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To close out 2018, we are taking a look at the 10 most popular Database files, Forum Threads, and News Stories from UrbanToronto across the entire year. This is the last instalment in our short series.
Several new and updated proposals, construction projects, and long-term visions from around the Greater Toronto Area made news over the course of 2018. Of our top ten, half of the year's biggest news stories were from our annual Growth to Watch For series, while others covered topics ranging from transit projects to a major sporting facility's rebranding.
10: Growth to Watch For 2018: Queen West, Roncy & Liberty Village
In the #10 spot, a Growth to Watch For instalment from early in 2018 covered the various active and planned projects in West End Toronto neighbourhoods including West Queen West, Parkdale, Roncesvalles, King West, Liberty Village, and Fort York.
9: GTAA, Metrolinx Working Together on Pearson Transit Plan
Our 9th most popular article of the year covered the Greater Toronto Airports Authority and Metrolinx’s plans to bring better public transit to the Pearson International Airport area, aiming to cement its status as Canada's second largest employment hub.
8: Growth to Watch For 2018: Dupont, the Junction, St. Clair West
The Growth to Watch For series appears again in our #8 spot, with an instalment highlighting the various proposals and construction projects within a sizeable 30 km² area that includes Dupont, The Junction, and St. Clair West.
7: Growth to Watch For 2018: Beaches, Leslieville & The Danforth
Another Growth to Watch For instalment takes the #7 spot, this one covering east end growth, moving in a winding path through neighbourhoods including Oakridge, Birch Cliff, Danforth Village, Upper Beaches, The Beaches, Leslieville, and Riverside, before ending off at the edge of East York on The Danforth.
6: Growth to Watch For 2018: South Etobicoke
In 6th place, our Growth to Watch For Series covered a wide area of South Etobicoke, including the high-density development hub at Humber Bay Shores. The explosive growth witnessed in this part of the city helped this feature climb into this year's top ten.
5: Unzipped Exhibition Opens in Serpentine Pavilion on King West
The 5th position was taken by a story covering the new Unzipped pavilion, a re-erection of the 2016 Serpentine Pavilion from London, transported to King West. Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), the pavilion—made up of 1,802 fibreglass blocks—was installed to generate buzz for Allied Properties REIT's upcoming KING TORONTO project.
4: Federal & Provincial Governments Pledge to Help Fund Toronto Rapid Transit Projects
Our fourth most popular article of the year discussed the Federal and Provincial governments' pledge of nearly $9 billion towards multiple Toronto rapid transit projects. The Relief Line, SmartTrack (which includes both GO Transit improvements and the Eglinton West LRT), the Scarborough Subway Extension, the Eglinton East LRT, and the Waterfront LRT will all be funded over the next 10 years.
3: Growth to Watch for 2018: Toronto's Central Waterfront
Another Growth to Watch For feature appears in our #3 spot for the year, this one highlighting the many planned and active projects in Toronto's Central Waterfront. This feature covered everything south of the rail corridor stretching from Bathurst Street all the way to the Port Lands.
2: First Look at Air Canada Centre's Scotiabank Re-Brand
In second place for the year, UrbanToronto was the first outlet to publish images of the branding makeover for Scotiabank Arena, formerly the Air Canada Centre. UrbanToronto readers got a first glimpse of elevation diagrams for the updated sporting venue hours before they made the rounds on the evening news.
1: Promenade Mall Redevelopment Plan Submitted to Vaughan
2018's most read story discussed a proposal submitted to the City of Vaughan, seeking to redevelop Promenade Mall into a mixed-use destination. The WZMH Architects-designed plan would begin with a first phase consisting of three residential apartment towers with heights of 28, 30, and 35 storeys, as well as a 28-storey, mixed-use building containing offices and a hotel, with a combined gross floor area of 144,613 square metres.
We look forward to another year of urban growth in 2019. In the meantime, let us know what you think about this year's top stories in the comments section provided below.
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