For decades, the city has limited the height of buildings along the stretch of The Danforth from Broadview Avenue east of Pape Avenue — a decision that has helped preserve its homely feel. But now, a developer is seeking permission to build a 49-story tower at the northeast corner of Pape and Danforth where the Bloor-Danforth subway will intersect with the Ontario Line. “They’re asking for a lot of extra density, [but] where is the affordable housing?’ said Comet Paula Fletcher, who represents the area. “Torontonians are fed up with developments that lack affordable housing. One hundred per cent for-sale apartments is not where we need to go in this city.” City planners have not yet decided what level of density is appropriate for that intersection or Broadview and Danforth further west. But last spring, they released a study at the request of the city council that calls for lifting the height limit, allowing the Danforth to grow into a neighborhood of mid-rise buildings up to eight stories tall with a strong affordable housing component. Coun. Paula Fletcher, who represents Ward 14, Toronto-Danforth, says a separate study next year will determine appropriate densities for new housing at the Broadview and Pape subway stations. (Mike Smee/CBC) The idea behind the study was to help meet the city’s growing need for housing, and especially affordable housing, while helping the Danforth evolve into a more integrated thoroughfare—a thoroughfare designed to move people of all ages and abilities in the neighbourhood, regardless of whether they walk, cycle or drive. “The study is looking more at a medium type of building … something up to eight stories that makes sure to maintain good sunlight conditions,” said Carly Bowman, the city’s community planning officer for the area. Bowman says the city worked with local residents extensively before the study was completed. “People really appreciate the Danforth,” he said. “People also recognize that it was important to make room for more people to come live here and more businesses to move in, including affordable spaces for both,” he added. This site, on the east side of Avenue Pape, next to the metro station, is slated for redevelopment. But there is considerable debate about how tall residential buildings should be. (Mike Smee/CBC) “We hope that the feel of The Danforth and that historic main street will continue, while additional opportunities for people — jobs and the types of infrastructure to support them, both open spaces, community spaces, park spaces and hard infrastructure — will increase .” Bowman says studies on how much more dense the Pape-Danforth and Broadview-Danforth intersections could be will be decided by a new study. He says work on that should start early next year.
Study could ‘frustrate’ intensification, developer’s lawyer says
As for the proposed 49-story tower by Pape Station, the developer’s attorney, Del Boca Vista Properties, has already expressed dismay at the new study’s apparent limits on densities. “It is our understanding that this will be one of only 10 interchange stations across the entire TTC subway network when [Eglinton Crosstown LRT] and the Ontario line is full,” Neil Smiley, of Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, said in a letter to the city. “As a result, the planning documents if approved without amendment will have the potential to prevent residential and commercial intensification of the sites,” Smiley wrote. But both Bowman and Fletcher stress that development at the two transit hubs at the western Danforth, Pape and Broadview stations will be considered in a separate study. And Bowman says it’s too early to tell how high is too high at these nodes. “The application came near the end of the summer so it’s still very early,” he said. “We have more work to do to assess what level of intensity might be appropriate.” Fletcher agrees that the developer may be jumping the gun with his complaints. “The Pape and Broadview metro stations were designed to have a separate study, to see what the density should be there. We all know that at this metro station, Pape, and at Broadview, there will be more density,” he said. “He’s 49 [storeys] too high; Very small? That conversation hasn’t happened yet.” HousingNowTO’s Mark Richardson says building heights will need to be increased to solve the housing crisis. (Zoom) But in the end, those who fear higher densities will dilute the neighborhood’s unique character may have to bite the bullet, according to Mark Richardson, technical lead for HousingNowTO.ca. “We either have a housing crisis or we don’t have a housing crisis,” he said. “If we have a housing crisis, our neighborhoods along transit lines have to change.” He also says the Danforth design study, in limiting new building heights to eight stories, won’t solve the housing crisis. “Realistically, to create any affordable housing along the Danforth, there are going to be places with 25-, 30-, 35-story buildings.” He said that while 49 stories is probably too high, “realistically, I think this will end up in the mid-30s, low 40s.”
