I still can't believe that SmartCentre on Laird was allowed to be built (I'm kind of jealous of Leslieville in that respects). The traffic on Laird just about tripled and it's a pedestrian's nightmare. Walking across that parking lot in the summer is like walking across the Sahara.
But in the long term, I could see the potential for it to be nice. Perhaps when that area becomes a little less auto-centric, It could somehow see that SmartCentre becoming a sort of pedestrian Mall similar to the new Don Mills Centre if they we're to take of parking space with some boutiques and terraced pedestrian access. I could even become pleasant (gasp), rather than the road rage generator it is today.
So I was thinking about the newly planned SmartCentre development at Leslie & York Mills and couldn't help but reflect on the sentiment when the Leaside SmartCentre was being developed.
Similar to Urbanboom, I also couldn't believe they were really going to put a SmartCentre in Leaside but now that's it's been in place for a good number of years, let's review.
I recall most Leaside locals were opposed to this development. We're seeing and hearing similar feedback from the Bayview-York Mills community today regarding the York Mills SmartCentre.
Traffic on Laird, Eglinton and Brentcliffe has definitely increased. I'd imagine traffic along Leslie, York Mills, Lesmill and Don Mills will increase similarly.
Walking across the lot in Leaside is definitely a long, deserted trek on foot. Concrete wasteland when the lot is empty. I don't think Leaside has gotten any less auto-centric and from my observations, there isn't a lot of people in the neighborhood actually walking to the Leaside SmartCentre. The York Mills neighborhood is one of the least walk-friendly neighborhoods in the city so the traffic around Leslie & York Mills will definitely increase by a large magnitude.
Unfortunately, now that the Leaside SmartCentre is settled in, I don't see this plaza as being "nice" by any standards. It's utilitarian and it is what it is, another SmartCentre big box plaza.
Ultimately, I can only predict that the York Mills SmartCentre will be more of the same. The arguments for both locations are/were that there is nothing beneficial to the community there now, so a large shopping center will only add to the amenities. Is Leaside better off with their SmartCentre? Will York Mills be better off grazing the old industrial low-rise buildings that were on Lesmill before for a new SmartCentre serving central Toronto?