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Glen

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http://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/24/realestate/focus-toronto-growth-foreseen-into-1990-s.html

WITH its reputation as a center of manufacturing and finance as well as its proximity to major United States cities, Toronto has emerged as one of Canada's economic bright spots. Last year there was record demand for office space, and as a trade agreeement with the United States nears approval, the business community is geared up for continued economic growth in the 1990's.

But the city, Ontario's provincial capital, also finds itself grappling with some of the major problems associated with urban growth - a tight and expensive housing market and traffic congestion. With major developments moving forward, there is no sign that a slowdown will ease the problems. Since 1981, the population of the Toronto Statistical Metropolitan Area has jumped 9.2 percent, to 3.7 million, according to Statistics Canada, making it the country's most populous region. The population of Metro, which includes Toronto and six surrounding communities, has grown 2.6 percent, to 2.1 million.

''Toronto has been running on all cylinders since mid-1986,'' said Edward Carmichael, an economist and vice president of the C. D. Howe Institute, a local consulting firm.

Downtown developments such as the 1.6-million-square-foot, four-level Eaton Centre, a glass-enclosed shopping mall, and the striking 1,815-foot-tall CN Tower will in the next decade be joined by the first elements of the $500 million mixed-use CityPlace complex. While over 6.5 million square feet of office space has been added to the Metro market in each of the last two years, absorption of 9.2 million square feet in 1987 set a record, according to Royal LePage Ltd., a local real estate brokerage.

Much of the estimated five million square feet of office space added to the Metro market in the first six months of this year was quickly absorbed; current office vacancy rates range from 6.7 percent throughout Metro to 5.3 percent in the financial district here. Rents exceeding $35 per square foot for Class A office space downtown are common, according to Royal LePage.

One of the newest additions to the city's skyline, the 68-story Scotia Plaza, developed by Campeau Corporation, will add 1.5 million square feet of office space when it is completed by the end of this year. Tenants have been moving into lower floors since April. With rents ranging from $27 to $39 per square foot, the project is 65 percent leased.

But along with the growth have come the big-city problems. While the median sale price of a home has risen 61 percent in two years, to $160,400, according to the Toronto Real Estate Board, residential development has not kept pace with demand. The apartment vacancy rate is less than 1 percent. Also, traffic congestion is severe, but the city hopes to partially address the problem by expanding its transit system.

''IT is great to have success but there is a price,'' said Mayor Arthur Eggleton. ''The squeeze on lower-income families, an accelerated need for assisted housing, these are some of the issues we face.''

In 1976, when the city drew up a long-term plan for downtown development, concern about the impact of development led officials to impose strict limits on building density. But in 1983, the city devised a system that would give a developer greater density allowances in return for providing community benefits such as day-care centers and parks - a system similar to provisions in several United States cities.

At Scotia Plaza, for example, Campeau was granted increased density in return for providing a rent-free day-care center and an underground link to the subway system.

''We're interested, as development is happening,'' said Robert E. Millward, Commissioner of Planning and Development, ''in making sure the impact does not hurt the rest of the city.''

Perhaps the most ambitious plans involve expanding the core of the city to make use of the underdeveloped Lake Ontario waterfront now cut off from downtown by the eight-lane Gardiner Expressway.

''For years we turned our back on the lake; we cut people off from the water with rail yards and shipping yards,'' Mayor Eggleton said. ''The movement now is to bring the city back to the waterfront.'' It has been slow going. Plans for the development, called Harbourfront, were drawn up 10 years ago by the Federal Government, as the city's real estate market foundered. They called for housing, commercial development and parks on 100 acres at lakeside.

With about half of the $650 million project complete, $110 million in Federal funds has been spent on land acquisition and renovation. Private projects include a 152-room hotel, 1,900 housing units and the 750,000-square-foot mixed-use Queen's Quay Terminal, a former warehouse, which now houses restaurants and shops below office and residential space. With a regular schedule of cultural events, Harbourfront has also become one of the city's top tourist attractions.

