Corktown Mews: May 2012

The most recent construction photos from Corktown Mews in Toronto have arrived. Take a look.

Previous Corktown updates can be found here. Let us know in the comments if you’re moving to the area at Queen and River Street.

Corktown Mews, Toronto: Construction Update

We’ve got good news for our fellow Corktown buyers. Framing of the houses is set to begin this summer,  but working on the foundations will be the biggest priority for the next four to five weeks. Soon enough, sewage and water contractors will start to come in. Photos below.

Units are still available for this high-demand location at Queen Street East and River Street. What are you waiting for?

For the entire gallery of Corktown Mews construction photos, click here.

It’s always sunny in Corktown

(Click to enlarge)

Can you believe that construction on Corktown Mews has already begun? This is our first update of many on site.

Located in Corktown, downtown Toronto, Corktown Mews is an intimate neighbourhood with quick access to downtown and the Distillery District. Currently, three blocks have been excavated for building. Footings will be poured in block 4 tomorrow while foundations will be complete in approximately two and a half months. Site servicing will begin in June with framing starting in August. Summer is coming so soon!

To get the full picture of our excavated Corktown, visit the gallery here. We’d love to hear your comments.

What can you do with your garage space at Corktown Mews?

One of the best things about Corktown Mews in Toronto is that each unit comes with a garage. With or without a car, there are actually many ways to utilize garage space. Here are our favourite ideas.

1. Use your garage as storage

With the right design, you can designate certain spaces and use divisions for your extra belongings. Take advantage of vertical space with pegboards or wall slats as flexible alternatives to bins. Industrial shelving can be attached to the ceiling for more overhead space. Shelving can be installed over the hood of your vehicle to store your seasonal tires and there may be room to mount your bicycle in front of the tires or beside them.

2. Become an organizational mastermind

What is the best way to organize your garage? Make an inventory of everything you will put in your garage after you’ve organized the rest of the house.

The easiest way to do this is by making four piles: most frequently used items, frequently used items, seldom used items, and rare/seasonal items. This is a good way to gage what you can fit in you garage and how to organize it.

Some helpful hints:

• Categorize items into bins and then label them right away
• Put items back where you found them for consistency
• Do not store clothes in cardboard boxes on the floor as critters could gain access

For planning purposes, use your driveway space as a way to categorize items. It’s easier to group everything in cardboard boxes and then buy containers afterwards. You don’t want to later discover that your containers are not the correct sizes or sturdiness.

3. Bicycle shed

A garage is an excellent place to store your bicycle. Leaving your bike outside leads to rust and overall poor functioning quality. Consider a free-standing bike rack for one or more bicycles, or a wall-mounted rack. Pulley systems are available as well.

Our last tip? Set an organized schedule for biannual or quarterly cleanup.

Flexible floor plans explained at Corktown Mews

At Fieldgate Homes, we believe our buyers are looking beyond a one-size-fits-all style of living. With this approach comes our flexible floor plans.

Peter Comyns, sales manager at PMA Brethour, tells us how Fieldgate Homes has tried to create flexibility for a variety of buyer requirements. Peter explains below:

“On the main floor, some people might like the kitchen at the front or the back of the house,” Peter says, “And some people may prefer a layout that offers a kitchen island. So we thought, ‘Why don’t we offer alternative layouts?’”

Corktown Mews offers versatile choices for buyers needs. With these floor plans, we worked extensively with our architects to design flexible layouts.

“We’re offering three and four bedroom plans, but not only that, we want to have the buyer decide which floor they want two bedrooms on and how they want to reconfigure their other two floors,” Peter says.

There are many combinations within the same town home, accommodating a broader market.

“In the urban centre,” Peter says, “It’s not just young people moving downtown. It’s also people in their middle ages raising kids and active retired people as well. Now we’ve got a townhome that works with all of these groups.”

See below for the full variety of floor plans and click to enlarge:

Stay tuned in the next coming weeks for more info on Corktown Mews.