[gweed123]

I like EnviroTO's suggestion: respectful rehabbing of what exists, an infill station for better access to transit, and community enhancements ie, more services, recreational activities for youth, and just providing residents with things to do. Redevelopment can't, and shouldn't be the only tool to improve neighbourhoods.

I guess time will tell on how well the Regent Park redevelopment goes. Although I think it's fair to say that the TCHC is moving more towards a 'rip down and start from scratch with mixed-income units' approach as opposed to a rehab approach (ref: Regent Park, Don Mount, Lawrence Heights, etc). I would imagine that the TCHC would likely want a similar approach here, especially given the condition of a lot of the buildings.

Why do people advocate station spacing of 1 -2km then?

Because by and large when it is ~1-2km stop spacing the spaces in between the stations are low-rise, low density development. If there is higher density around a specific midblock area, and it makes financial and planning sense to put in a station, I say go for it.

 

[gweed123]

Were the spots actually left open on Yonge or were they just eliminated from the original plan? There's a big hill between Lawrence and York Mills that might get in the way of a theoretical Glen Echo station.

I recall reading somewhere that although the general trend of the area is a declining (or increasing, depending on which way you're going) slope, they purposely left flat areas the exact size of a station in 2 strategic locations for future stations if needed.

They weren't seen as needed at the time, mainly because the extra cost of building them didn't warrant it. They used the same logic with North York Centre, which at the time of the subway's construction, didn't exist. It would be interesting to see the City produce two secondary plans for the areas around those two future stations, to see if the amount of densification they can potentially put around there would warrant building one or both of the stations. Having said that though, contributing to the crowding problem on the Yonge line isn't exactly something the City wants to do right now. Maybe they can do that after the DRL is built.

 

[accura407]

The whole point of this idea though is that the city gets a new subway station built entirely by a private developer.

If the future of transit construction is going in this direction, this cheap barebones outdoor addition to the Bloor-Danforth subway is an excellent way to begin...

Regent Park style redevelopment can be done here with no problem at all. There is plenty of space for a few extra towers and a new subway station would surely be able to absorb a lot of the transportation demands. It will fix the poor state of public housing, add in new market units to an area that is revitalizing, and it would be an overall benefit to Warden Woods in general...which it desperately needs.

Once a project like this becomes successful, the city then needs to look at in-fill stations like Willowdale or the mid-block stations along Yonge (after DRL) using the same model of mass development focused around the station.

Once that is successful, then only can Toronto have a pretty good idea of if this is feasible for brand new construction projects funded privately like the Sheppard Line.

 

[BMO]

Sometimes I don't get where everybody gets the notion that developers will jump at every opportunity given to them. There's a market to consider, and considering we have a tonne of development happening in Toronto, I'm not really sure if there really is a market in these potential locations tbh. Some may argue that buildings are going up downtown because of accessibility, etc, but there's also a lot of demand to be in the downtown core and near to POI's. out in Scarborough, I'm not sure if the interest can really be mustered, or if they can even manage to build a development large enough to be able to cover the cost of constructing the stations. The whole route doesn't really have that whole trend going for it.

 

[gweed123]

Sometimes I don't get where everybody gets the notion that developers will jump at every opportunity given to them. There's a market to consider, and considering we have a tonne of development happening in Toronto, I'm not really sure if there really is a market in these potential locations tbh. Some may argue that buildings are going up downtown because of accessibility, etc, but there's also a lot of demand to be in the downtown core and near to POI's. out in Scarborough, I'm not sure if the interest can really be mustered, or if they can even manage to build a development large enough to be able to cover the cost of constructing the stations. The whole route doesn't really have that whole trend going for it.

I see where you're coming from, but at the same time I get the impression that developers are trying to do more and more on smaller and smaller pieces of land, because that's all that's really available. If they were given a large piece of land, I'm sure that they could come up with a way to make it work, especially because of the existing density in the area (higher density wouldn't be considered "out of character" for the area).

I think Regent Park will be a good test for how the 'district redevelopment using mixed-income units' will turn out. If the preliminary results are good, the developer turns a profit, and the city sees benefits, expect a lot more of those types of development to happen.

From a planning perspective, the larger the site you're working with, the more control you have over pedestrian and vehicle circulation, mixes of densities, location of parks, etc. When all you're doing is infilling an existing area, you're very much working with what you're given. Refurbing and infilling may work in some neighbourhoods, but if the main foundation of what you're refurbing and infilling isn't that great (from a planning perspective), you're going to get a sub-optimal end product. However, if you have control over all of the elements of the site from the get-go, you can form a more cohesive vision, and likely end up with a better end result, both for the developer and for the community.

 

[Long Island Mike]

They have that on Chicago's Red Line...it's pretty cool. Longest subway platform in the world.

LN: Those stations that you mention are on both of CTA's State (Howard-Dan Ryan) and Dearborn (O'Hare-Congress) Streets Subways in Downtown Chicago...

They extend from Randolph S to Jackson in both Subways...and they are both the longest continuous subway platforms in the world as mentioned...

Trains make three separate stops in those station areas and they are island platforms and are very walkable...I have walked both in the past...

For more information see: www.chicago-l.org The best and most informative CTA site around...

Speaking of the TTC: To accomplish a similar task would cost major money...also remembering that the TTC Yonge Subway has separate side platforms...LI MIKE

 

[Electrify]

Looking at that map, I don't think a subway stop would make much sense. It is a small community, and is right next to two local bus stops which can take passengers to Warden Station, which is only a half mile up the road.

Simply put, it would make Bessarion look like Grand Central in terms of passenger volume.

 

[adma]

That's my assumption, too. The logic for such a stop is too whistle-stoppy for its own good. The message here is: don't overreact to articles you read in the paper.

 

[nfitz]

Looking at that map, I don't think a subway stop would make much sense. It is a small community, and is right next to two local bus stops which can take passengers to Warden Station, which is only a half mile up the road.

Simply put, it would make Bessarion look like Grand Central in terms of passenger volume.

Excellent point. I'm amazed it's taken 2 dozen posts for someone to point out the obvious!

Birchmount may make more sense if it's combined with redevelopment of the area.

 

[Johnny Au]

The "superstation" in question is the Chicago Transit Authority's Red Line's Washington/State (ghost) station. It runs between Jackson/State and Lake/State stations.

 

[nfitz]

Funny thing is that I thought I was making an absurdly silly suggestion to highlight the craziness of building a second station near Warden. I've never taken the Red Line in Chicago.

 

[Johnny Au]

I have never taken the Red Line in Chicago. I simply did research.