On the heels of a settlement that will add more density to a condo development at the old Canadian Tire lands near Leslie Street and Sheppard Avenue East, the intersection was identified as one of the city’s top 10 most congested areas. Topping the list was Bayview Avenue and Sheppard Avenue, with Yonge Street between Sheppard Avenue and Highway 401 not far behind in the second slot.
Coun. Denzil Minnan-Wong, chair of Toronto City Council Public Works and Infrastructure Committee, put forward a motion to have transportation services study the city’s busiest locations and report back in the fall on ways to alleviate the problem. As for the agreement on additional development, Coun. David Shiner stressed that most of the project had already been approved back in 2002.
“It accomplished what I would say is a reasonable settlement of the site to contain substantially the amount of new development there,” he said.
Toronto City Council also recently rejected another Sheppard Avenue East and Leslie Street area application that would have added nearly 3,000 residential units to the northwest corner. Given that the density of the proposal greatly exceeded what’s permitted in the official plan, City of Toronto staff took the unusual step of writing a refusal report instead of the usual preliminary report.
“They came in with a ridiculous application that was over five times [lot] coverage,” Shiner said. “And the city solicitor with city planning staff will go to the [Ontario Municipal] Board if the application appeals the decision to fight any chances of building what he’s recommended now.”
He said that the city’s most congested locations really highlight the need for extended subway lines versus putting light rapid transit on the roads.
“We have all these new developments and our transportation staff never say they won’t work, unfortunately,” Shiner said. “Even when our intersections are in horrible shape, they keep approving these developments.”
That the Leslie Street and Sheppard Avenue East location was identified as one of the city’s most congested did not come as a surprise to Doug Stephens, president of the Bayview Village Association.
“It’s still way too many units [at the old Canadian Tire lands], but it’s better than what the initial proposal was,” he said. “All this adds is approximately 3,900 more units in here that will just drive additional cars, additional traffic and further logjam the whole community at those key intersections that everyone uses.”
Stephens said that the community has known for some time that this site would be developed, but with further development pressures in the community, the traffic impact will continue to be a big concern.
“Everyone who’s living here is faced with those time erosions that impact your personal life; take time away from you, family, social things, other things you’d rather do [while you’re] sitting in your car.”
