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Senior Member
Mayoral candidate proposes fast-tracking good building designs
Jul 19 2010
Robyn Doolittle
Read More: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/tor...-proposes-fast-tracking-good-building-designs
In Sarah Thomson’s Toronto, developers willing to invest in design will be fast-tracked through city hall bureaucracy. If mayor, Thomson would create a “concierge service†to essentially shepherd developers through the various layers of red tape — and reduce bureaucratic delays — which Thomson says can take years to navigate. Put one person in charge of each account and then “the file doesn’t just sit on someone’s desk and get forgotten about,†she said. Thomson, who according to a June poll is running a distant third in the mayoral race, ahead of Rocco Rossi and deputy mayor Joe Pantalone, will announce her architecture and design policy at a press conference Tuesday. The plan will surely be a hit with developers, provided they buy into her vision.
“I’m so sick of boring, glass, concrete blocks. I want to encourage developers to build buildings that will (aesthetically) last for centuries,†she said. “I think when long-term thinking is applied, beauty and savings can be had.†A Thomson-led city hall would build tree-lined boulevards, demand innovative architectural design and restore forgotten heritage sites. The Women’s Post publisher would give a heritage designation to every city-owned building that predates 1920.
She would also create a “design for excellence†program headed by local talent. Developers would submit plans hoping for the group’s stamp of approval, then use it as a selling point. “It would be like the LEEDs program,†the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System, she said. “It would be a status symbol. Developers would want to have that designation.â€
Thomson would also usher in a “buy local, use local talent†mentality. The city should stop showcasing the work of architects from around the world when there is so much talent right in Toronto, she said. The final component of the plan would be to rethink zoning in neighbourhoods that have been designated as high transit. Those areas will need to be higher density, she said.
Jul 19 2010
Robyn Doolittle
Read More: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/tor...-proposes-fast-tracking-good-building-designs
In Sarah Thomson’s Toronto, developers willing to invest in design will be fast-tracked through city hall bureaucracy. If mayor, Thomson would create a “concierge service†to essentially shepherd developers through the various layers of red tape — and reduce bureaucratic delays — which Thomson says can take years to navigate. Put one person in charge of each account and then “the file doesn’t just sit on someone’s desk and get forgotten about,†she said. Thomson, who according to a June poll is running a distant third in the mayoral race, ahead of Rocco Rossi and deputy mayor Joe Pantalone, will announce her architecture and design policy at a press conference Tuesday. The plan will surely be a hit with developers, provided they buy into her vision.
“I’m so sick of boring, glass, concrete blocks. I want to encourage developers to build buildings that will (aesthetically) last for centuries,†she said. “I think when long-term thinking is applied, beauty and savings can be had.†A Thomson-led city hall would build tree-lined boulevards, demand innovative architectural design and restore forgotten heritage sites. The Women’s Post publisher would give a heritage designation to every city-owned building that predates 1920.
She would also create a “design for excellence†program headed by local talent. Developers would submit plans hoping for the group’s stamp of approval, then use it as a selling point. “It would be like the LEEDs program,†the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System, she said. “It would be a status symbol. Developers would want to have that designation.â€
Thomson would also usher in a “buy local, use local talent†mentality. The city should stop showcasing the work of architects from around the world when there is so much talent right in Toronto, she said. The final component of the plan would be to rethink zoning in neighbourhoods that have been designated as high transit. Those areas will need to be higher density, she said.
