Toronto 2595 St Clair Avenue West | 63.5m | 20s | 1654316 Ontario Ltd | KFA

[interchange42]

We've got a new proposal for you here! See the front page story here.

Application Details

www.toronto.ca

42

 

[AlbertC]

It's bad architecture IMO. But at this early stage of the planning process, I think there's room for improvement and change. Especially if they bring on a developer to help realize this vision. Otherwise, it's a positive sign to see development happen at this far tail end to the overall Stockyards area.

 

[AnnetteMeetsJane]

Replacing the car dealership? It’s only been there for a bit over a decade and sending all that building material to a landfill already seems wasteful.The condos on the Old Mill dealership’s old site haven’t been finished long.

 

[A Torontonian Now]

This is an area I know quite well, and have been thinking about what should happen here for a while. I'd ask that you study the image below (from the front page story). In the balance of my post, I am going to propose something a-la @Northern Light style, albeit something I sadly know is unlikely to happen.

Note the area that is titled "Bridge Structure" to the immediate west of this site. It is presently used (I assume leased from the City) by the dealership to store more cars, and to connect to the property between the rail line and St. Clair to the west of the bridge, where yet more cars are stored. It bridges over Jane Street, and I presume (have not looked into it, but seems the only logical conclusion) that it used to form part of an extended rail yard.

This site presents a city-building opportunity, if we allow us to consider the long-term. Eventually, I expect there will be a Jane LRT. Similarly, I view this location as a perfect spot to put an infill GO station on the Milton line. This would provide a valuable new connection to the GO network from an area of the city that could use better access, and also provide a quicker two-stop (Bloor - Union) ride for those arriving on the Jane LRT to get downtown.

With the existing bridge structure and surplus former-railyard land, the space for a GO station exists. This property (i.e., everything owned by the dealership) should be acquired by the Province to protect for a future station. Once designed/built, they can do a nice TOD to recover some cost and eventually develop the site.

If the site is developed, the bridge structure to the west of it will be orphaned and lose its utility. We will not have the ROW required to implement my proposal without reducing the remaining railyard, or some other more expensive option.

As an aside, even if Jane LRT is never built, the Jane bus is one of the City's busiest routes, and the case for a GO stop here once the line is electrified remains strong.

 

[Northern Light]

This is an area I know quite well, and have been thinking about what should happen here for a while. I'd ask that you study the image below (from the front page story). In the balance of my post, I am going to propose something a-la @Northern Light style, albeit something I sadly know is unlikely to happen.

View attachment 584794

Note the area that is titled "Bridge Structure" to the immediate west of this site. It is presently used (I assume leased from the City) by the dealership to store more cars, and to connect to the property between the rail line and St. Clair to the west of the bridge, where yet more cars are stored. It bridges over Jane Street, and I presume (have not looked into it, but seems the only logical conclusion) that it used to form part of an extended rail yard.

This site presents a city-building opportunity, if we allow us to consider the long-term. Eventually, I expect there will be a Jane LRT. Similarly, I view this location as a perfect spot to put an infill GO station on the Milton line. This would provide a valuable new connection to the GO network from an area of the city that could use better access, and also provide a quicker two-stop (Bloor - Union) ride for those arriving on the Jane LRT to get downtown.

With the existing bridge structure and surplus former-railyard land, the space for a GO station exists. This property (i.e., everything owned by the dealership) should be acquired by the Province to protect for a future station. Once designed/built, they can do a nice TOD to recover some cost and eventually develop the site.

If the site is developed, the bridge structure to the west of it will be orphaned and lose its utility. We will not have the ROW required to implement my proposal without reducing the remaining railyard, or some other more expensive option.

As an aside, even if Jane LRT is never built, the Jane bus is one of the City's busiest routes, and the case for a GO stop here once the line is electrified remains strong.

I like it!

 

[A Torontonian Now]

Oh, and while I'm dreaming, the St. Clair streetcar could also be extended to Jane, which is a more natural endpoint especially given the coming development throughout the Stockyards area, and then you have quite the nice little transit node here. The dealership property might even be sufficient to locate a streetcar loop in addition to the GO station. If not, then a piece of the box mall to the east could be acquired by the City for that purpose.