Independent Toronto Condo Reviews

Harbour Plaza Residences, Toronto Condo Reviews 

(8 reviews)
Condo address: 88 - 100 Harbour St Toronto, ON M5J 1B7
(3.2 out of 5 stars)
Condo building and appearance:
Unit size and floor plan:
Condo amenities:
 

Harbor Plaza

 
(5.0 out of 5 stars)
by Jiani C Sep 24, 2021
5 stars for management, utility, convenience; winter time can walk through PATH, which is an add-on.
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Not Recommended

 
(3.0 out of 5 stars)
by Judy Jun 06, 2021
So a couple of things: 1. Canada Post: yes, they do have a CP parcel locker installed but it only has a limited amount of locker units - if you're lucky on a certain day (you have to be very lucky, these two are big buildings with lots of floors), so you might get it in this locker or else it goes to the Shoppers on Queen Quay (I wouldn't say this one is close, walking for 15 min straight is ok in the summer but image doing this when it's snowing and with the parcels that you're carrying...this just makes picking up parcels a part-time job after work!). If you ask concierges why they don't accept Canada Post, they will say the board told them to do so. However, there is no way to validate if the board did say so or not or if this arrangement makes sense at all. 2. Smell of garbage in the lobby area - this issues is more noticeable in spring/summer time (maybe this is due to the design/location of the garbage room). 3. Parking: no visitor's parking but you could use Sun Life's commercial parking for a day or so if you're moving in and out. Resident parking rental is one of the highest prices that I've ever encountered. It ranges from 300 per month to 500 depending on various things and time. If you want to live here, either buy a parking spot or don't drive. Arranging for fob access to the garage could take you half a day. 4.Gym: the gym is not located in the condo itself. The membership to the commercial gym next door is said to be based on the type of unit. For example, a 1-bedroom suite gets 1 membership (not friendly for a young couple who shares a 1 bedroom, it's already very expensive and only one person gets to go to the gym??!!). If you want to live here, make sure you know that you have to pay out of pocket for the gym. 5. Good things about living here: - Location: This is fantastic! 2nd floor is connected to the path and you can walk to Longos without going outside. This is so good in the winter! -Good maintenance team: the maintenance guy is super helpful! He has so much knowledge about the things in the building and suits. Very friendly too! - Nice Lakeview: This was what attracted to come live here
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End of 2020 Update

 
(5.0 out of 5 stars)
by Prideful Anthony Dec 14, 2020
I would like to use this chance to address all the issues and concerns other reviewers had. I have been living here for over a year now and prior to Harbour Plaza, I lived in two other brand new downtown condos, 88 Scott and 60 Colborne, so I have a pretty good comparison. The first issue, Canada Post. This is no longer an issue as CP has installed parcel lockers next to the mailroom for residents to pick up their packages. If the parcel lockers are full they will either deliver it up to your door or drop it off at a nearby shopper's drug mart for pick-up. During COVID, however, the concierge has been accepting them like parcels from any other carrier. The second issue regarding floors, I notice there is one resident who is particularly loud about floating/detaching floors and claiming others have the same issue. I can say that I and nine other residents that I know do not have this issue nor have we heard about it before. But do note that floors at or below the 58th floor uses laminate flooring while floors above 58 use engineered hardwood. The third issue regarding high floor noise, the builder has installed metal brackets at the centre of each balcony screen to counteract reverberation caused by strong winds. Moving elevator deposits is not an uncommon thing, all the previous condos I lived in also had them to prevent and pay for damages that occurred during move-in/out. The fourth issue, Airbnb is not allowed in this building, unlike the two neighbouring buildings (ICE & Maple Leaf Square) and any owners putting their unit(s) up for a short-term rental is violating the bylaw and purposely circumventing the system. The last issue I want to address is elevators. I wouldn't say it breaks down often, but when it does, it takes a long time for the custom parts to arrive, which is probably why some residents think that it frequently breaks down. Other times it could just be new residents moving in and they have the elevator booked for 3 hours. Each building has two elevator banks, one for high rise (44 - 73) and one for low rise (10 - 43), and each bank has three elevators. So that is a total of 6 elevators servicing ~70 floors. Trust me when I say this setup is much better than the other condos I have lived in. At the first building I lived in, there are only 4 elevators servicing 58 floors, and it doesn't distinguish between high-rise and low-rise. When one elevator is down, and there is ALWAYS at least one broken year-round, you will rather take the stairs. So I am already very grateful that there are 3 elevators that service my floor. Try booking a tour at the other buildings (or read their reviews on here) and you will know what I mean. The last note I wanted to mention is that there are two buildings within this complex. If something happened at one building doesn't mean it happened at the other (e.g. elevators), so do your due diligence.
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Overall poor experience

