Toronto Jane and Finch Mall Redevelopment | 156.8m | 47s | Brad-Jay | BDP Quadrangle

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Northern Light

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The Lobbyist registry tells us this significant retail site in the Jane-Finch community is in play.

Located at 1911 Finch Avenue West, this modest mall sports the area's main supermarket along with a mix chain and independent retail.

Urban Strategies has been retained to engage the City on behalf of client Southdown Builders.

The exact wording from the registry as to the subject of the lobbying is here:

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This has all the potential to be absolutely great news for this community; a generational opportunity for improvement, but it absolutely requires ambition, respectful engagement and
sensitivity to local needs (such as retaining the supermarket on site during any redevelopment.

Lets have a quick look at the site:

From the air:

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Site Size: ~ 6.8 hectares/ 17 acres

Streetview: (2019 imagery to avoid Finch LRT construction)

Below is looking into the site from the south-east corner of Jane and Finch


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Now from Jane, beside the Freshco supermarket, just to the south of Finch:


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The back-end of the site from Yewtree:

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Looking west into the site from the corner of Driftwood and Finch:

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Finally, the main Finch avenue frontage:

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There's a rather robust community engagement process ongoing on this one, pre-application, which we here at UT have overlooked.

I only became aware of it because it was mentioned in passing at Design Review Panel in regards to the broader Jane Finch Initiative.

Link to process:

JFM+

JFM+ - A proud neighbour since 1968
jfmplus.ca jfmplus.ca
 
According to this Globe and Mail article, the Planning Application for this was filed last month:

www.theglobeandmail.com

Developers taking a ‘go-slow’ approach to updating Jane Finch Mall

Consultation with community advisory group crucial to positive outcome
www.theglobeandmail.com www.theglobeandmail.com

The Application is not yet public-facing in the AIC, but presumably that is imminent.

The article is not super revealing on what's proposed except to say the intent is to retain the mall and build around it (ugh, apparently the community supports this idea); and phase 1, will apparently take 10 years to rollout.
 
Now Let me see what I can dig up from this link that @artyboy123 didn't post.

Lets start w/this render/massing plan combo that shows the site as a whole:

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For orientation, the upper/right of the photo is Finch, so that's where the greater thought has gone thus far, w/the massing only outlines and parks being to the south.

This synopsis of the site at full build out:

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Phasing:

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Note the Green along Yewtree and Driftwood which is proposed as a cycling path/mup.

@HousingNowTO will want this one on his watch list both for what is proposed (below) and what is not, for now.

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@Paclo is duly flagged.

@3Dementia is also flagged, to help motivate him, and having him stop being so infrequent w/his posting.
 
Last edited:
Northern Light said:
@HousingNowTO will want this one on his watch list both for what is proposed (below) and what is not, for now.

View attachment 531556
Click to expand...
All vague and non-specific commitments at this point, which makes sense because they have no idea what Government supports will be available for "below-market" units by the time PHASE-1 of this project will be "Shovel Ready".

The local-preference lottery process for "affordable and attainable housing" units here makes sense -- and is something that we have advised the City of Toronto to consider for a number of years. It is a pretty common-model in the US, especially in high-demand Cities like NYC, where there is a pre-Lottery for people who currently Live/Work, or go to School in the Ward where the site is being developed.
 
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Noting there will be an In-Person (ONLY) public consultation next-week...

TUE. JAN. 9th, 2024
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Toronto Public Library – York Woods Branch
1785 Finch Avenue West
Toronto, ON
M3N 1M6

www.toronto.ca

City Planning Consultations

Register for upcoming consultations using the Upcoming Events table below. For instructions on how to participate in public consultations using the online tool WebEx, please visit Participate in City Virtual Events. The City is continually working to broaden participation in city building. Are...
www.toronto.ca www.toronto.ca
 
Looks good... although this street does seem redundant by the final phase...
Screenshot 2024-01-05 at 19.11.41.png


Surely a larger park would outweigh the marginal transportation improvement (and if you want a walking/cycling route along that line, you can do that without needing a GIANT street). Looks like every address / entrance can be reached without this street being required.

And if you need to separate park phase A from construction of phase B - may I interest the developers in a construction barricade?
 
turini2 said:
Looks good... although this street does seem redundant by the final phase...
View attachment 531628

Surely a larger park would outweigh the marginal transportation improvement (and if you want a walking/cycling route along that line, you can do that without needing a GIANT street). Looks like every address / entrance can be reached without this street being required.

And if you need to separate park phase A from construction of phase B - may I interest the developers in a construction barricade?
Click to expand...

I think that's a very valid point. The total amount of park space here is not bad, though its just barely at level that would allow for a sports field at 0.8ha. But even then, that's only if you consolidate the 2 parcels.

Funny thing, if you consolidate the 2 parcels and add the space equivalent to the proposed road, you're there, at about 1ha/2.5 acres.

To be clear, one can do many things other than a sports field. But whatever one's preference, that larger, consolidated configuration produces much better, more functional options.
 
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