Week of November 29th
The plan for Yonge & Eglinton's makeover starts to take shape and the city reveals its program for (covid-appropriate) winter fun
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Midtown’s most ambitious development is revealed and will create a denser, busier, and greener Yonge & Eglinton
Last week, Oxford Properties held a public information session to preview its plans for the huge CanadaSquare property at the southwest corner of Yonge & Eglinton. You can view the detailed presentation here. This was the first the public was seeing of the developer’s vision for the site, though some lucky residents associations received a roadshow this summer. (My invite for those got lost in the mail, I guess.)
Oxford’s plan is ambitious. REALLY ambitious. It includes a total of four residential towers, a large office complex, a community space (for a daycare or similar), several park spaces, a subway spot, a TTC bus depot, a connection to the Eglinton LRT, and a partridge in a pear tree (probably).
If that sounds less like a high-rise development project than a miniature city, you’re not alone.
There are many elements of the proposal that community advocates will probably support. Most of the residential units are purpose-built rental - a win for those concerned about housing affordability (and if you’re not…uh, why?). The 10,000 square foot community space allotment is also meaningful — albeit not wildly generous — particularly in a part of midtown that’s starved for it. There is potential for the type of interesting fine grain (i.e., small) retail we love along this stretch of Yonge.
Clearly, however, the primary selling point will be the huge greenspace proposed on site. It includes both a new park adjacent to The Berwick building and a large “mid-block connection” between Yonge and Duplex. Oxford helpfully compares it to other parks from downtown which you may recognize (…or may not since we’ve been locked-down in our homes for so long).
This would be a significant win for our area given the increasingly acute shortage of park space as midtown has grown. That being said, given the shortage, I can’t help but wonder why this greenspace isn’t more…green? Personally, it feels a tad overbuilt - with too many features, too many stairs, and too much concrete to feel like a genuine dose of nature. It also doesn’t seem to offer the ability to connect to the potential future park overtop of the subway trench - a fantasy perhaps…but an opportunity we would regret missing.
These are small design quibbles and only time will tell if others agree. But they won’t be the only quibbles as there are always plenty of questions with a project of this size. Height will clearly be a concern as despite the developer’s efforts to create “human-scale” (i.e., short) podiums on the buildings, they will still transition dramatically from the single family homes west of Duplex.
There are also strange holdovers from decade’s old plans for the site that feel awkward and unnecessary in 2020 - like the new street between Berwick and Duplex. The answers to other questions - such as how to plan for a reduced demand for TTC buses due to the Eglinton LRT - aren’t entirely clear either.
There is still time to work through these issues. According to the project’s timeline, Oxford plans to formally submit its rezoning plans in 2021, when there will be a more substantial round of community consultation. Construction would take place in phases - starting with the commercial space to the north - and stretch from 2023 through to the end of the decade, I would assume.
As I’ve said before, if there’s one project in midtown to get involved in, this one is probably it. You can start by signing up for the next round of community feedback at the project’s website here. If you think there’s an angle or issue missing, you can always let me know too.
The City launches its plan for winter fun - but you better book quickly!
Here’s a hot take on a cold day: let it snow!
*ducks for cover*
But seriously, if the City’s recently released plan for winter activities is any indicator, snow is going to give us a welcome variety of things to do outside this winter. Their plan unveiled a host of camps, skating rinks, toboggan hills, and other activities that will be available despite the ongoing lockdown. Also included is increased snow clearing and maintenance of public parks as well as the availability of outdoor public washrooms throughout the winter - more mundane, but actually a hugely important change to making the parks usable year-round.
David Rider at the Toronto Star has a run-down of the full itinerary here, but some of the key openings in Davisville (or nearby) are:
Hodgson, Eglinton Park, & Cedarvale Skating Rinks
Cedarvale Toboggan Hill
Beltline Trail Snowshoe and Cross-Country Ski
Walk-fit Program at Cedarvale Community Centre
(Interestingly, this wasn’t as long of a list as I expected…which perhaps reinforces my comment about the shortgage of parks and community spaces in midtown…)
Because of the pandemic, programs require pre-booking as a way of avoiding overcrowding and aiding in contact tracing. Reservations are open Monday - Thursday for timeslots the following week by following a cumbersome process at the City’s ancient looking online booking portal. The site is called eFun - a name which is both terrible and hilarious.
Overall, the winter program is a good start to addressing the restlessness being caused as the pandemic lockdowns stretch into the winter months. The site will be clunky, the capacity will be insufficient, but it is better than the nothing we might have faced otherwise. Pair it with the City’s announcement that it will (FINALLY) look into conducting sidewalk clearing in neighbourhoods like Davisville, and residents will have far more options for safely getting outside and enjoying a welcome break from their homes.
So…Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!