5 reasons why we love our neighbourhood

There are a million reasons why we love our neighbourhood, but to write them all out would take way too long. Being perched on the corner of Yonge and Gerrard, there is so much going on around us in Downtown Yonge that sometimes it’s hard to keep track. Our neighbourhood is filled with amazing shops, restaurants, activities, public spaces - you name it - and we’re so happy to call it home.

Celebrating Valentine's Day in our Private Movie Theatre

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner! If you don’t feel like facing the crowds at your favourite downtown restaurant this year, why not stay in, make dinner in your condo, and then head down to the private movie theatre on our 5th floor to enjoy a classic Valentine’s Day flick? 

Take a Look at the Longest Streets in the World

If you ask almost any Torontonian, they’d probably tell you that Yonge Street is the longest street in the world. It’s no big secret that it’s a very long street and it did officially hold that title in the Guinness Book of World Records until 1999. However, when Yonge Street was separated from Highway 11, it lost that title. Sadly another motorway has taken that title away.

What streets are the longest in the world? We’ve rounded up a few of the longest. This is what they are:

Host a Movie Marathon in Our Private Theatre: Winter Edition

Winter is definitely here. Now that the snow is flying, the chances of you getting a snow day have just increased. What better way to spend a cold winter day than hosting your own winter movie marathon in our private theatre! It's time to round up your friends and book our theatre on our fifth floor amenities space.

A few of our favourite things along Yonge Street

In case you didn’t know, Yonge Street is the longest street in the world. That means that not only is our building located in the heart of downtown Toronto, but it’s also standing on a piece of history! You may not believe it, but Yonge Street officially stretches from Lake Ontario all the way up to Barrie. It’s pretty incredible. That being said, since Yonge Street is so special that means that some of the best things about our city (in addition to Aura, of course) happen to be located along this street.

Since many of you who live in Aura spend a good amount of time on Yonge Street already, we thought it would be helpful to map out some of our favourite and most notable spots along Toronto’s stretch of this historical street. Check it out!

Did we miss any of your favourite spots on Yonge Street? Let us know on Twitter!

The World's 5 Most Interesting Streets

The world is a crazy place. We’ve got big cities and small towns, sprawling forests and concrete jungles, tall buildings and short buildings, but most importantly wound throughout all of this is the path in which we get around - streets!

Not all streets are made the same. If you go looking, you might just find that some of the most unique streets in the world are really close to home. We’ve narrowed down five of our favourites, so take a look:

Yonge Love: Our BIA's Plan for Change

We’re really lucky to live in such a great community. Yonge Street is what some people call the artery of Toronto, and our friends at the Downtown Yonge BIA have made it their mission to make this 'artery' one of the best neighbourhoods in Toronto. In 2014, our BIA was promoting the Yonge Love campaign which called upon people in our neighbourhood to share what living on Yonge means to them and what they’d like to see from it in the future. Now, the results are in!

Tips for Hosting the Holidays at Aura

One of the perks of living in a condo with great amenities is that it’s incredibly easy to host your friends and family for the holidays -- or any occasion really. In Aura we have our entire 5th floor dedicated to amenities that our owners and tenants can use all year round to entertain and keep the party out of their own space (bonus!).

Your Shots of the Eaton Centre's Holiday Decor

If you’ve stepped foot in the Eaton Centre lately, you’ve definitely seen their holiday decor. It really helps to get in the mood for some holiday shopping with such festive decorations all over. From their gigantic glowing tree to their massive reindeer, it’s hard to resist snapping a photo!

5 Best Sustainable Buildings in the World

Buildings around the world are becoming more and more sustainable. It’s clear that this isn’t just a trend, it’s something that’s going to stick with us when it comes to building. From China to the United States, we’ve rounded up some of the best when it comes to green buildings around the world.

Host a Movie Marathon in our Private Theatre: Christmas Edition

It’s crazy to think that not long ago our movie marathon suggestions were for Halloween, and now we’re on to Christmas! Since most of us have time off of work and school during the holidays, it’s the perfect time to spend some quality time with friends and family. If we had it our way, that would mean hosting an all-day Christmas movie marathon to get us excited about the season. Wouldn’t you agree? And our private movie theatre on the fifth floor is the perfect spot to host.

