Brandon Donnelly — Daily insights for city builders. Published since 2013 by Toronto-based real estate developer Brandon Donnelly. — Page 1384

Those of you from Toronto might be aware that the city is currently assessing the possibility of a “relief subway line” that would connect the downtown core back up to the Bloor-Danforth subway line in the form of a stretched out “U”.

The reason this line is being called a “relief line” is that – in addition to providing local service all across downtown and its “shoulders” – it would also relieve much of the pressure that the Yonge-Bloor interchange is facing today. Instead of always having to connect at that location, passengers coming from the east and west would be able to do so sooner as a result of this new subway line (bypassing Yonge-Bloor).

For those of you who are regular readers of ATC, you might know that I’m a big supporter of this relief line. I believe it should be our number one transit priority. It’s going to cut through areas of the city that have some of the highest population and employment densities, and so it’s an area where I think subway makes sense. The ridership would be there.

Many people at the city also seem to agree:

https://twitter.com/jen_keesmaat/status/571745025941487616

Given that an assessment is currently underway, the city is looking for feedback from the public. One of the ways you can do that is by clicking here . The site will allow you to comment on the potential station locations (shown below using purple circles). I did it this morning and I would encourage you to do the same if you’re from Toronto.

For clarity, this current study is only for the eastern portion of the relief line (study area is outlined in red below).

Once you’ve given this some thought, I’d love to have a discussion in the comments about where you think the relief subway line should go (or if you even think it’s a good idea in the first place).

My initial thought is that it should connect into King station, run along King Street East, merge with Queen Street East near the Don Valley, go through Riverside and Leslieville, and then start making its way north to Danforth Avenue.

My reasons are as follows:

• King Street East is the most vibrant pedestrian street on the east side of downtown. There isn’t enough commercial activity further south.

• King Street would allow it to eventually cut right through the Financial District when it heads westward.

• The connection to Union station (for GO Transit, VIA Rail, and the Union-Pearson Express Train) would be manageable from King Street. Plus, SmartTrack may feed directly into Union.

• King Street is roughly the midpoint between Queen Street and Lakeshore Boulevard. And if you place it too far south, it would take away from the proposed Queen’s Quay LRT line.
  

• Having it merge into Queen Street near the Don Valley would allow it to service both Regent Park to the north, as well as the West Don Lands neighborhood to the south. It would also allow for a connection to a Cherry Street LRT line servicing the future Portlands neighborhood.

• Queen & Broadview is emerging as a major node with a significant amount of density in the pipeline. And further north, Dundas & Carlaw is similarly seeing a lot of intensification.

But I may have missed a few things. These are just my thoughts. What are yours?

According to a new report released by City Observatory , US cities have officially reversed a 50-year trend towards decentralization.

We know that urban living has been seeing a renaissance over the last decade or so, but as recently as 2002 - 2007 (pre-Great Recession), the suburbs and peripheral areas were still seeing significantly higher job growth: 1.2% per year in the periphery versus 0.1% in the city center. The “city center” is defined as a 3 mile radius around the center of the city in this study.

However since 2007 things have flipped:

Chart Source: City Observatory

Why is this happening? Here’s a snippet from City Observatory :

The strength of city centers appears to be driven by a combination of the growing attractiveness of urban living, and the relatively stronger performance of urban-centered industries (business and professional services, software) relative to decentralized industries (construction, manufacturing) in this economic cycle. While it remains to be seen whether these same patterns continue to hold as the recovery progresses, (the latest LEHD data on city center job growth are for calendar year 2011), there are structural forces that suggest the trend of center-led growth will continue.

In some ways, it just makes intuitive sense. People started returning to cities and so the jobs followed (although there were also structural changes to the economy). 

The big question, however, is whether this trend will continue? My bet is on yes. What do you think?

Toronto - St Lawrence Market by Chris Dufresne on 500px

This past Saturday night I was out with a few friends in my neighborhood (St. Lawrence Market area). And I was delighted to see how busy it was. Virtually every bar or club we walked by had a line down the street.

Being the city geek that I am, I started thinking about two things: (1) how often I get localized to my neighborhood ( I have data to back this up ) and (2) what makes a “complete neighborhood” , such that you’re even able to be localized?

In some ways the idea of a “complete neighborhood” is universal. Everybody needs a grocery store and access to food, for example. But in other ways, a “complete neighborhood” is very much a personal thing – you want goods and services that are important to you .

So today I thought I would do a quick breakdown of the goods, services, and amenities that I really value in my neighborhood and that I think make it more or less “complete.” This list is a combination of universal and personal choices in no particular order. At the end, I summarize some of the things I wish I had.

What I have:

• A 5-10 minute walk to subway and streetcar

• A 24/7 grocery store

• A world famous food market (St. Lawrence Market)

• Staple coffee shops (Starbucks and Balzacs)
  

• Lots of restaurant and food choices (including decent Mexican, one of my favorite foods, and Pho, for when I feel a cold coming on)

• 2 drugstores (Shopper’s Drug Mart and a new Rexall)
  

• A great gym that’s less than a 10 minute walk away

• An outdoor/athletic store that also fixes bikes

• Cool local bar (AAA) where I can watch the Raptors (because I don’t own a TV)

• After work bar with a good Happy Hour (Pravda)

• Patios for the summer (all along the Esplanade)

• All the major banks

• Nearby recreational amenities (bike trails, waterfront, etc.)

• Local employment base ( Wattpad , BNOTIONS , etc.)

• Great architecture (from Daniel Libeskind to the classics)

• High walkability

What I wish I had:

• Less chains and a few more independent businesses
  

• A hip indie coffee shop where the (male) staff have waxed moustaches
  

• A good takeout sushi place

• A pool that I could walk to (I ride my bike to Regent Park)
  

• A liquor store with longer hours (but alas this is Ontario)
  

Those are my working lists. What would create a complete neighborhood for you? And how does your current neighborhood hold up?