The Gallery, 25 Grenville St: Solarium Suites at a Downtown Discount

The Gallery at 25 Grenville Street is the older, quieter neighbour of the glass towers around Yonge and College. It is a 1990 building of 200 suites with a brick base, solarium suites and a fee that includes your hydro and cable, and it sells at one of the lowest prices per square foot in the area. The low price has a reason, and the fee is it. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A brick podium among glass towers

Grenville Street has become a row of tall glass towers, including Karma Condos and YC Condos a few doors east. The Gallery predates them by more than 25 years, and it looks it in a good way: a brickwork podium at street level with a conventional tower above, closer in feel to the older apartment buildings of the area than to its new neighbours.

At 26 storeys and 200 suites, it is also smaller than most buildings on the street, so the lobby and elevators are calmer. With fewer suites, there are fewer listings at any one time, and each one is easier to compare with past sales of the same layout.

The age of the building shows in the details. Expect older elevators, original windows in some suites and common areas that may or may not have been refreshed. None of that is a reason to walk away, but it should be reflected in the price you pay and in the questions you ask the manager.

Solariums and suite sizes

Suites range from bachelors and one-bedrooms to two-bedrooms, and many plans include an enclosed solarium. Building information from Dash Property Management, which leases suites here, describes two-bedrooms with solariums as part of the mix. Listings for the building mention hardwood floors, breakfast-bar kitchens and ensuite laundry, though finishes vary from suite to suite.

Sources disagree on the top of the size range. Condos.ca lists suites from about 420 to 1,231 sq ft, while Dash gives 420 to 1,020 sq ft. Larger suites may be combined or unusual plans, so check the floor plan of any suite you are considering.

A solarium works well as an office or a reading corner, but it is usually not a legal bedroom and can run warmer in summer and cooler in winter. I could not verify ceiling heights from a reliable source; expect standard heights for a 1990 building.

Why the fee is high, and why that matters

Condos.ca lists common elements, heat, hydro, air conditioning, cable TV, building insurance and water in the fee. Current listings show fees of about $1.28 per square foot, which is high by downtown standards. Part of that is simply the inclusions: in a new tower on this street, hydro, heating and cooling and cable would be separate bills.

Even so, the fee is the main reason The Gallery sells below its neighbours on a per-square-foot basis. Buyers capitalise a high monthly fee into a lower price. If the fee keeps rising faster than the market, that discount widens; if it stabilises, the building can look like good value.

That is why the budget and the reserve fund study matter so much here. Look at how the fee has changed over the last five years, what the corporation pays for utilities, and which major projects are scheduled. Parking is not in the condos.ca list of inclusions, so confirm whether a suite comes with a space.

Daily life near Yonge and College

Grenville is a short street between Bay and Yonge, between College and Wellesley. The University of Toronto and Queen’s Park are a short walk west, the hospitals on University Avenue are within walking distance, and the shops of Yonge Street are at the end of the block. Many residents are students, hospital staff and young professionals.

For a student or a young professional, that walkability is the whole point. You can reach campus, the hospitals and the Financial District without a car, which makes a suite without parking much less of a problem here than in most of the city.

The street is quieter than Yonge or Bay, but construction has been a constant as the newer towers went up, and more applications keep coming. Check the City of Toronto’s development applications map for nearby proposals before you pay for a view, since a new tower can block it.

What The Gallery costs

Condos.ca puts the building average at about $583 per square foot, one of the lowest figures for a downtown building this central. The newer towers on the same street typically sell for considerably more per square foot, though with much lower fees.

When I checked, four suites were listed for sale, asking from about $325,000 to about $775,000. That is a wide range for suites of similar size, so ask why the lower-priced suites are priced as they are and read their status certificates closely. Fees on those listings ran from just under $960 to about $1,680 a month.

The right way to judge a suite here is the total monthly cost, mortgage plus fee, against a newer building where you pay hydro and cable yourself. I can run that comparison, with recent sold data, through my building sold report.

Building specifications

Amenities at The Gallery

The package covers the basics well, with a gym, a sauna, a rooftop deck and a screening room, and adds a squash court, which few newer buildings offer. There is no pool listed, which helps keep long-term costs down. The squash court in particular is something you would otherwise pay a club membership to use.

Jatin’s honest take on The Gallery

The Gallery — 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.