Of
the
thesis
entitled: Intensifying
Toronto
Abstract:
How cities
grow
is
set
to
change.
In
the
Greater
Toronto
Area,
both Ontario’s
Greenbelt
Plan
and
Growth
Plan
for
the Greater
Golden
Horseshoe
are
set
to
have
a
significant
impact
on
how
and
where urban
growth
will
occur
in
the
near
future.
Since
2006
the
Greenbelt
Plan has
protected
the
Greenbelt,
a
1.8
million
acre
urban
growth
boundary
of sensitive
and
agricultural
land,
from
urban
development. Forming
a
containment
ring
around
the
Greater Toronto
Area,
the
Greenbelt
leaves
a
finite
amount
of
easily
developable greenfield
land
within its
inner
ring:
an
area
known
as
the
Whitebelt.
As the
Whitebelt
becomes
depleted,
change
in
the
location
and
manner
of accommodating
urban
growth
will
need
to
be
adapted.
In
support
of
the Greenbelt
Plan,
Ontario’s
Growth
Plan
set
a
benchmark
requiring
that
40%
of all future
residential
growth
intensify
existing
urban
areas
advocating
that development
occur
in
a
manner
that
creates
self-sufficient
and
complete communities.
Investigations
by
the
Neptis
Foundation
reveal
that consolidating
intensification
around
high-order
transit
areas is
a
beneficial scenario
to
accommodate
such
growth.
Aiding
this,
recent
transit infrastructure
investments
by
the
Ontario
Government
will
offer
more opportunities
for
transit-orientated
intensification.
The
identification
of
potential intensification
sites
led
to
the
selection
of
Scarborough’s
Golden
Mile
as
a case
study
site. Redeveloping
this district
into
a
dense,
activated,
transit-supportive
and
pedestrian-orientated urban
area
that
not
only
accommodates
population
and employment
densities,
but also
one
that
accommodates
a
mix
of
dwelling
types,
jobs,
stores,
and institutions
in
the
support
of
the
daily
life
of
a
diverse
and
complete community
required
the
analysis
of
the
site’s
conditions,
its
applicable official
policies,
and
an
investigation into
the
potential
treatment
of
its streets,
blocks,
and
architecture.
Together
the
policies,
site conditions,
and
urban
studies
would
develop
the
guiding
principles
for
the
case study
site’s
reurbanization.
Transformation
of
the
case
study
site depended
upon
the
successful
redevelopment
of
Eglinton
Avenue:
the
area’s social
nerve.
Acting
as
both
street
and
place,
the
Avenue’s
redevelopment required
an
appropriate
mix
of
different
modes
of
transit,
the
ability
to accommodate a
variety
of
urban
functions,
the
development
of
suitable architecture
and
urban
spaces,
and
the
promotion
of
an
activated
street life.
The
Avenue’s
blocks,
currently
large
commercial
and
industrial superblocks,
were
reduced
and
repurposed
to
support
a
mix
of
land-uses
and architectural
types
aiming
to
create
a
more
attractive
pedestrian-orientated district.
Using
a
consolidated
intensification scenario,
this
thesis
investigates
how
future
intensification
sites
could
be redeveloped
into
complete
communities.
By
reurbanizing
a
case
study
site,
it transforms
policies
into
a
potential
urban
form
allowing
for
a
more
critical analysis
of the
opportunities,
issues,
and
possibilities
provided
by
this manner
of
growth.
Supervisor:
Committee Members:
Val Rynnimeri, University of Waterloo
Rick Andrighetti, University of Waterloo
Terri Boake,
University of
Waterloo
External Reader:
Drew Sinclair, SvN
The
committee
has
been
approved
as
authorized
by
the
Graduate
Studies
Committee.
The
Defence
Examination
will
take
place:
Tuesday
October
4,
2016
2:00PM
ARC
2003
A
copy
of
the
thesis
is
available
for
perusal
in
ARC
2106A.