Big plans are in the works to transform one of Toronto's most culturally significant intersections.

Developer One Properties has filed new plans to redevelop a site at 66 Wellesley Street East, on the northwest corner of Church and Wellesley Streets, in the city's vibrant Church-Wellesley Village.

Plans have long been in the works to bring a new tower to this corner, and an updated submission filed in July reveals that the developer is now seeking to construct a 31-storey residential building on this site, housing a mix of condominium and rental units.

It is just the latest in a series of concepts and proposals for the property dating back to 2017.

Following initial concepts floated in early 2017, a fleshed-out submission was tabled later that year featuring a 43-storey tower with a stunning design from Danish architecture firm 3XN.

That proposal faced resistance from City planners, and One Properties would later remedy this by expanding the site with additional land acquisition. This resulted in a second proposal submitted the following year, replacing the plan with a 36-storey tower and nine-storey mid-rise.

Ambitions for a landmark building at the site seemed to evaporate in 2020, when a new iteration of the plan replaced 3XN with local architects Graziani + Corazza.

This version of the plan was later appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) in mid-2021, and a new design was revealed the following year, once again reduced in height to 28- and seven-storey buildings and introducing another pivot in architectural style.

Two years after that 2022 plan was proposed, yet another redesign has been submitted to City planning staff, introducing an entirely new architecture firm, which has once again completely reimagined the plan.

The 2024 plan by S9 Architecture incorporates a range of forms and materials, with a design language that attempts to blend the new-build elements with the preserved exterior of a current rental apartment building at 64 Wellesley East that would be partially demolished to make way for the new complex.

Aside from design changes, some of the most notable updates visible in new renderings is the footprint of the large plaza fronting the intersection.

Another big change is the addition of rainbow-inspired motifs that reflect the area's importance to the Canadian 2SLGBTQ+ community.

A total of 408 residential units are proposed for the site, including 343 condominium units and 65 rental replacements for units that would be torn down in the redevelopment, in accordance with the City's rental demolition policy.

This isn't the only big change in store for Church and Wellesley, as another tower is in the works just across the intersection at 68 Wellesley.