The Ambassadors I, 300 Alton Towers Cir: Menkes Space at Under $500K

The Ambassadors I at 300 Alton Towers Circle is a building where suites of roughly 1,000 square feet and up have recently been asking under $500,000, which is rare in Toronto. It is a 1989 Menkes tower, the first of three Ambassadors buildings in Milliken, and the fee covers hydro and heat. That combination makes it worth a serious look, provided you go in with your eyes open about a 35-year-old building. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

The first tower of the Ambassadors trio

Alton Towers Circle was built out over several decades, and the Ambassadors buildings are among the oldest towers on the loop. The Ambassadors I at 300 came first in 1989, followed by The Ambassadors II at 330 in 1990 and The Ambassadors III at 350. Each is its own corporation with its own board, budget and reserve fund.

Condos.ca credits Menkes with this tower. Menkes is a long-established Toronto developer, founded by Murray Menkes about 60 years ago, that has built single-family homes, condominiums, and office and industrial space. A recognised developer name helps at resale, but at 35 years old, what counts now is how the corporation has maintained the building since.

Newer towers have since filled in around the circle, including Platinum East at 80, The Gatsby at 88, and Optima on the Park I and II at 150 and 160. They give you a useful price comparison: the newer buildings offer modern finishes and smaller suites, and the Ambassadors offer space.

Suites that start near 1,000 square feet

Suites here run from roughly 985 to 1,452 square feet. That is an unusual range for the price. In most new Scarborough towers, 985 square feet would be a large two-bedroom at the top of the building’s price list; here it is the smallest plan.

The building is a good fit for buyers who need a proper second bedroom and a den or office, and for families who have outgrown a newer condo but are not ready to buy a house. Look at each floor plan for how the bedrooms are separated, which matters a lot for multi-generational households.

Expect a wide range of condition. Some suites will have been fully renovated and others will be close to original. Ask what has been replaced in the suite, including windows, the heating and cooling unit, electrical and plumbing, and price any renovation into your offer.

Size also drives your share of costs. Each suite’s portion of the common expenses, and of any special assessment, is set by its proportionate share in the declaration, so larger suites pay more. Check that figure in the status certificate for the suite you are considering.

Hydro, heat and parking in the fee

Condos.ca lists hydro, heat, air conditioning, water, cable TV, building insurance, parking and common elements as included. In practice, that means your fee covers nearly every housing cost except internet, phone and property tax.

Across the three suites listed for sale when I checked, monthly fees ran from about $673 to $889. For a suite of around 1,000 square feet or more with hydro, heat and parking included, that is a reasonable fee level. Compare it against a newer building by adding back the hydro, heating and cooling and parking that you would pay separately there.

Bundled utilities do mean the corporation carries energy-price risk on behalf of all owners. Ask to see how the budget and fees have moved over the last few years, and whether the board has studied energy retrofits or suite metering.

Living in Milliken

Milliken sits in the northwest corner of Scarborough along the Steeles Avenue boundary with Markham. Farming here ended in the early 1980s and most residential development was finished by the late 1980s, so the Ambassadors towers went up as the neighbourhood was being completed.

Most of the surrounding area is detached houses, which gives the Alton Towers cluster a quieter setting than a tower on a main arterial. The neighbourhood has Milliken GO Station for commuter rail, along with TTC and York Region Transit bus service. The exact transit, school and walkability figures for this address are shown in the panel on this page.

The circle itself has seen a steady stream of newer towers. That has brought more neighbours and more traffic on the loop, but it has also given buyers better comparables and kept the area on the radar of people shopping in the northern part of the city.

Being on a loop road rather than a main street also shapes daily life. Most residents drive for larger errands, and the circle’s own traffic has grown as each newer tower opened. Check the panel on this page for what is within walking distance of this address.

What The Ambassadors I costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $421 per square foot. That is higher than The Ambassadors II next door at about $374, which may reflect a different mix of recent sales and suite condition rather than a real difference in quality. Either way, both are well below newer towers on the same circle.

When I checked, three suites were listed for sale, all asking between $499,000 and $499,999, with fees from about $673 to $889 a month. Three listings priced within a thousand dollars of each other tells you sellers see $500,000 as the line buyers are reluctant to cross here.

That clustering is useful when you negotiate. If you want to see what comparable suites have actually sold for, I can pull them through my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Ambassadors I

The package is an outdoor pool, a sauna, a gym and a meeting room, with a security guard. It is a practical set rather than a resort one, and the lack of an indoor pool keeps one expensive system off the corporation’s books.

Jatin’s honest take on The Ambassadors I

The Ambassadors I — frequently asked questions

Looking at Agincourt, L’Amoreaux, Milliken, Dorset Park and Wexford in Scarborough more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.