The Florian, 88 Davenport Rd: Hariri Pontarini’s Curved Tower at Bay

Most Yorkville towers are blue-grey glass. The Florian is dark brick, white marble and bronze, and it curves with Davenport Road instead of ignoring it. It is one of the most expensive buildings per square foot in this part of the city, and the reasons are mostly about design, size and privacy rather than amenities. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A crescent of brick, marble and bronze

Hariri Pontarini Architects shaped The Florian around an awkward site. Davenport Road bends here, and instead of fighting the angle the building follows it: the podium sweeps along the street in a crescent and tapers to points at its east and west ends, and the south face carries curved balconies.

The materials are what people notice first. The tower uses deep aubergine brick and darkly tinted glass, the podium adds white Carrara marble, and bronze pillars frame the entrance. UrbanToronto described it as a grounded alternative to the glass towers around it, and I think that is the fairest summary. It looks like it was built to last rather than to sell quickly.

Before The Florian, the site held a car dealership and a fitness club. Its position at the head of Bay Street means the building closes the view for anyone looking north up Bay, which is part of why it is so recognisable.

You can see the choice of materials in the cost of the building as well as its look. Brick, stone and bronze age differently from glass and metal panels, and in a Toronto climate they generally hold up well, but when they do need work, masonry and stone repairs are specialist jobs. That is a reason to read the reserve fund study closely rather than a reason to walk away.

Fewer, larger suites

The sources disagree on the numbers, and you should know that before reading any listing. The architect and UrbanToronto both describe a 25-storey tower of about 250,000 square feet. The building profile records 21 floors and 87 suites, while its own description refers to roughly 100 suites. Lower podium levels and mechanical floors may explain part of the gap.

Whatever the exact count, the suites are large. Listing descriptions note that some residences take up an entire floor, and the two-bedrooms currently for sale are priced like small houses. This is not a building of studios and investor one-bedrooms.

Because the suites are large and few, many have been renovated or customized. Two suites with similar square footage can differ a great deal in layout, finishes and condition, so value each one on what it actually is.

The garden, the pool and the valet

The architects list an indoor pool, a fitness centre and a rooftop garden on the fourth floor, on top of the curved podium. That garden is the building’s shared outdoor space and one of its nicest features, set back from the traffic on Davenport.

The building profile adds a concierge, a party room, guest suites, an outdoor patio and visitor parking, and the building’s description mentions a 24-hour concierge with valet service and a wine cellar. Valet and a pool in a building of about 100 suites are expensive to run, and they are a large part of what the fees pay for.

There is also retail at ground level along Davenport, which helps the street feel active without bringing a lot of traffic into the residential lobby.

Ask how the valet and concierge are staffed, at what hours, and whether those contracts have been retendered recently. In a building this size, a change in staffing levels shows up quickly in the budget and in day-to-day service, and it is the kind of detail board minutes record well.

Where Bay meets Davenport

You are on the northern edge of Yorkville. The galleries and restaurants of Yorkville Avenue and Scollard Street are a few minutes’ walk south, and Rosedale begins a short distance to the east. The Yorkville condominium tower at 32 Davenport is effectively a neighbour on the same stretch of road.

Davenport is a busy route at rush hour, so a suite facing south over the road lives differently from one facing north. The data panel on this page covers transit, Walk Score and nearby food and parks.

The highest price per square foot in this group

The building averages about $1,259 per square foot, the highest of the midtown towers I have reviewed alongside it, ahead of Museum House (about $1,132) and well ahead of The Yorkville at 32 Davenport (about $970). Low sales volume means a single transaction can move that figure, so use it as a guide rather than a target.

Two suites were for sale at the time of writing, asking between about $2.0 million and $2.2 million, with monthly fees between roughly $2,280 and $2,510. Fees include common elements, heat, building insurance, parking and water; air conditioning is not listed as included, so ask how cooling is billed.

If you are comparing The Florian with a newer Yorkville tower, compare the full monthly cost and the size of the suite, not just the price per square foot. A large suite here with parking included can carry differently from a smaller one elsewhere with parking extra. My building sold report shows what has actually closed.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Florian

The package is built around service rather than spectacle: a concierge and valet, a pool and gym, and a quiet garden above the podium. For owners who drive, valet parking in the heart of the city is a daily convenience that is easy to underrate.

Jatin’s honest take on The Florian

The Florian — frequently asked questions

Looking at Yorkville, the Annex and Midtown more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.