As part of Toronto’s tower renewal effort, new zoning allows for the integration of commercial and community uses into post-war tower neighbourhoods while a loan program offers up capital for energy-efficient upgrades.
“This was a great dream of 20th-century architecture: towers that would house people high above the streets, swimming in light and air, surrounded by acres of green lawns,” writes Alex Bozikovic. “The tower in the park, as this type of building was known, has evolved into the tower in the parking lot: They are aging, isolated, lacking services and community.”
Toronto’s inventory of apartment towers is the second-largest in North America, and a critical segment of the city’s rental market. While these units were originally planned for a world where there was a car in every spot, apartment towers are now home to many new Canadians and lower-income families to whom a landscape of undefined open space and parking is of little use. New zoning, adopted this spring, will allow for the previously prohibited incorporation of small shops, home-based businesses and community services into a number of tower neighborhoods.
Additionally, to help finance green upgrades to these notoriously inefficient structures, the City has made special loans available to building owners. “The carbon footprints of the buildings will be reduced; property owners will pay back the loans over time, via extra charges on their property taxes, and profit over the long term; and tenants will live better,” says Bozikovic. “Everyone wins.”
FULL STORY: Toronto hopes to revitalize its many postwar highrises
Toronto Approves Multiplex Housing Citywide
The city hopes streamlining the construction of multifamily housing will slow the growth of housing costs and prevent the displacement of residents as the city grows.
Ontario May Strip Protections from Toronto Greenbelt
A proposed bill would open nearly 2 million acres of protected land to commercial and industrial development.
Bend, Oregon Zoning Reforms Prioritize Small-Scale Housing
The city altered its zoning code to allow multi-family housing and eliminated parking mandates citywide.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.
Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.
Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.
MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.
Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie