A look, a development project in Toronto!

 

UrbanToronto ‏@Urban_Toronto  9m9 minutes ago

Sales recently launched for @adidevelopments' Nautique, today's #ProjectOfTheDay http://ow.ly/YYzQl 

 

Nice little development....

 

Urban Toronto https://t.co/pKBixJVJOv

 

Oops. Forgot this one....

 

New condo tower planned for Toronto’s East Yorkville neighbourhood https://t.co/iKpzywnXAR via @BuildingsMedia

 

Today's #ProjectOfTheDay is #Whitehaus Condos, coming soon to #Yonge north of #Eglinton https://t.co/iynNWHzUIw BTW, this is at the junction of the existing Yonge heavy-rail subway and the new Eglinton light-rail subway, now under construction.

 

I'm quite fond of how that project looks.

 

Can we copy/paste it into Cleveland or Cincinnati?

Finally, some interesting architecture:

 

Today's #ProjectOfTheDay was ZIGG by @mymadisonhome, now under construction on St. Clair W. https://t.co/NJfMOjObHa

 

Just mind-boggling! A couple of dozen projects, most with significant scale (30-60 story towers), planned or underway in this one part of Toronto that's previously been "neglected"...

 

Growth to Watch For in 2016: The Jarvis and Church Corridors

March 15, 2016 5:20 pm | by Julian Mirabelli

 

This edition of our Growth to Watch For series explores development at the eastern edge of Downtown Toronto along the Church and Jarvis Street corridors between Bloor Street and The Esplanade. With redevelopment on the west side of Downtown having picked up steam earlier, a shortage of redevelop-able space there now means that large-scale projects are now coming en masse to the less dense neighbourhoods along Church and Jarvis on the east side of Downtown.

 

Aided by proximity to transit, the characteristically historic and small-scale east side is about to see a host of new towers rising into the sky. The diverse area incorporates heritage properties galore as it covers formerly wealthy neighbourhoods from Toronto's younger days toward the north, and the historic heart of the city toward the south, with important historic landmarks such as the Allan Gardens, St. James Cathedral, and the St. Lawrence Market dotting the landscape throughout. In the midst of it all lies the rapidly expanding campus of Ryerson University, looking to further assert its influence in the downtown after the highly successful opening of the Ryerson Student Learning Centre.

 

MORE:

http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2016/03/growth-watch-2016-jarvis-and-church-corridors

 

 

Remember this is just in one corridor of the city. If this happened in the entire city of any one of the 3Cs, we'd be dancing for joy. Here's a few of the larger developments (there's more pics at the links above, including construction progress)....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What industry is it that has taken Toronto to this awesome economy in the past 20 years?  Is it banking, logistics, manufacturing, tech???  Or is is simply that they are a hub city for Canada?  Similar to how Denver is for the Rocky Mountain west or Minneapolis is for the upper Midwest.

 

Wow, not even attempting to hide their "inspiration" from 56 Leonard in Manhattan there with the tower on the right.

What industry is it that has taken Toronto to this awesome economy in the past 20 years?  Is it banking, logistics, manufacturing, tech???  Or is is simply that they are a hub city for Canada?  Similar to how Denver is for the Rocky Mountain west or Minneapolis is for the upper Midwest.

 

I think the answer would be "all of the above." 

 

Also don't discount the importance of being a center of government, something Toronto holds in common with your examples of Denver and Minneapolis (St Paul).    All those taxpayer funded jobs never hurts the local economy.    I'd love to pull it from Columbus and see what happens.....

What industry is it that has taken Toronto to this awesome economy in the past 20 years?  Is it banking, logistics, manufacturing, tech???  Or is is simply that they are a hub city for Canada?  Similar to how Denver is for the Rocky Mountain west or Minneapolis is for the upper Midwest.

Toronto is, in essence, the hub city for Canada (its "New York")--capital of finance, the arts, media, etc. (After I said this once before I was more or less censored for apparently somehow not being sufficiently "boosterish" for why Cleveland lacks the growth and development Toronto has) :wave:

I posted this in another forum a week or so ago. Montreal was the economic and cultural capital before the 1960s while Toronto was redesigning its land use around modernized streetcars (they bought Cleveland's in the 1950s), new subways and regional commuter rail lines. The Liberté-Québec political movement of the 1970s pushed Montreal's banks out and Toronto's recent civic efforts to clean up the city made it a draw. Toronto also benefited from liberal Americans fleeing our political turmoil in the late 1960s and early 1970s. One of the most famous was urbanist Jane Jacobs who also fought Robert Moses and New York's replacing of walkable neighborhoods ("slums"?) for monolithic buildings and urban highways. She found Toronto's pro-urban visions and actions desirable, so she relocated to Toronto and many others followed.

