We are thrilled to announce that the OMB has approved our Shops on Steeles redevelopment in Markham. See our previous blog post.

The Ontario Municipal Board agreed with our assessment and expert opinion that a reduction from 1787 dwelling units down to 1235 units is a significant concession by Bayview Summit, the Town of Markham and the ratepayers. We believe that all sides have won in reaching this agreement.

Conceptual rendering: Shops on Steeles, Mixed Use Development. Steeles Avenue East & Don Mills Road, Markham, ON.

The proposal will result in a much-needed revitalization of an existing mall and will serve as a significant gateway to this major intersection.

Current site of “The Shops” at Steeles and 404 in Markham

The redevelopment proposal will be phased with the existing plaza redevelopment occurring first, followed by a phased construction of the residential component. It is anticipated that the construction program will occur over 10-12 years.

Conceptual rendering: Shops on Steeles, Mixed Use Development. Steeles Avenue East & Don Mills Road, Markham, ON.

The other important party involved with the application – and the appeal – was the City of Toronto, led by councilor David Shiner. In it’s findings, the OMB made the following comments:

Board Findings and Reasons:

At this juncture before the Board delves into its findings and reasons, this panel of the Board makes the following observation. Toronto, in opposing the settlement, chose not to call any expert witnesses to proffer evidence in support of its position and to address its issues on the approved Issues List. Toronto decided to advance its case before this Board by relying on its Counsel’s cross-examination of the aligned Parties expert witnesses, the concerns of the Participants and the closing arguments of its Counsel. This the Board views as unusual particularly in light of the motions passed by Toronto Council strongly opposing the settlement. Particularly the motion of April 12, 2011, which gave notice to the Town and the Region of its intention to close access to the existing shopping mall from Steeles Avenue at Townsend Road.

In making its findings, the Board gave consideration to the evidence of the expert witnesses, the filed witness statements, the submissions of Counsel and the concerns of the Participants that spoke at the hearing.

The only expert evidence given at this hearing were those proffered by the expert witnesses qualified in their respective fields in support of the redevelopment proposal. This expert evidence included urban design, traffic, servicing, and planning. The Board finds that the testimony of these experts was unshaken under cross-examination by Toronto.

We are looking forward to the next phase of this exciting project, taking our great ideas and turning them into reality. This project will become a model of greyfield intensification throughout North America.

- Cliff

I recently gave a presentation at the Transforming & Revitalizing Downtown Summit, which took place on June 14th and 15th in downtown Toronto. I was happy to meet a number of planning professionals and politicians from Cincinnati, Cobourg and Belleville to Smiths Falls, all gathered together to discuss how best to approach smart growth strategies for their communities.

Cliff addresses attendees at the Transforming and Revitalizing Downtown Summit, June 14, 2011

Often associated with outlying urban areas intent on curbing sprawl, mixed-use development and smart-growth principles can also benefit small and mid-sized downtown communities. We talked about how smaller communities can plan from the early stages using intensification principles to achieve a better use of space and more opportunities for well-designed green spaces, bike lanes and walkable public areas. Through this process we pre-determine where growth is best suited to happen taking into account nodes, corridors, cross road, transit lines, etc.

One of the attendees asked how a smaller community with demand for growth should begin to plan responsibly. It’s important to note that every situation is different. It’s always about scale and how much growth is needed… but in my experience, the mixed-use, smart growth model works. With proper planning and responsible collaborative planning processes to gain public and peer review input, community members benefit from increased property values, better services and livelier, more welcoming streetscapes — and more sustainable communities.

Together, these perspectives showed that while we all can agree on the need for intensification and the principles of smart growth, individual communities must develop in ways that suit them, taking into account projected population growth and diversity, existing planning regulations and the perspective of the communities. A one-size-fits-all approach is not sustainable.

“Where you put it” and “How much is enough” is the role of the design professional to guide communities through this process.  Through town hall meetings, design charettes, peer review process and community working group sessions, we at Kirkor have worked with many groups to create this vision.

-Cliff