Despite being the country’s largest property sale of 2013 according to the Financial Post, the recently purchased Bayview Village shopping centre and the surrounding lands are not up for development any time soon.
“I’m keeping my eyes on that closely,” said Ward 24 councillor David Shiner. “We’ve had no contact at this point, but I do look forward to hearing from the developer soon about what may happen there. A lot of people are curious."
Bought for a reported $500 million by British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (bcIMC), besides the more-than 400,000-square-foot, high-end shopping mall, there are lands included with the purchase along Sheppard Avenue that, under the City of Toronto’s official plan are available for residential development, almost directly across from the Arc condominiums at 2885 Bayview Ave. A reported $80 million of the purchase price is attributed to the as-of-right density of 280 additional residential and commercial units allowable there under the city’s official plan.
City planning officials also say at this point no contact has been made about improvements to the mall or for residential development. Shiner said residential development on top of the mall would not be possible under the official plan and zoning there; however, he added that a residential building similar to the Arc might fit in very well there.
“Whatever building may appear there must be lower rise at the intersection [of Bayview Avenue and Sheppard Avenue] but can increase to 15 storeys [along Sheppard, by the subway station there],” he explained.
Asked about plans they may have for their purchase or a timeline for development, the developer’s senior media relations specialist Jennifer Kwan offered no information about any residential development potential, but did say that “bcIMC will continue to operate the property as one of Canada’s top sales-producing shopping malls with the aim of ensuring its potential as a long-term, cash-flowing investment asset is maximized for our clients.”