 
(2.3 out of 5 stars)
by Michael Aug 06, 2020
I've lived here for almost two years and if I could go back in time, I would choose to live elsewhere. The Pros: Very convenient with regards to transportation, obtaining food, and exercise. The gym is very well-equipped, but closes early on weekends, so this can be inconvenient for some. The security staff is very friendly and responsive. The Cons: (1) Very loud. This is in part because of location (near Gardiner + Scotiabank Arena) and in part because this building fosters many AirBnB units. Often, the lobby feels like a hotel due to the number of young people with suitcases walking in and out. You also frequently hear young people screaming on balconies, and parties are not unusual or infrequent. (2) Management is very unresponsive and rude. (3) Elevators frequently break down, and once took 4 months to fix. (4) The building had a telecom company advertising in front of both main and 2nd floor elevators where solicitors would try to tell you about their latest deal every time you walked in and out of your apartment. When complaining about this, the response I got was that "well 'the board' already decided it's what we're gonna do". Overall, it's a very busy, loud building whose high rent is not justified.
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Do not rent

 
(2.0 out of 5 stars)
by Kfidi Mar 11, 2019
I have lived in several condos in the area for the past decade, but never had I experienced such poor conditions, despite the astronomical rent price. There are several issues with the building: 1. The units facing the south/west corner (higher floors) are experiencing “whizzing sound” due to the issues with the builder- which the builders and management failed to take any action in rectifying (it has been more than a year)- the noise is unbearable. 2. Poor management and security (with the exception of 1 or 2 individuals). Management is most often not willing to assist and the security guards are very robotic. 3. When booking elevators you have to pay a $250/hour deposit in which they will reimburse after 7-10 business days (I have never heard of this process until I moved here)
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great place

 
(4.6 out of 5 stars)
by johnwayne42 Sep 12, 2018
harbour plaza is a great condo ,im happy to call home , security staff is amazing and helpful , the only people i hear that complain about security are over privileged people who do like to follow building rules . Or renters who have been told wrong info by the agent or landlord I have had no problem with receiving parcels , i signed a parcel acceptance form that was provided by the mgmt and it clearly stated what security can and cannot receive , the canada post office to pick up packages is very close , they have also just added community mail boxes for canada post parcels all in all its a beautiful building and great amenity floor
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Floors major issue

 
(1.7 out of 5 stars)
by Sam Aug 20, 2018
I have been living in Harbour Plaza for less than one year. The unit was brand new when I moved here. However, in less than one year, the floor started floating and detaching without any reason in some areas. When I contacted the building management, they refused to take responsibility and said that the problem is humidity. This was surprising to me since I always dry-cleaned the floor and used the air fans properly and maintained a controlled level of humidity at the unit and since that even with humidity the floor cannot detach like this if the work was done properly at the beginning . I also discovered later that other residents have the same issue. The management just want to avoid honoring their warranty and they are blaming their residents for problems that they are not responsible for.
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Useless staff.

 
(2.3 out of 5 stars)
by Ruth H. Jul 18, 2018
We have been living at building 88 for almost a year now. The only complaint I have is regarding the management and security staff.

Many have stated that a change in management staff is required. The staff does seem to bring in a lot of negative energy,

I have personally had issues with receiving parcels from Canada Post and upon following up I have found out that the front desk only accept certain sizes of packages. After following up with Canada Post I have found out that their delivery staff have been turned away all sizes of packages. After discussing this matter with a few other residents I have discovered that many have the same issue and same feedback. The security staff is VERY dishonest and deceitful.

Furthermore, the elevators see, to be constantly down. Sometimes a few elevators at one time. This is unacceptable! There should be action taken by Menkes Developement to quickly resolve these matters.

On the positive side the 2nd floor direct access to the PATH is great! especially for those long cold winter days. Finding a parking spot is very difficult as there are not a lot of spots available most of the time.
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