Paving over parking: Toronto City Hall green-lights Green P redevelopment
Toronto City Council has paved the way to converting surface parking lots into housing sites, in a bid to unlock more municipal land for affordable homes.
In a vote of 21-1 Thursday, councillors rubber-stamped a review of more than a hundred Green P lots identified by staff as suitable sites for residential and mixed-use projects.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
“The people of Toronto need us to leave no stone unturned when it comes to building desperately-needed affordable housing,” Mayor Olivia Chow said during the debate.
City staff had previously determined that of the 130 parking lots that could be transformed, 74 are located within a 10-minute walk from higher-order transit. They have not publicly identified the locations of those sites.
“The shift away from parking accommodation to housing and community service accommodation at these parking lots could provide a significant pipeline of City-owned lands to meet the City's housing and other goals,” wrote the deputy city manager for corporate services, David Jollimore, in a report.
“I would suggest that, you know, a surface parking lot is not always the highest and best land use,” Coun. Brad Bradford, vice-chair of the city’s planning and housing committee, said after the vote Thursday.
“We're facing a housing crisis, and one of the best things that the City of Toronto can do, in addition to expediting our approval process and reforming our zoning, is take a look at City assets and under-performing city assets.”
However, Coun. Parthi Kandavel, who represents Scarborough Southwest, warned of the impact to suburban commuters if lots near transit hubs are removed.
“In my neighborhood, it's a 20-minute walk to a bus stop, a 10-minute wait for the bus, another 20 minutes to get to Victoria Park and Warden Stations,” he said. “To add 50 minutes by removing a parking space, or parking lot, is ridiculous when you talk about livability.”
“We’re essentially saying we don’t want to do parking any more at these spots,” said Etobicoke Centre Coun. Stephen Holyday, who was the lone vote against the plan. “I see this is as another sign of the war on the car.”
“It irritates me to no end that we're talking about, you know, it's ‘cars versus housing, or people,’” Coun. Chris Moise said. “That's not the case.”
“We are in a housing crisis. We need to look outside the box to make sure that we house people.”
City staff will now undertake a review of all the off-street, municipally-owned parking facilities that could serve as future housing sites and identify priorities and timelines by the end of the year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Hackers release corporate data stolen from London Drugs
Retailer London Drugs says cybercriminals who stole files from its corporate head office last month have released some of the data after it refused to pay a ransom.
Toronto man falls off his chair after seeing $70M Lotto Max win in his bank account
A Toronto man who won $70 million in a recent Lotto Max draw literally fell off his chair when he saw the funds in his bank account.
Montreal-area high school students protest 'sexist' dress code
Approximately 50 Montreal-area students — the vast majority of them female — were suspended Wednesday after their school deemed the shorts they were wearing were too short. On Thursday, several students staged a walk-out to protest what they believe is a "sexist" dress code that unfairly targets girls.
'Looking over our shoulders': A killing looms large in a little B.C. town
Something shifted in the pretty little village of Lumby, B.C., after Tatjana Stefanski vanished. It used to be the sort of place where parents let their kids roam free or play in the local creek, but everything has changed.
Remaining wrongful death lawsuit filed after deadly Astroworld concert has been settled, lawyer says
The one remaining wrongful death lawsuit filed after 10 people were killed during a deadly crowd crush at the 2021 Astroworld music festival has been settled, an attorney said Thursday.
What is 'slapped cheek disease' and should parents be concerned?
Despite its rough name, experts say most cases of 'slapped cheek disease' are mild and not a cause for concern.
'I won't stop,' Celine Dion says in trailer for upcoming doc about her health woes
Celine Dion's fans are getting a first glimpse of the superstar's struggle with a rare neurological disorder in an emotional trailer for an upcoming documentary about her career and life.
Rapper Sean Kingston's home raided by SWAT; mother arrested on fraud and theft charges
A SWAT team raided rapper Sean Kingston's rented South Florida mansion on Thursday and arrested his mother on fraud and theft charges that an attorney says stem partly from the installation of a massive TV at the home.
Hidden risks: Why ultra-processed food may be hurting our brains
Ultra-processed foods are quick, convenient and hard to avoid, but there is growing evidence that eating these products can have an impact on brain health, leading to cognitive decline and stroke.