SunriseChampion
Senior Member
Wow. I used to laugh at Markham (well, at all of southern York, really) but they're getting serious over there.
- Thread starter jaycola
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adma
Superstar
Well, rather than sneering at the idea of "heritage buildings", just accept that when it comes to an assembled parcel this large with existing buildings and vestiges on-site, it's good form to have *some* kind of mechanism for mandatory heritage/historical/archaeological study and documentation. A tabula rasa is never merely a tabula rasa...
299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
MTown - Markham is probably the most forward thinking of all the 905. They are serious about higher density development and more sustainable development on top of that.
The PRT concept was advanced by Calthorpe, but I don't know how well it's being taken. More recent conversations involve a circulator bus.
The biggest hurdle continues to be how to connect the site to the GO Station and Richmond Hill Centre. An 'underground concourse' idea has been advanced, as shown in the transit map, but there's some tight restrictions on what you can and cant' do over and adjacent to the rail line. Initial plans had shown a decking over of the rail line - but that was quickly nixed.
The PRT concept was advanced by Calthorpe, but I don't know how well it's being taken. More recent conversations involve a circulator bus.
The biggest hurdle continues to be how to connect the site to the GO Station and Richmond Hill Centre. An 'underground concourse' idea has been advanced, as shown in the transit map, but there's some tight restrictions on what you can and cant' do over and adjacent to the rail line. Initial plans had shown a decking over of the rail line - but that was quickly nixed.
Conrad Black
Senior Member
I know there's going to be a subway and there already is a GO station but how are they going to handle the local traffic? Yonge north of 7 is already a mess. Now add 20,000 or more people plus the subway parking and this area will come to a stop.
Uncle Teddy
Senior Member
I agree. This seems like madness to me. No one is going to walk to Hillcrest or any of the big box retail on Yonge. Will they even walk to the LCBO north of the 407 on Yonge? This is going to be gridlock central.
smuncky
Senior Member
i always thought the local bus would shuttle people to RHC since it would quite a walk for most people. have a private roadway only for buses going right beside the tracks which goes under the 407/7.
jaycola
Active Member
Page 94 of the report has a graphic of the density nodes around the Golden Horseshoe and the greenbelt. Does anyone have a link to a similar graphic in a jpg or gif?
Much appreciated in advance...
Much appreciated in advance...
waterloowarrior
Senior Member
on a related note, the Richmond Hill Regional Centre Design and Land Use Study Open House was last night
http://www.richmondhill.ca/subpage.asp?pageid=op_areastudy_rhcentre_design
http://www.richmondhill.ca/subpage.asp?pageid=op_areastudy_rhcentre_design
299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
The circulator bus could go up Red Cedar Avenue and then over the station. The most recent discussion involved dedicated bus lanes on Red Cedar and on the central spine. Buses from Bayview could also possibly cut through the development to access RHC.
jaycola
Active Member
For those naysayers one question...if not here, then where?
This site is on a major highway, on the go train, soon to be on the subway and on Yonge Street. I think it is the ideal site for a project like this.
If you combine this project with Markham town Centre, the plans for Downtown Richmond Hill (linked to above), the Vaughan Corporate Centre, the Thornhill Heritage District and the Yonge & Steeles plans, York Region has huge development plans for the future in keeping with the greater densities government has been calling for.
This site is on a major highway, on the go train, soon to be on the subway and on Yonge Street. I think it is the ideal site for a project like this.
If you combine this project with Markham town Centre, the plans for Downtown Richmond Hill (linked to above), the Vaughan Corporate Centre, the Thornhill Heritage District and the Yonge & Steeles plans, York Region has huge development plans for the future in keeping with the greater densities government has been calling for.
Chuck
Senior Member
Add to that the Yonge and Steeles plan, historic Thornhill, plus Vaughan's side of Yonge and Richmond Hill's side of the 407. South Yonge is the largest growth node in York Region, and chances are it will also be the most successful. It's funny how at the same time, this area has barely made it onto Markham and Vaughan's radar screen.
Edit: Also, the Langstaff plan may require Markham to annex land from Richmond Hill. Langstaff Road (not the 407) is the official boundary between the two, therefore several buildings are located half in Markham and half in Richmond Hill, while other lie entirely within Richmond Hill.
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SunriseChampion
Senior Member
Oh, in the last ten years, for sure....but before then (and still now, to a lesser extent, I suppose) they weren't too kind to themselves. Definitely no Vaughan, though, that's for sure.
What I meant to/should have/wanted to say is that the plans that are afoot for Markham are very encouraging.
TJ O'Pootertoot
Senior Member
The PRT seems a bit pie in the sky but the idea is to address a fundamental concern: Langstaff is at the subway etc. but how do you make sure someone living at, say, the east end can get to the subway without driving etc.
The idea was definitely to have some sort of shuttle buses in the short term in recognition of what everyone knows about the hardest part of people being on transit is making it easy to get there in the first place.
For the people wondering about the lights from Silver City or how people will walk to the Yonge LCBO, you're missing the point. By the time this is built out that will all be gone. Why would someone go to the Yonge LCBO or Hillcrest Mall when there will certainly be an LCBO and a Gap etc WITHIN Langstaff. That's the entire principle at work.
And Adma's right - there are several heritage buildings on site and the Q was whether to integrate them or move them to a single park.
Here is the growth nodes map...don't know how good the resolution is but it must be at the province's Places to Grow site too.
Oh - and to add to what Chuck said. They are talking about 30,000 people on this site. Vaughan had a meeting this week where they talked about adding another 25,000 along Steeles and up to this same area. I'm not sure about the population numbers from Markham's study of the Yonge-Steeles area but it must have been in the 5-10,000 range. So...that's a hell of a lot of people.
The idea was definitely to have some sort of shuttle buses in the short term in recognition of what everyone knows about the hardest part of people being on transit is making it easy to get there in the first place.
For the people wondering about the lights from Silver City or how people will walk to the Yonge LCBO, you're missing the point. By the time this is built out that will all be gone. Why would someone go to the Yonge LCBO or Hillcrest Mall when there will certainly be an LCBO and a Gap etc WITHIN Langstaff. That's the entire principle at work.
And Adma's right - there are several heritage buildings on site and the Q was whether to integrate them or move them to a single park.
Here is the growth nodes map...don't know how good the resolution is but it must be at the province's Places to Grow site too.
Oh - and to add to what Chuck said. They are talking about 30,000 people on this site. Vaughan had a meeting this week where they talked about adding another 25,000 along Steeles and up to this same area. I'm not sure about the population numbers from Markham's study of the Yonge-Steeles area but it must have been in the 5-10,000 range. So...that's a hell of a lot of people.
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299 bloor call control.
Senior Member
Conrad Black
Senior Member
I find it hard to believe that all the retail needs of this community will be self contained. Basically you would need to build a Hillcrest Mall within this area. Can't see that happening. I'm all for density but this area seems too shut off. Both Bayview and Yonge will be a mess traffic wise.