Development has come to a halt, however, as controversy over the height and design of three recently completed 19-story condominium towers and diminishing public space prompted the city to invoke a freeze. A new development plan must be approved at both the Federal and city levels before Harbourfront can be completed.

Meanwhile, north of Harbourfront, site preparation is under way for CityPlace, a 70-acre mixed-use redevelopment on land owned by CN Real Estate, a division of Canadian National Railways. The 20-year project is to include six million square feet of office and retail space and 5,000 housing units. The project will include SkyDome Stadium, now under construction, and about 30 acres of park land.

Work on the streets, utilities and other improvements, including a transit link paid for by the city, has been under way for two years. The first office building in CityPlace is expected to be completed in 1992.

The potential impact of the United States-Canada Free Trade Agreement, under consideration in both countries, is stirring speculation about Toronto's continued economic health. While the elimination of tariffs promises to increase trade, David Peterson, the provincial Premier, questions whether it will benefit Ontario's industry.

But Mr. Carmichael, the economist, believes that anticipation of the agreement has in itself buoyed the city's economy.

''All of southern Ontario, from Windsor to Toronto, which has been booming without the trade agreement, stands to benefit,'' he said.

City Place was supposed to have had six million sq ft of office space!
 
That is one of the most interesting reads I have had in ages! Thanks

I have somewhere lying about my house in Toronto renderings of CityPlace. There were many pyramid topped towers about...
 
To be fair ... cityplace in the article is referring to more then just the 'cityplace' area we know and love today. You can see they mentioned the 'skydome' in the same context. I'd argue the developments we see such as Telus and what not are probably part of 'cityplace'.
Could be wrong though!
 
Here's another question, what changed?

What were the commercial property taxes in the late 80s like relative to our surroundings, what singled the shift and the following slowdown?

No need to explain the slow down in the 'manufacturing' sector though. As far as I'm aware even present date taxes on manufacturing in the Toronto are quite comparable to the rest of the GTA. Also, Toronto has just about the lowest rent costs and lowest vacancy rate in the GTA (the later due to space and lack of development). This in part probably accounts for some of the slowdown after the article was written.
 
I do believe that this is not quite the CityPlace of today.

Remember that in 1988, SkyDome was still under construction, and that the railways (CN and CP) were dismantiling their gigantic rail yards. The CN passenger yards were moved to Mimico (VIA's current yards), and CP's passenger rail system was transferred to VIA (GO's yards, on the north side of Mimico were former CN freight yards, largely vacated after the opening of MacMillian Yards in Concord in the mid 1960s).

So yes, it included the stadium, CN Tower (which was really the first project), the convention centre (both north and south), possibly also including the old team tracks and LCL facilities north of Front, which are now clubs, condos, the CBC, and yes, several office towers (RBC Dexia, Simcoe Place) and Metro Hall.

The CityPlace discussed was a transition from "MetroCentre" - the 1970s plan that included a major communications and observation tower (built), a domed stadium (built), offices and condos to what we have now.

I think we ended up doing okay. After 1988, we got BCE Place, BA, Simcoe Place, Telus/Union, RBC, plus many under-the-radar office towers like those attached to the ACC.
 
Here's another question, what changed?

What were the commercial property taxes in the late 80s like relative to our surroundings, what singled the shift and the following slowdown?

No need to explain the slow down in the 'manufacturing' sector though. As far as I'm aware even present date taxes on manufacturing in the Toronto are quite comparable to the rest of the GTA. Also, Toronto has just about the lowest rent costs and lowest vacancy rate in the GTA (the later due to space and lack of development). This in part probably accounts for some of the slowdown after the article was written.

Recall that that period was at the height of an economic bubble. Big developers could build an office tower on spec. Some, like O&Y, could get 100% financing for less them prime without so much as a single tenant signed.
 
I think we ended up doing okay. After 1988, we got BCE Place, BA, Simcoe Place, Telus/Union, RBC, plus many under-the-radar office towers like those attached to the ACC.

