.ca lists parking in the fee. Don’t assume every suite has two spaces, though. Confirm on the status certificate how many spaces and lockers go with the suite you are buying, and whether they are owned or exclusive-use.

Condos.ca lists air conditioning, common elements, heat, hydro, building insurance, parking and water in the fee. In most towers built since the early 2000s, hydro is on your own meter and often heat and cooling are too, so the fee here should be compared with a newer building’s fee plus those bills.

The trade-off is shared risk. The corporation pays for everyone’s energy, so a rise in utility prices shows up in the budget and then in your fee. Ask how utility spending has moved over the last few years and whether the board has looked at energy retrofits.

Suites run from about 623 to 1,113 sq ft, which puts most plans in the one-bedroom-plus-den to two-bedroom range with more room than a typical new two-bedroom. Condos.ca also flags pet restrictions, so read the rules before you move in with a pet.

Put together, the parking and the fee are the two things that make this building easy to live in. You are not paying extra each month for a space, and a cold January does not change what you owe.

Living in Scarborough City Centre

This part of Scarborough was planned as a city centre, with offices, civic buildings and housing around Scarborough Town Centre and Highway 401 just north. The panel on this page lists the nearest transit, schools and shops.

The change that matters most is the Scarborough Subway Extension. Metrolinx is extending Line 2 from Kennedy Station to new stations at Lawrence and McCowan, Scarborough Centre, and Sheppard and McCowan. Construction is underway, and once it opens, City Centre riders get a one-seat subway ride instead of a transfer.

Expect the area around the new stations to keep redeveloping. That supports long-term value, but it also means construction for some years yet.

What to look at in a 1999 building

Buildings from the late 1990s are now in the stretch where the expensive items come due. Windows and balcony doors, the garage membrane, elevator modernisation, roofing, and the boilers and chillers that deliver the bundled heat and cooling are all on a typical reserve fund study for a tower this age. An indoor pool adds its own mechanical systems and, eventually, a rebuild.

None of that is a reason to avoid May Tower I. It is a reason to read the status certificate, the most recent reserve fund study and a year or two of board minutes before you firm up. Look for what has already been replaced, whether the fund is on track for what is left, and whether the board has raised fees steadily or in sudden jumps.

I would also ask the manager whether any major projects are planned in the next few years, and how they will be paid for. That is the question that separates a good older building from an expensive one.

What May Tower I costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $586 per square foot. That is a little higher than the Hillsborough Court towers next door, which fits a building that is a few years newer and has a concierge.

For context, condos.ca puts the two Ellipse towers further along Lee Centre Drive, built in 2004 and much taller, at roughly $606 to $621 per square foot, and Hillsborough Court II at about $528. May Tower I sits in the middle on price, with fewer amenities than Ellipse but a far more complete fee.

When I checked, only one suite was for sale and one was for lease, so there is no asking range I can fairly quote. In a 261-suite building, that low turnover tells you owners tend to stay. It also means you may wait for the right plan, so set up an alert and be ready to move.

With so few listings, recent sales are the better guide. Use the panel on this page, or ask me for a building sold report before you make an offer.

Building specifications

Amenities at May Tower I

A concierge, an indoor pool and a sauna cover what most owners here use day to day, and the security staff are a big part of why people stay. Pools cost a lot to run and to rebuild, so check where the pool sits in the reserve fund study.

Jatin’s honest take on May Tower I

May Tower I — frequently asked questions

Looking at Scarborough Bluffs, West Hill, Guildwood, Woburn, Malvern and Rouge more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.