City
Lanterra Developments under siege for falling glass
Lanterra Developments is under siege in the wake of falling glass at their Murano Condos near Bay and College. According to the Toronto Star, last night was the fifth time glass has fallen from the building at 37 Grosvenor Street this year. The highest one was from the 35th floor and thankfully residents and passerbys have remained unscathed to date.
But that hasn't stopped real estate agents and residents from taking to Twitter to tweet their two cents about the ordeal. As the screengrabs below illustrate, there's bubbling disillusionment about the quality of work being done at Lanterra backed projects. They've yet to formally comment on the glass that fell today, but I suppose this suffices as a buyer beware warning for anyone interested in any of their current and upcoming projects.
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"What are the odds that the Murano building would have the worst glass in Toronto?"
http://twitter.com/#!/ddale8/statuses/98208516862513153
Depending on the state of acrimony between the Board and the developer, a lot of threats and obfuscation could be going on right now at that development. The developer will blame the residents (it is possible, you know - everything from drilling into the frame of the glass to hang pictures or curtains, to having a heater blow on the glass to eliminate fog on the glass - I have seen it all) while the Property Management may be stuck in the middle. New construction presents many, many challenges.
Think of it this way, your brand new Toyota has the windshield fall off one fine day: if you go to Standard Auto Glass and pay to have it replaced, odds are you will get stuck paying for it. On the other hand, it may be weeks before the Toyota dealer gets permission to fix it under warranty if it's an odd case. In the meantime, should you drive your car? Will the manufacturer pay for a rental?
It's even more complicated than that with Tarion (new home warranty program in Ontario) involved and the sub-contractors who installed the glass. Good developers SHOULD pay for the repairs and then go after the sub-contractor; however, if the defect is endemic to the design, well, let's just say I wouldn't want to own a suite in THAT building!
In a project I worked in recently, we had 3 cases of cracked glass. From the time it was reported to the time we managed to get those 3 sheets replaced was about 3 weeks. We brought in our own glass people to investigate (they were doing us a favor since it was unlikely they would be paid for any of the work) and in 2 of the 3 cases they determined it was 'home owner fault.' I must say, however, it was fascinating watching these guys do their forensic work to determine whether the cracks were the result of settling, factory flaws or homeowner neglect.
John: there is actually considerable foot traffic on Bay. Kind of a busy street actually...
When someone is fatally injured?
What are the city counselors and planning department going to do about this disgusting matter.
Once is bad enough 5 times is unforgivable and should be dealt with promptly in the appropriate way.
on the upside, my other half will make a killing working construction/reno when these garbage shacks start to come apart at the seams.
Of course, given that its falling from the 35th floor, the height might make the difference moot.
Any architects around here?
The first shattered balcony was around a year ago on the south elevation of the North tower. This piece shattered onto the canopy glass along Bay street and was barely noticed by City authorities (Police, Fire, Building).
The glass balconies have been shattering on all facades ever since then. Far more incidents than 5.