Brandon Donnelly — Daily insights for city builders. Published since 2013 by Toronto-based real estate developer Brandon Donnelly. — Page 397

Today is my fortieth birthday. And despite a noble attempt to avoid having meetings today, I spent a big chunk of the day in them. Thankfully, I was also fortunate to spend a lot of time with family, friends, and colleagues (see evidence above).

This is a birthday where I think I'm supposed to feel things. And I do. I'm grateful for the wonderful people that I get to have in my life and who love me. I feel lucky that I get to wake up every day and do something I love. And I'm genuinely excited for this next decade.

It is, however, true that time does speed up. It feels like just yesterday that I was 30 years old. I had just finished my MBA. I was about to start writing this daily blog (yes it's nearly a decade old). And I was trying to figure out how to make an impact on the world.

Maybe not much has changed. It's not in my nature to feel complacent. But there is something nice about getting older and feeling more confident with yourself and your abilities.

If anything, birthdays are a good reminder that time is precious. We only have so many weeks . So we shouldn't feel shy about asking the world for what we want. I think that's what I'm feeling most this birthday, and I view that as an exciting thing. So here's to forty years.

I came across this French paper over the weekend, while I was at the gym pretending to work out my legs. It is a fascinating look at the evolution of Parisian urbanism from 1600-1902, including how the city's height limits have changed over the centuries. Here, for example, are two section diagrams showing the allowable building envelopes for both an 8 meter street and a 10 meter street:

The way to read these is to start at the bottom with the width of the right-of-way ("voie"). As you move up, it then gives you the allowable heights for various dates. So for example, in 1667, the allowable building height for a 10 meter street was 15.60m. After this height, there was then a requirement to stepback following a 45 degree angular plane. Or in some cases, following a certain radius:

We don't have a ton of 8 and 10-meter wide streets here in Toronto, but there are obvious similarities between what is shown here and what is in our mid-rise design guidelines. Of course, the big difference is that we're mostly zoned for low-rises houses and Paris is not. This broader context matters a great deal and it's why I keep asking: Are you sure you want Parisian-style urbanism?

This past weekend we went to check out Fashion Art Toronto .

I'll be honest and say that I had never heard of it before we bought tickets. Even though technically, it is the longest running fashion week in the city because of Toronto Fashion Week getting briefly cancelled in 2016, when its corporate sponsor pulled out. I also had no idea that Peter Freed, of Freed Developments , ended up purchasing the TFW brand later that year. I have been told he talks about it on this episode of Toronto Under Construction , but I haven't had a chance to listen to it just yet.

Getting back to FAT (the acronym is deliberate), it was a cool event. There were of course various runway shows throughout the day and evening, but there were also a few art installations and a retail area for local designers (see below). Tricon Residential and Kronenbourg 1664 Blanc were major sponsors, and were giving out popcorn and beer. And in general, the crowd was dressed in ways that made me feel both old and stuffy. It was a lot of fun.

It was also in a warehouse in the Junction . Well, technically I think the neighborhood is called Harwood. But if you're even remotely close to the Junction nowadays, it is vital that you just assimilate. That's how this stuff works. As soon as a neighborhood has a successful brand, its boundaries get invariably stretched in every way possible. I suppose this is the Darwinian world of urban neighborhoods. There is always a chance that you may not make it and you might just get absorbed by a neighboring faction.

I would also add that a lot of creative uses in need of space -- whether it's a fashion show or a DJ event -- seem to be gravitating towards this northern part of the Junction. If you see an event location that says "undisclosed warehouse", chances are it will be here. This is, of course, another naturally occurring urban phenomenon. It is the whole "new ideas require old buildings" thing, which really just means that new ideas require cheaper rents. And generally, it is a good positive leading indicator for an area.

Having said all this, I do think there's a lot of room for Toronto to step up its commitment to fashion and the arts. This is not a world that I live in, and I am not criticizing the good work of Fashion Art Toronto or Toronto Fashion Week. I just think that for a global city of our size and influence, we should be much better. I saw some of this city's ambition, talent, and diversity in a warehouse in the Junction this past weekend. It's just too bad that it's not on stage for the rest of the world to see.