There are neighborhoods where residents are concerned about new developments raising prices, and there are neighborhoods where residents are concerned about new developments lowering home values. Toronto is currently dealing with the latter.
"A group of midtown Toronto residents has banded together to fight what it’s dubbed 'density creep,' amid a push for midrise development citywide," reports Manisha Krishnan.
The Density Creep Neighborhood Alliance mobilized against one particular townhouse development that would replace eight current units with 80 new units out of concern for their property values. One member of the group is quoted expressing concern over the $500,000 unit cost in a neighborhood of $1-2 million houses.
According to Krishnan, "Developer Trolleybus Urban Development, which needs city approval for rezoning to proceed, told the Star it is committed to having a dialogue with the community, but that its proposal 'provides much needed housing options in Sherwood Park that would otherwise be unattainable for today’s home buyer.'"
For more information on Toronto's mid-rise development policies, see an earlier article by Robert Freedman, who helped craft the city's Avenues Policy, designed to help encourage density in the form of mid-rise projects.
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