The City of Toronto’s ConsumersNext secondary planning process for the Sheppard/Victoria Park community of northeast Toronto was not without its opponents.
But for Toronto developer Almadev, the vision to incorporate more residential and greenspace into a predominantly commercial district, the Consumer Road Business Park, was a perfect fit.
In February Almadev unveiled LSQ, which stands for Lansing Square. The developer behind the Toronto mega communities Emerald City and Galleria on the Park will deliver a 15-acre master-planned community on Sheppard Ave East in North York with almost 1,600 residential units including 160 affordable rental units and 400,000 square feet of commercial space with retail in nine total buildings.
Almadev首席运营官Dror杜楚尼生活/工作/娱乐说concept is a winner, especially when the middle component is already thriving.
“It’s probably the largest or second largest employment area outside of downtown Toronto, so there are a lot of jobs, a lot of office buildings,” he said. “What they want is to include mixed-use development, bring more residential alongside employment. So we’ve worked closely with the council and the city to ensure that our vision fits theirs.”
The ConsumersNext planning process was launched in 2015 and the plan was approved by city council in 2018 but various appeals to the Ontario Land Tribunal (formerly the LPAT) prevented its full implementation. The majority of the plan came into force in October 2020, explained Toronto manager of community planning Guy Matthew, and last August the tribunal confirmed the last remaining appeal had been withdrawn.
The Consumer Road Business Park district employs 20,000. The plan foresees the creation of an additional 13,500 jobs and new homes for 11,800 residents over the next 25 years.
“We’ve submitted within the guidelines and made sure that it’s a smooth process. That makes it easy for the city to approve and fit the whole neighbourhood,” said Duchovny.
The complement of nine buildings includes two existing office buildings which Almadev has already upgraded, including work on the ground floors, adding retail, with more improvements to come, Duchovny said. Almadev has demolished two smaller commercial buildings on the site.
Phase one will include two residential buildings and one commercial building. The latter will be a 180,000-square-foot commercial tower with office, retail and self-storage.
The flagship development on the residential side will be LSQ 1, designed by Wallman Architects with 462 units. The condo residence will rise 43 storeys at the corner of Sheppard and Victoria Park featuring an exterior pattern of zigzags using metal panels with black and white alternating balconies.
“The idea is to create a strong statement in this case on the skyline,” said Duchovny. “We want to bring a new urban identity to this area, and LSQ 1 gives you a sense of the high-bar design that we’re trying to set.”
Units will range from 444 square feet to 1,185 square feet.
“We have a lot of family- friendly units…to make sure that families can come and live in that area,” said Duchovny. “And then there’s day cares and parks, there’s everything you need to have a fulsome life in that area of the city.”
Interiors are by Truong Ly Design. A signature amenity, Almadev stated, will be an outdoor terrace on the podium level with hot and cold plunges, an elevated infinity pool and outdoor dining areas with barbecues.
The other phase one residence will have 300-plus units including 80 affordable rentals.
New green and open spaces will include a 1.2-acre park with public art as well as two privately owned spaces that will connect to retail and commercial.
“We’re designing every project we work on with pedestrians in mind first and transforming, because the city is transforming and our products transformed from car-centric areas to more pedestrian-friendly areas,” he said.
Zoning and site plan approvals have been obtained and Almadev plans to break ground on LSQ 1 in Q2 or Q3 of 2024 with completion targeted for the first quarter of 2028.
Duchovny acknowledged developers are working in uncertain times, with high costs and interest rates and workforce shortages causing some to hesitate.
But he said Almadev is used to large, complicated, long-term projects and is always working in different modes at once — planning, acquisition, development and execution.
Duchovny said the market response has been strong since LSQ 1 was unveiled in February.
“We adapted everything to make sure that it’s a good value proposition and successful, so we’re very happy about that,” said Duchovny. “But it was a lot of work and a lot of thought and a lot of consideration of where we are in the cycle.”
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