karledice
Active Member
Agreed, that's really the most annoying part of this ORCA thing, to get more City money urg
Toronto Rail Deck District | 227.23m | 70s | Craft Dev Corp | Sweeny &Co
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ChesterCopperpot
Senior Member
The development team were putting together proposals for this site at least a year before the city even announced their plans for Rail Deck Park.
argus
Active Member
Then the proponent is spending a lot of money on a project they don't intend to build.
Why would they be going through this exercise?
Dr. Snoot
Active Member
Because if the LPAT approves the development application the City will have to expropriate the land at huge market value (or some negotiated amount) to build the rail deck park.
rbt
Senior Member
One of those times I wish we had Chicago style expiry-dates for approvals. They still get a number of visionary proposals but very few upzonings to bump property values..
argus
Active Member
Possible, but my impression is that the proponents want to build. There are far less expensive routes to take to wrest a high expropriation cost. There will be a limit on cost that the city is willing to incur. They will will simply walk once the cost is deemed to be too high or politically unpalatable.
ADRM
Senior Member
Proponent acquires land.
Proponent undertakes rezoning process (protracted and unconventional though the process may be).
City does not support the proposal.
Proponent appeals to the Board.
Board rules in favour of the proponent.
City and proponent negotiate an outcome that merges the City's original vision/desires with that of the proponent.
Proponent sells rezoned project to a developer with ability and capacity to execute.
Purchaser markets and builds.
Or something like that! Which is to say, there are certainly non-nefarious versions of this process that could ultimately net the City a bunch of new housing and a beautiful new public park, and the proponent a successfully delivered project.
Proponent undertakes rezoning process (protracted and unconventional though the process may be).
City does not support the proposal.
Proponent appeals to the Board.
Board rules in favour of the proponent.
City and proponent negotiate an outcome that merges the City's original vision/desires with that of the proponent.
Proponent sells rezoned project to a developer with ability and capacity to execute.
Purchaser markets and builds.
Or something like that! Which is to say, there are certainly non-nefarious versions of this process that could ultimately net the City a bunch of new housing and a beautiful new public park, and the proponent a successfully delivered project.
zot627
New Member
This sounds more feasible than "let's spend many years and many millions of dollars on a project we have no intention of building so that we can extort money from the city". People who have the kind of money it takes to advance projects of this size are not that stupid.
UtakataNoAnnex
Senior Member
*Notes the sea of spamdrel known as CityPlace just South of this*
...so much wrong can go with this process. With the developers folding thier arms in the end saying, "Least we made sure your buildings didn't end in front of an on coming GO train during the dinner hour." /sigh
gondolin18
New Member
Fengate, on behalf of LPFCEC, CRAFT and Kingsmen announce co-development partnership for the transformative ORCA Project
/CNW/ - Fengate Asset Management ("Fengate"), working on behalf of the LiUNA Pension Fund of Central and Eastern Canada ("LPFCEC"), CRAFT Development Group...
www.newswire.ca
Looks like the project is back from limbo!
allengeorge
Senior Member
I swear I’ve seen the video before, though the partnership news is new. Has LiUNA worked with partners to develop anything before? They first popped up on my radar due to the Hamilton LRT.Fengate, on behalf of LPFCEC, CRAFT and Kingsmen announce co-development partnership for the transformative ORCA Project
/CNW/ - Fengate Asset Management ("Fengate"), working on behalf of the LiUNA Pension Fund of Central and Eastern Canada ("LPFCEC"), CRAFT Development Group...
Looks like the project is back from limbo!
DavidCapizzano
Senior Member
Some renders from the above site:
Paul Aitken
New Member
I don't mind the idea of tall buildings lining the south side of Front St. leaving the remainder of the rail corridor for a linear park. But this elevated park is ridiculous. There are a number of developments with no parking in the downtown area. This needs to be one of them.
mrxbombastic
Active Member
They worked on a building in Hamilton on King William & James IIRC. I suppose their pension arm is getting big into the real estate game with this funding capital.
The project is still before the LPAT and is far from a done deal so it's a very long waiting game they are playing here. Keep in mind the only access to this property is from city owned property, so there is a long process yet to play out.
Also ^100% agree, if we are going to get development here, this should be a zero parking minimum development to cut they height of that "park" down. it looks ridiculous right now and isn't very AODA friendly.
UrbanOzz
Active Member
that triple tower reminds me of an extremely watered down Marina Bay Sands. Maybe they took some inspo from it.