 

A creative liberal business climate continues to dominate Toronto's civic culture. That is being augmented today by Canada's open-door immigration policy which is bringing in more wealthy foreigners and their families. Among the G8 nations, Canada now has the highest percent of its population being foreign-born -- more than 1 out of 5 are from outside Canada. In Toronto, it's even higher -- half of the population is foreign born!

Mayor John Tory says #Toronto wants to require developers to build #affordable housing https://t.co/f2diVq6TzS

Plaza's Musée Condos Moves Closer to Completion on Adelaide

http://www.rightrelevance.com/search/articles/hero?article=051ecb220ddd0f2dc63806d0bdbeb7effd5194fa&query=urban%20planning&taccount=urbanplanrr

A friend of mine in Toronto posted these pictures from Mississauga where he visited a shopping mall today that is also a vibrant Transit Center. Note the scale and number of skyscrapers nearby in this Toronto suburb...

 

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10156601791470548&id=641820547

What industry is it that has taken Toronto to this awesome economy in the past 20 years?  Is it banking, logistics, manufacturing, tech???  Or is is simply that they are a hub city for Canada?  Similar to how Denver is for the Rocky Mountain west or Minneapolis is for the upper Midwest.

 

Toronto is extremely diversified. They're strong in just about every sector. Not only that, but they have arguably the strongest arts scene in North America too. It's right on the level of LA and NYC these days.

Today's #ProjectoftheDay is the #condos at 609 Avenue Rd by @mymadisonhome.  https://t.co/IDaf9Ctc4r #toronto #urban https://t.co/sVzxhHxjOE

Nine Buildings Proposed at Midland and Lawrence in Scarborough https://t.co/GJEIm9npr3

 

I have been in New York, DC, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and Toronto this year. Is it fair to say that Toronto is North America's most impressive urban development boom underway right now? The most impressive city? I know we'd all agree it is the most livable city.

 

Can't speak for LA or Miami... I usually think it makes someone seem small-minded when they assert that [some place] has the most impressive building boom.

 

I still can't get over what all Toronto is doing. It's just such an incredibly impressive city. Even without Rob Ford.

I'd say Panama City is the winner in per capita development in North America.  Toronto is a solid #2, though.

In terms of most livable I'd say Vancouver easily takes that spot in North America. The natural elements, public transit, people, parks, business climate, etc. all add up to an incredibly comfortable city.

 

But Toronto definitely has the biggest quanity of development in relation to its population. They're building at a pace the same as NYC yet only have 1/3 the population. It's insane.

I just saw a stat from the City of Toronto, that 94 residential buildings of 100 meters or taller were built from 2011-14. That's roughly 30 stories or taller. Given the pace of development since then and which is continuing, I'd say it's safe to say that they've added another 40-50 buildings of that size since then.

 

So what other city in North America has added that many 30+ story buildings? I doubt even New York City has added that many. This is Shanghai/Shenzen/Dubai-scale of construction.

 

The downside is that much of the scale of the city that I loved is changing from this scene on King Street West:

 

 

To this -- three 80+ story towers designed by Frank Gehry (although the facades of the low-rise buildings pictured above are being retained, per: http://www.torontotransforms.com/condominium-apartment-skyscrapers-in-downtown-toronto-feb-2014/):

 

bonus there is the gehry has the possibility of being the first memorable buildings.

If we're talking about per capita, Panama City annihilates Toronto in construction.  They've added 85 buildings in a span of 15 years over 30 stories in a metro the size of Nashville.  Toronto probably wins overall in terms of sheer number.

^ panama city, who knew? actually i did hear there was a boom there, but you dont hear much about it. i know a lot of usa expatriates move there or have second homes there.

 

so nyc had around 80k construction permits in 2015, an all-time high. that was a big, very odd blip though, due to a change in zoning rules at the end of the year. and of course that does not mean they will all be tall, but regardless that is really quite amazing. although a bunch more tall apt bldgs are on the way, i think nyc only has less than 400 built purely residential bldgs over 100 meters tall, so toronto may have even passed it or soon could if it continues the pace. it's the se florida coast of canada. and vancouver isnt doing too bad either.

I'd say Panama City is the winner in per capita development in North America.  Toronto is a solid #2, though.

 

Agree. Just look at that skyline!

 

 

LOL!

So I was curious about numbers so I went to Emporis and was looking at buildings taller than 100m.

