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Falling glass
A couple of years ago, several downtown condos had
problems with glass
balcony panes shattering and falling down onto the streets below.
It seemed that this was a temporary problem and we no longer had to
worry about walking on Toronto's downtown sidewalks.
This problem has not gone away.
On Tuesday 10 September 2013, a pedestrian suffered minor injuries
after being struck by a falling piece of glass that fell from a balcony
on the 23rd floor of the condominium residences on top of the
Shangri-La on University Avenue.
The sidewalk was closed off to pedestrians for a couple of hours.
This was the second piece of glass to fall off this building this year.
In January, the police closed off part of University Avenue after a
pane of glass fell off of an upper floor.
That's not all
On the morning of Tuesday 20 August 2013, a window fell from the 53rd
floor of the Four Seasons Hotel and Residences.
Shattered
window at the Four Seasons
The shattering glass causing minor damage to two expensive cars, and
caused a temporary closure of Yorkville Avenue. No one was hurt.
I have to wonder when this very serious safety hazard is going to be
resolved.
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Falling glass
from hotel closes portion of downtown Toronto street
CBC News
17 July 2014
A part of University Avenue was shut down this morning due to falling
glass from the Shangri-La Hotel.
The lane southbound between Adelaide and Richmond was closed briefly so
crews could clean up the shattered glass. The road is now open. The
incident is under investigation and no injuries have been reported yet.
The glass fell off a balcony of one of the upper floors of building.
This is at least the fourth time there's been falling glass at the
building.
Kerry Connelly, a spokesperson for the the Shangri-La Hotel, said in an
email to CBC News that "upon inspection, the glass had broken from a
residential unit which is not part of the Shangri-La hotel... The
building inspector will review and communicate with the building
developer."
The location, 188 University Avenue, is home to both the Shangri-La
hotel and residences.
Last September, one person was injured by falling glass. A 53-year-old
man was reportedly hit in the head and was transported to
hospital with minor injuries. In 2013, there were two other similar
incidents of falling glass from the hotel.
Since then, both the city and the building's owners have investigated
the problem but have not determined what's causing it.
Falling glass has also been a problem at the RBC Centre, the Trump
Tower and the Festival Tower condominiums at the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
Shangri-La, is a hot spot of the Toronto International Film Festival,
and has a popular noodle bar in its lobby.
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Shangri-La
balconies off limits until glass replaced
City ordered glass replaced on balconies of University Avenue tower
CBC News
13 August 2014
The Shangri-La is replacing all the glass on its balconies, which means
that its guests and residents won't be able to enjoy them again until
at least the end of this month.
The University Avenue tower is home to a hotel and residential
condominium units. The city ordered the repairs to the Shangri-La's
balconies after a number of incidents involving breaking glass, one as
recent as this summer.
Similar problems with falling glass have also occurred at other
buildings in downtown Toronto, including the RBC Centre, the Trump
Tower and the Festival Tower condominiums.
Westbank Projects hopes to complete all the work on the Shangri-La's
balconies by the end of August. The developer said that it had been
addressing the problem before receiving the order from the city.
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Stretch of Yonge Street reopens after pieces of glass fall from Yorkville building
CBC News
27 September 2016
No one was reported injured after pieces of glass fell from the 32nd floor of a building
A stretch of Yonge Street has reopened after pieces of glass fell from the 32nd floor of a building in Yorkville on Tuesday.
Capt. David Eckerman, spokesperson for Toronto Fire Services, said the glass fell from 10 Yorkville Ave.
Police had taped off Yonge Street from Davenport Road to Yorkville Avenue until the area could be cleared.
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Falling glass shut down Bay St. for second day
in a row
Toronto Star
By Alina Bykova Staff Reporter
Emma McIntosh Staff Reporter
29 September 2016
Glass fell from the Sick Kids Centre for Research and Learning for the second day in a row on Thursday morning.
Bay St. was closed between Elm St. and Walton St. around 5:30 a.m. when
the glass fell from a window on the fifth floor of the building.
Cpt. David Eckerman from Toronto Fire Services said that it fell from about 50 feet up.
The road was closed for nearly two hours, causing traffic and TTC
routes to divert as police investigated and cleaned up the scene.
Falling glass is a frequent issue in the downtown core.
It was the subject of two $20-million class-action lawsuits in 2012,
when shattered glass incidents prompted developers at Murano Towers on
Grosvenor St. and Festival Tower on John St. to seal residents’
balconies.
The lawsuits alleged that builders were negligent in the installation and manufacturing of the glass panelling.
The Shangri-La hotel and condo building on University Ave. also had a
recurring problem with falling glass, leading to the City of Toronto
ordering the hotel to ban guests from its balconies and construct
barriers over sidewalks in 2014.
Shattered glass plummeted from five balconies at the Shangri-La over
two years. A man was injured in one incident, and in another, a pane
shattered on University Ave. during the morning rush hour.
Balcony glass at a handful of downtown condo buildings exploded in
summer 2011, causing minor injuries. Developers using the same supplier
then installed protective mesh on their terraces as a safeguard.
The issue prompted the provincial government to raise building code standards in 2012.
Over the years, glass shards have also rained down from Trump Tower and the RBC Tower, among many others.
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Bay Street reopens after glass falls from Four Seasons
Toronto Star
17 May 2017
Bay St. has reopened to vehicles and pedestrians after glass fell from the Four Seasons hotel Tuesday night.
The glass fell from the building, on Bay between Yorkville Ave. and Scollard St., around 10:30 p.m.
There were no reported injuries.
“At approximately 10:30 p.m. on May 16, 2017, a north-facing window
atop the building of Four Seasons Residences' west tower broke and
glass fell down onto the streets of Bay and Scollard,” the Four Seasons
said in an official statement Wednesday.
The street was reopened at around 9 a.m. Wednesday.
This isn’t the first time glass has fallen from buildings along Bay St.
In September 2016 glass fell from the Sick Kids Centre for Research and
Learning for two days in a row on Bay St. between Elm St. and Walton St.
Also in 2015, glass fell from a building at Bay St. and Dundas St., injuring a 48-year-old woman.
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