I disagree. The amount of office space (read employment space) cancelled at City place alone has not been recaptured. This, more than twenty years later. Add this the loss of countless small office buildings, and rezonings (see NYCC), and there is no way that Toronto can be considered to being doing well. The city is a 1/4 of a million jobs behind its own estimates.
 
I disagree. The amount of office space (read employment space) cancelled at City place alone has not been recaptured. This, more than twenty years later. Add this the loss of countless small office buildings, and rezonings (see NYCC), and there is no way that Toronto can be considered to being doing well. The city is a 1/4 of a million jobs behind its own estimates.

Run for mayor Glen, I'd vote for you if you could change that :)

I'm of the utmost belief employment trumps all ... there are exceptions but with this a lot of other good things can follow.

That's not to say there aren't cities with tons of employment that are lacking / not very livable downtown.

So we still need Toronto's high residential / retail density downtown, but really, employment really drives everything - what you do with it is what distinguishes cities.

I'm hoping our next mayor recognizes this and starts to take action - smitherman's short article statement showed some promise in this regard.
 
We've built far, far, far more than 6M sq.ft of employment space since 1988. It's closer to 60M.

Where?

First off, I am talking about office space not employment space. Secondly the building permit data for the construction of non residential does not take into account the loss of space required for construction. Taking a single story commercial site tearing it down and replacing it with a condo with ground floor retail looks like the creation of 'employment space', yet it is not.

For some perspective, the three new towers, amount to 3 million sq. ft. of office space. Toronto's Class 'A' inventory is about 42 million sq. ft.
 
We've built far, far, far more than 6M sq.ft of employment space since 1988. It's closer to 60M.

Your kidding? we're referring to downtown Toronto only.

Toronto's core has around 50-60M grand total as of today. Cleary that all wasn't added in the last 20 years.
 
Where?

First off, I am talking about office space not employment space. Secondly the building permit data for the construction of non residential does not take into account the loss of space required for construction. Taking a single story commercial site tearing it down and replacing it with a condo with ground floor retail looks like the creation of 'employment space', yet it is not.

For some perspective, the three new towers, amount to 3 million sq. ft. of office space. Toronto's Class 'A' inventory is about 42 million sq. ft.

Where? Seriously? Just go outside...they're hard to miss.

Dozens of office buildings have been built since 1988 and this doesn't include the many new [and well-paying] institutional jobs in new buildings like university or hospital expansions. Many of these towers were finished in the 1989-1992 period, but it's not like they don't count...they weren't there in 1988.

Your kidding? we're referring to downtown Toronto only.

Toronto's core has around 50-60M grand total as of today. Cleary that all wasn't added in the last 20 years.

You're kidding. You're.

Read the thread. We're obviously talking about more than just Class A office space downtown. Even if we were talking about office towers within a few blocks of CityPlace, there's no question that we've built over 6M sq.ft since 1988.
 
Where? Seriously? Just go outside...they're hard to miss.

Dozens of office buildings have been built since 1988 and this doesn't include the many new [and well-paying] institutional jobs in new buildings like university or hospital expansions. Many of these towers were finished in the 1989-1992 period, but it's not like they don't count...they weren't there in 1988.



You're kidding. You're.

Read the thread. We're obviously talking about more than just Class A office space downtown. Even if we were talking about office towers within a few blocks of CityPlace, there's no question that we've built over 6M sq.ft since 1988.

Okay, this will clear things up:
http://www.colliersmn.com/prod/ccgrd.nsf/publish/D07CA1DF11E42476852576790062E553/$File/Colliers+Q3+2009+GTA+Office+Statistics.pdf

About 86 million square feet in ALL OF TORONTO and all classes.

After I thought about it for a while - we probably added a bit more then 6 million over the last 20 years. But no where near 50/60!

Anyway the point is - there has been quite a bit less growth since the 1980's then was predicted back then in the city of Toronto.
 
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