 

NYC:

Existing built from 2010-now - 55

Under Construction- 60

Proposed - 52

 

Toronto:

Existing built from 2010-now - 89

Under Construction  - 65

Proposed - 108 (!)

 

Panama City:

Existing built from 2010-now - 26 (although basically everything over 100m has been built since 2000 in the city)

Under Construction - 8

Proposed - 7

 

Vancouver:

Existing built from 2010-now - 13

Under Construction - 1

Proposed - 12

 

Cincinnati:

Existing built from 2010-now - 0

Under Construction - 0

Proposed - 0

 

Damn.

On average, every 10 days there is a new, 100-meter+ building announced/proposed in Toronto. If you want to be stunned/nauseated/aroused, follow @Urban_Toronto on Twitter. This project, which is probably near 100m, was posted yesterday...

 

Introducing @DevronDev 's 'Vanguard' #condos in #Thornhill. http://ow.ly/1090yd

 

Sometimes I got to Skyscraperpage (and by sometimes I mean multiple times a day) and the proposals section is flooded with Toronto buildings. It's insane. They clearly know something most cities don't and it's more than, "they're the center of the financial industry in Canada." We should be trying to emulate their successes.

I'd start with copying their building department. That office has to be big and/or run like an assembly line.

Not tall but certainly more interesting than many of Toronto's 'scrapers....

 

UrbanToronto ‏@Urban_Toronto  4m4 minutes ago

The Lotus #Condos by @FortressRDI / Chestnut Hill is our #ProjectoftheDay!  http://ow.ly/10gPJ1  #toronto #urban

Oops. Missed one (or is this considered four?)....

 

UrbanToronto ‏@Urban_Toronto  Apr 1

#RioCan proposes four #condo buildings at Queensway-Islington. http://ow.ly/10bzEt  #toronto #urban #realestate

Sometimes I got to Skyscraperpage (and by sometimes I mean multiple times a day) and the proposals section is flooded with Toronto buildings. It's insane. They clearly know something most cities don't and it's more than, "they're the center of the financial industry in Canada." We should be trying to emulate their successes.

 

thats a canadian run website. so. you know. homerscraperpages. just sayin.

Yeah but it's also more than that. I would venture a guess that Toronto has more skyscrapers under construction or planned than any city on earth outside of China.

@metromorning In 25 years, the # of people living downtown in Toronto will almost double. At 6:10, @jen_keesmaat on a plan to make the city work for them.

Yeah but it's also more than that. I would venture a guess that Toronto has more skyscrapers under construction or planned than any city on earth outside of China.

 

I'm pretty sure Mumbai has more going up and planned. Also, many cities on the Arabian peninsula are still having high-rise construction booms.

 

What's interesting about Toronto is how much of the construction is residential. Toronto's tallest office building, First Canadian Place, was built in '75!

 

And even though Toronto is finally beginning to erect some new office space downtown the numbers aren't that impressive compared to it's residential high-rise explosion.

 

The Toronto market has 6 million sq. ft. of new office space going up after virtually nothing new was built since the early 90s. DC has 7.4 million sq. ft. going up after having two waves of office construction since the early 90s.

 

My uncle lived in the City of Toronto for 30 years before moving to Guelph. I love Toronto but the condos are killing some of its charm. There's a sameness that wasn't there prior to the condo boom.

Mumbai has 118 towers over 100m built/under construction/proposed since 2010. That's only 45% of Toronto's numbers.

 

Dubai has 157, or about 60% of Toronto, and it is undergoing the largest boom on the Arabian peninsula.

 

The thing that blows my mind with these numbers is just how many towers that really is. Cleveland currently has 16 towers over 100m total, the most in the state. That means that just since 2010 Toronto has built 5.5x the number of 100m+ towers than Cleveland has built in its entire history and is currently building 4x Cleveland's current count with 6.75x proposed. If everything proposed in Toronto gets built then from 2010-2020 Toronto will have built over 16x the number of 100m+ buildings than Cleveland has ever built.

 

And those numbers only go up when comparing to Columbus or Cincy. It's staggering. Imagine over the course of a decade building 16 Cleveland skylines, or 22 Cincy skylines. It's an unfathomable amount of buildings. No city in the US has ever had that type of boom. Only NYC approaches that number but it's also 3x the population of Toronto.

Mumbai has 118 towers over 100m built/under construction/proposed since 2010. That's only 45% of Toronto's numbers.

 

Dubai has 157, or about 60% of Toronto, and it is undergoing the largest boom on the Arabian peninsula

 

It has more than 118:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Mumbai

 

According to this list there are 117 under construction or in the pipeline and the cut off is at 130m.

