Porsche adding corporate store in Toronto
Porsche is a few weeks away from officially announcing a ground breaking for its fourth retail point in the Toronto area and its first corporate dealership in Canada.
North York Community Council approved the application for construction earlier this week. Toronto city council is set to make its decision on Nov. 3.
The project calls for a two-storey plus mezzanine, 62,430-square foot facility fronting Yorkland Boulevard near Consumers Road. The site is in the northeast corner of Toronto adjacent to the 401/404/DVP junction.
The proposed building will also contain Porsche Canada office space and training facilities. The by-law amendment would amend the existing site specific by-law including removing the holding provision which requires a new public road being conveyed prior to construction.
Porsche PR manager Patrick Saint-Pierre confirmed some of the details saying the corporate store would be “a first for us in Canada.”
The automaker’s head office is currently located in a business park near Pearson Airport in Mississauga. Saint-Pierre says the move will certainly help raise the profile of the brand’s corporate operations.
“In the spot near the airport we are in a building,” he says. “I think this new project offers us our own office.”
According to paperwork registered with the city of Toronto, the zoning by-law amendment application was submitted last December. Plans posted online show the basement level would primarily contain parking and storage areas as well as space for automotive detailing. The ground floor would have the showroom, workshop and some office and training rooms.
The mezzanine level is proposed to also contain offices and training spaces as well as locker and shower rooms for employees. The second floor would contain more office space.
Parking and vehicle storage will be provided in the basement of the building and on a surface parking lot. A total of 53 parking/storage spaces are proposed in the basement (17 of which are tandem spaces) and 164 spaces outdoors.
Of the 164 outdoor parking spaces, 106 would be located around the building and an additional 58 would be provided in a triangular shaped area in the southwest corner of the site.
Plans do not call for any outdoor vehicle displays.
Timelines for construction are not known. Financial details were not disclosed.
Mercedes-Benz is the only other automaker in Canada to operate a corporate retail operation.
The site is adjacent to the new home of Ken Laird and the Humberview Group’s Audi MidTown Toronto. That store is seven storeys and tops out at 165,000 square feet.
