Daily insights for city builders, delivered every morning at 6 AM ET. I’m Brandon Donnelly — a Toronto-based real estate developer and founder of Globizen. I’ve been writing here since 2013.

2 storeys not 12

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.

5 responses to “2 storeys not 12”

  1. Ivan Poloni Avatar
    Ivan Poloni

    Good for you for speaking up.

  2. barney1964 Avatar

    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.

  3. Siobhan Avatar
    Siobhan

    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.

  4. Ann McAfee Avatar
    Ann McAfee

    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.

  5. annmcafee Avatar
    annmcafee

    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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