 

I've been to Mumbai. It's certainly feels like a bigger boom than Toronto. That being said, Mumbai is a mega-city. Toronto is impressive because it is so "small".

 

I'm using Emporis for consistency's sake. So that's where I got my numbers from. Wiki's lists of towers seem to include visionary towers or towers that are stale proposals which I wasn't including.

 

The reason Mumbai's boom feels so much larger is that it basically had no towers at all only a decade or so ago. Then suddenly hundreds have gone up since the late 90s/early 2000s. A skyline essentially came literally out of nowhere.

I'm using Emporis for consistency's sake. So that's where I got my numbers from. Wiki's lists of towers seem to include visionary towers or towers that are stale proposals which I wasn't including.

 

The reason Mumbai's boom feels so much larger is that it basically had no towers at all only a decade or so ago. Then suddenly hundreds have gone up since the late 90s/early 2000s. A skyline essentially came literally out of nowhere.

 

That's a fair point. Also, Mumbai (and all Indian cities for that matter) are clogged with people. Mumbai makes New York or Tokyo feel like Omaha even without the high-rises.

 

And to be fair too, Dubai, Mumbai, New York and several East Asian cities are building much taller new buildings, challenging the tallest in the world. Toronto's tallest structure outside of the CN Tower, First Canadian, won't even be a world Top-50 tallest building in two years and I don't believe there is anything in the pipeline in Toronto to be taller. (Correcting myself, I saw that there are about 5 planned towers that will be taller than First Canadian but nothing being constructed yet).

They're definitely not pushing any height records in Toronto, but there's a ton of good 300-800 foot construction happening which is impressive from a skyilne standpoint.

They're definitely not pushing any height records in Toronto, but there's a ton of good 300-800 foot construction happening which is impressive from a skyilne standpoint.

 

It's impressive for a metro that is around DC/Boston size, no doubt.

I mean, yes, but it's also impressive for a metro of any size. It's far outpacing significantly larger metropolitan areas. Like I said, there are only a handful of cities that are building more than Toronto on earth.

Mumbai has 118 towers over 100m built/under construction/proposed since 2010. That's only 45% of Toronto's numbers.

 

Dubai has 157, or about 60% of Toronto, and it is undergoing the largest boom on the Arabian peninsula.

 

The thing that blows my mind with these numbers is just how many towers that really is. Cleveland currently has 16 towers over 100m total, the most in the state. That means that just since 2010 Toronto has built 5.5x the number of 100m+ towers than Cleveland has built in its entire history and is currently building 4x Cleveland's current count with 6.75x proposed. If everything proposed in Toronto gets built then from 2010-2020 Toronto will have built over 16x the number of 100m+ buildings than Cleveland has ever built.

 

And those numbers only go up when comparing to Columbus or Cincy. It's staggering. Imagine over the course of a decade building 16 Cleveland skylines, or 22 Cincy skylines. It's an unfathomable amount of buildings. No city in the US has ever had that type of boom. Only NYC approaches that number but it's also 3x the population of Toronto.

 

yes it is really something that stands out for a building boom for sure, but keep in mind its all bland glass apt bldgs. so toronto is becoming a canadian se florida. a sort of newer, more rounded up version than those apt bldgs lined up and down the florida coast. now this booming could go on and on and continue until it becomes a sao paulo, who knows? that would really be something.

I mean, yes, but it's also impressive for a metro of any size. It's far outpacing significantly larger metropolitan areas. Like I said, there are only a handful of cities that are building more than Toronto on earth.

 

Right, I was just making a comparison on US metro size.

 

But just to be clear, it's the world leader in residential construction but there are a lot of cities blowing Toronto away on the commercial side. Which makes sense and isn't a knock on the GTA.

That seems to be a common trend in Canada. Very few cities are really building large scale commercial office space. It seems like it's almost entirely residential.

UrbanToronto ‏@Urban_Toronto  5m5 minutes ago

We edited our #GrowthToWatchFor series in to a #Development Guide.

http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2016/04/urbantorontos-development-guide-growth-watch-2016

UrbanToronto ‏@Urban_Toronto  17m17 minutes ago

Two-Tower #Condo #Development Proposed at Bay and Edward. http://ow.ly/10A471

 

That seems to be a common trend in Canada. Very few cities are really building large scale commercial office space. It seems like it's almost entirely residential.

 

We need to be doing the same in the states. Otherwise you end up like San Francisco and Oakland. Canada knows demand for urban housing is quite deep. Zoning laws in most American cities have not caught up with demand. Seattle seems to be getting closest though...Portland is building a lot too.