DarnDirtyApe
Active Member
Maybe even DMW would start taking the subway to work...
What do you mean? The relief line has always been part of the Big Move.
The developers would love the DRL long option as well. If they thought the land around Sheppard was great for development, just wait till there is a subway under Lawrence-Don Mills and Eglinton-Don Mills.
The condo boom at the Shops at Don Mills area is just beginning and to the south, between Leslie, DVP/Wynford Drive, Barber Green/Greenbelt and Eglinton (as well as SE and SW corners of Don Mills-Eglinton) there is a whole ton of big box stores, business parks, offices and brownfield sites that are not performing well and would be ripe for development.
Leslie north of Lawrence is more residential. Though I suppose the corners of Leslie and York Mills offer some redevelopment potential. Being a short bus ride away from a future Don Mills-York Mills station will be a plus though.Even though Don Mills is a better arterial to build a DRL, I still see a lot of potential with Leslie north of Eglinton. Many believe the addition of a Crosstown stop there was a mistake, but after seeing a few high-density proposals for the area - not to mention the future potential of the Midtown Corridor - I think Leslie has a lot going for it. The massive valley/greenspace is also a major bonus in that it increases property values and decreases NIMBYism.
Leslie north of Lawrence is more residential. Though I suppose the corners of Leslie and York Mills offer some redevelopment potential. Being a short bus ride away from a future Don Mills-York Mills station will be a plus though.
I doubt the Toyota Dealership will leave in the foreseeable future, too valuable a spot for them. Wrigley Canada might be on the path for development.
What proposals are you thinking of?
But you miss Flemington Park by heading up Leslie. Don Mills has way more developable land as well. Don Mills is a far superior choice.
To determine which road should be looked at for a line, one needs to see what exist there today that would help to support a line, but most of all, can more density be place there without having a huge impact on the area and the NIMBY folks down the road.
There is 2 development plan for Sheppard & Leslie with the hospital there. When you compare that intersection to Don Mills, Don Mills win in more ways than enough. Don Mills is the better of the 2. Don Mills will have more riders feeding into it than Leslie.
It should open in phase like the BD.Even if LONG prevails will it be built all at once or open in phases...
For sure. All the way up to Steeles, Don Mills is the better corridor. And with the existing density. But one thing I dwell on is the Leaside Spur trail, which I think is possible to go from a rail-to-trail, back to rail again. If it can be an affordable high-speed LRT corridor (or RER) from Sheppard/Leslie down to Thorncliffe (in place of Don Mills), I think it's worth a look. Metrolinx is vague as all hell with their 20min Sheppard to Union LRT idea, and we won't find out more about it for another year, but I think it could involve this Leaside Spur. If so, Leslie from Sheppard to Eglinton could be a good corridor for major nodal development.
Don Mills is clearly the superior corridor with regards to trip generators. There are also far more development sites along Don Mills than Leslie. The only place where this isn't true is at York Mills, but IMO, Don Mills & Lawrence, Don Mills & Eglinton and Don Mills & Sheppard far out weigh that.
If you start looking north of Sheppard, it is even worse for the rail corridor. There is nothing at Finch at all. Same with Steeles. If you went up Don Mills to Finch (one day, I suppose) you would serve a Seneca College campus that has 10,000 students.
The Leaside Spur trail is a waste of time as it misses all the trip generators along the corridor.