Yes, as wonderful as it is to see downtown intensify I'm most looking forward to the re-design of our roads and sidewalks. An apron of amenities/retail lining the sidewalk, fewer lanes of traffic, tripling the width of sidewalks, proper separated bike lanes, heavy landscaping, attractive lamp posts, & quality paving. Many of our 4 lane roads will have to be 2 lanes eventually.

It's going to be fantastic when King, Queen, Dundas, Church, Parliament, and parts of Yonge get re-built as 2 lane roads with no street parking. The existence of street parking on Bloor in the Annex is a big negative. There just isn't room for a decent sized sidewalk + street parking. Retail there is suffering because of it. Hopefully they fix it soon.
 
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Colborne from Church to Leader Lane MAY be fixed up this fall but more likely in spring 2022. Leader Lane from King to Colborne will be done at same time and there are plans to fully pedestrianise Leader Lane south from Colborne to Wellington at same time too. Colborne from Leader Lane to Yonge will, supposedly, be done when the new development at corner of Yonge is finished (it's not started yet so that means 5+ years more.)
The Leader Lane pedestrianization would be a great change however there is some local opposition to those plans due to noise concerns. Time will tell.

Are there any details on what is specifically planned for Colborne? A straight re-pave or something more aesthetically pleasing?
 
The Leader Lane pedestrianization would be a great change however there is some local opposition to those plans due to noise concerns. Time will tell.

Are there any details on what is specifically planned for Colborne? A straight re-pave or something more aesthetically pleasing?
The local objections re Leader Lane were to a proposed PATIO there. As far as I know, 'everyone'(BIA, SLNA, neighbours) are in favour of a pedestrianization. Plans still being worked on and it will certainly not happen in 2021 Transportation has been instructed to work on it and this motion was passed at TEYCC in May.

Toronto and East York Community Council request the General Manager, Transportation Services, to consult with the St. Lawrence Market Neighbourhood Business Improvement Area, the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood Association, representatives from 30 Wellington Street East and other City divisions and stakeholders as identified about the permanent closure of Leader Lane, between Colborne Street and Wellington Street East this year, and to report back to the November 24, 2021 meeting of Toronto and East York Community Council with recommendations regarding closing this section of Leader Lane permanently.

The plan for Colborne from Church to Leader Lane and the northern leg of Leader Lane is NOT a simple repaving. Something similar to Market Street is planned and will either happen late fall 2021 or, more likely, spring 2022. (They need to finish 65 King first.)
 
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Jun 9, 2021

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The plan for Colborne from Church to Leader Lane and the northern leg of Leader Lane is NOT a simple repaving. Something similar to Market Street is planned and will either happen late fall 2021 or, more likely, spring 2022. (They need to finish 65 King first.)

Hopefully they have learned a lesson from Market St and won't try to include parking...
 

Great Pics, as always!

On that last one..........the way in which both developments on the north side of Colborne front it really does bother me.

The scale is so out of proportion to the lovely heritage row on the south.

The Freed building really needed one less podium floor here, and much better retail at grade.

This one needed the tower set back a bit more.

Both are decent buildings.

They just don't help the character/flavour of Colborne.

Sigh.
 
Valid point but is it a realistic expectation that the low rise heritage buildings to the south will remain as is? In Toronto, buildings like that get gutted so that tall modern buildings can rise from within. If they can gut the Concourse Building and propose to do the same to the Dominion Public Building, modest 3-4 floor buildings from that same era don't stand a chance.

Usually we just end up with an exterior wall as a nod to what once stood there. It's a rarity that they keep them intact and build adjacent instead.
 
Valid point but is it a realistic expectation that the low rise heritage buildings to the south will remain as is? In Toronto, buildings like that get gutted so that tall modern buildings can rise from within. If they can gut the Concourse Building and propose to do the same to the Dominion Public Building, modest 3-4 floor buildings from that same era don't stand a chance.

Usually we just end up with an exterior wall as a nod to what once stood there. It's a rarity that they keep them intact and build adjacent instead.
That's why Council passed the new King-Parliament Secondary Plan, which will help with actually preserving the three-dimensionality of heritage buildings and direct development to reinforce the identity of the district, although it might be appealed to the LPAT.
 
That's why Council passed the new King-Parliament Secondary Plan, which will help with actually preserving the three-dimensionality of heritage buildings and direct development to reinforce the identity of the district, although it might be appealed to the LPAT.
I think an appeal (or ten) to LPAT is to be assumed!
 

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