Catch up with friends at Happy Hour near Aura

Winter is coming, which means catching up with your friends has to move indoors. Instead of being cooped-up in your condo over a glass of wine and watching Netflix, you should be taking advantage of all the great spots to grab a drink or two in our neighbourhood. We promise you don’t have to go very far for a great deal either! We rounded up the best happy hour deals in our area by day of the week, so you don’t have to worry about choosing where to go. Check it out.

CTBUH Awards 2015: The Best Tall Buildings

The Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat awards are a big deal. Each year CTBUH looks at the latest and greatest projects from all over the world who have demonstrated excellence or surpassed a record, and honours them at their annual awards ceremony. Some of the award categories include Best Tall Building, Urban Habitat, Innovation, Special Global Icon, and Performance. We, of course, like to focus in on who was nominated in the Best Tall Building category!

The Story of... The Petronas Towers

The Petronas Towers are the tallest twin towers in the world and can be found in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They are meant to capture and depict the country’s culture, ambitions, aspirations, and advancement on the world stage. Named after Malaysia’s national oil company, Petronas, one of the towers is fully occupied by the company as their office space while the other acts as office space for a number of smaller companies. Together, the Petronas Towers also act as one of Malaysia’s main tourist destinations.

Your Shots of the #AuraLights

You’ve all seen it - that pinnacle in the Toronto skyline, all lit up at night. That’s us! The #AuraLights have been lighting up our city each night for a few months now, and you can’t miss it. Since the lights look so stunning against the dark sky, we’ve seen tons of photos of the scene trickle in over the last little bit. After all, it’s hard to take a photo of the downtown cityscape without our lights shining through!

The Story of... One World Trade Center

As we all know, the new One World Trade Center was developed with the spot’s intense history in mind. It’s just one part of a larger complex whose main purpose is to commemorate what was lost on September 11, 2001. With the new building having been open for almost a year now, the amount of time and effort that was put into making the building perfect definitely shines through.

Hosting a Movie Marathon in our Private Theatre: Halloween Edition

Halloween might just be our favourite holiday. Not only is it acceptable to eat excess amounts of candy, but it’s a good excuse for a party and to dress up as whatever you’d like. In addition to this, it’s also the perfect time to put on a scary flick and get spooked!

As you already know, we have an amazing private movie theatre as part of our amenities on the 5th floor of the building, so why not make use of it and throw a Halloween movie marathon this year? Leading up to Halloween you can reserve the space for the night, invite your friends over, and indulge in some classic Halloween flicks together.

Live in Style with this Fully Furnished 2-Bedroom Suite

You know what’s even better than moving into the tallest condo building in the city? Moving into a completely furnished one! For this rental closeup, we’re featuring a unit that’s way up on our 65th floor and comes fully furnished so that you don’t have to worry about any heavy lifting.

Ready for a tour?

How It Works: The CN Tower Light Show

Everyone who lives in Toronto has seen the CN Tower lit up. It becomes a pinnacle in the skyline at night because of the bright lights and constantly changing colours, but did you know that those colours actually hold a meaning? Every day of the year the lights shine a different colour, sometimes relating to a local or worldwide event, to bring awareness to a particular cause, or to celebrate a holiday.

Get Your Caffeine Fix at Zavida Coffee

You don’t have to go far to get a good cup of joe around here.

This year Zavida Coffee opened up shop on the ground floor of our building, which we know has made everyone’s morning a lot brighter as you make your way to work and school. The coffee company itself has been around for over 35 years, and is trusted to make some of the best coffee you’ve ever had. Move over, Starbucks!

Photo via galleriartframe on Instagram

They serve locally roasted fresh coffee, a variety of teas, and have an assortment of pastries in case you’re feeling hungry. One thing we love about their business is that for every ten cups purchased from their shop, they plant one tree somewhere around the world, so it’s like you’re saving the world while you get your caffeine fix.

Photo via syng on Instagram

All things caffeine aside, the shop itself is really beautiful. With beautiful details on the floor, twinkly lights hanging from the ceiling, and cozy seats hanging all around the store, we highly recommend you enjoy your coffee in the shop every now and then. It’s a great place to get some work done or catch up with a friend.

Zavida is located on street level on the north side of our building, and they’re open 7 days a week!

Photo via zavidacoffeeroasters on Instagram