I came across this poster — related to this development application — over the weekend:
And I think it raises a number of important questions:
- Is 2 storeys appropriate for next to a subway station and next to an existing mid-rise building?
- Is a mid-rise building truly unprecedented in this context? See below.
- Are mid-rise homes inappropriate for “residential streets?”
- How does building height factor into flood plain concerns? Wouldn’t lot coverage be more relevant?
- And when does a mid-rise become a “high-rise?”
For more context, here’s the proposal and its immediate surroundings:
I fully appreciate that there’s little incentive to support new development in a place where you already live — even if you happen to live in a similarly-scaled building across the street. And I am sure that I’ll receive a number of emails following this post.
But optimizing the use of land around our existing transit stations is one of the best things we can do as city builders.
Update: I have redacted the contact information on the above poster.
BRANDON DONNELLY 
Good for you for speaking up.
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Given how much the Crosstown LRT will end up costing taxpayers financially — it’s currently $12.81 billion — and the time, inconvenience, and revenue loss since work began in 2011, it makes absolutely no sense to have low-density anything at or near LRT stations. None.
I used to live about a two-minute walk from the Leaside station — I now live in Halifax — and my chair would shake throughout a day’s work at home. Multiply that by a decade. Yet people want two-story properties at these intersections. Where’s the return on investment on that?
Ridiculous.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/confidential-documents-eglinton-crosstown-lrt-1.6675131#:~:text=The%20budget%20for%20the%20project,rail%20transit%20(LRT)%20system.
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2 storey residential is unsustainable around transit stations and on main streets. We are in a housing crisis. These are the best locations for density and more housing.
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2 storeys.. Don’t believe it. Have a look at transit stops in Metro Vancouver. The Lougheed-Burquitlam area of previously single family homes (and a few older apartments –affordable housing which is being lost with redevelopment) starts at 30 storeys and goes up from there (one proposal at 84!) making good use of transit. https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/burquitlam-plaza-552-clarke-road-coquitlam-morguard and https://thecityoflougheed.com/. https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/brentwood-west-master-plan-proposal-4430-4488-halifax-street-4461-lougheed-highway-burnaby https://homes.theamazingbrentwood.com/
Many projects in these articles are now built and occupied.
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2 storeys.. Don’t believe it. Have a look at transit stops in Metro Vancouver. The Lougheed-Burquitlam area of previously single family homes (and a few older apartments –affordable housing which is being lost with redevelopment) starts at 30 storeys and goes up from there (one proposal at 84!) making good use of transit. https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/burquitlam-plaza-552-clarke-road-coquitlam-morguard and https://thecityoflougheed.com/. https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/brentwood-west-master-plan-proposal-4430-4488-halifax-street-4461-lougheed-highway-burnaby https://homes.theamazingbrentwood.com/
Many projects in these articles are now built and occupied.
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