An empty lot adjacent to Victoria Park Station — cluttered with construction equipment — served as the backdrop for the ceremonial groundbreaking at 777 Victoria Park Ave., where a small crowd gathered to mark the occasion.

Mayor Olivia Chow, surrounded by men in hard hats , took to the podium to address a crowd eager for the introduction of a new mixed-use, transit-oriented community in Scarborough southwest.

It took seven years, but Toronto’s Housing Now initiative, an initiative to increase affordable housing, can now officially add the former TTC commuter parking lot to its portfolio, thanks to federal government support and a $30.2 million waiver in development fees and charges from the City.

“Where there was asphalt — empty spaces — there will soon be life,” declared Chow at the site where construction began in June.

The project, developed through a partnership between the City, CreateTO, CMHC, Alterra Group, and Mahogany Management, aims to deliver 705 new residential rental units, 256 of which will be affordable homes priced between 40 per cent to 80 per cent of Toronto’s average market rents.

“We know that for the past decade, families across Scarborough have faced a struggle that’s been all too familiar,” said Chow. “That has been the story of Scarborough for quite a while. Too many families have been priced out. Too many neighbourhoods have felt the strain of our housing crisis, and today, we have an opportunity to change that story.”

Along with affordable and deeply affordable units, the development will include a child care centre, publicly accessible open spaces, community facilities and commercial retail.

Scarborough Southwest councillor Parthi Kandavel, believes the project will “strengthen our local community.”

“The housing gods are pleased!” said an animated Kandavel, who was also in attendance. “The City of Toronto, as many of you know, has introduced the HousingTO 2030 Action Plan. This project, right here in my ward of Scarborough Southwest, is one of the ways we’re making this plan a reality.”

The city’s HousingTO Plan aims for 65,000 new rent-controlled homes by 2030, comprising 41,000 affordable rental units, 6,500 rent-geared-to-income (RGI), and 17,500 rent-controlled units.

“Now, all across Toronto, we are getting homes built faster,” Chow boasted.

Although properties included in the Housing Now program since its launch in 2019 are expected to create around 15,000 new homes by the time they’re fully completed, only a few have been built so far.

According to a report this month to the CreateTO Board, just three Housing Now sites are now under construction. Many—like Victoria Park—have faced significant, multi-year delays.

But, Chow said that a total of 25,000 new homes will be delivered “this year and next” through all city programs and incentives.

777 Victoria Park Ave. is one of nearly 100 city-owned sites that are either housing-ready or could be unlocked for new housing.

“We’re not short of sites, we’re short of money,” added CreateTO CEO Vic Gupta during Wednesday’s ceremony. “That’s what we need more of. But with the partnership with governments, I think we can deliver much more housing.”

Gupta said that there are currently three projects in market for a public offering, expected to be finalized “later this year into the new year.”

“With projects like this one at 777 Victoria Park in Scarborough, 50 Wilson Heights in North York, Bloor-Kipling in Etobicoke, and many more on the horizon, by the end of the year, that’s about 5,000 new homes— including affordable homes—under construction on city land,” said Gupta.

According to Chow, 90 per cent of the city has been rezoned to allow for a wider range of housing types and greater density near subway stations — from townhouses to mid-rises.

“And our approval process, once one of the slowest in North America, is now 80 per cent faster,” she added.

Councillor Brad Bradford, told the Star that the city needs to “continue to speed up our approvals and development work.”

 The Beaches-East York councillor, while supportive of the latest Housing Now development, criticized the delay.

“I’m glad to see this starting, one of the very few projects that will actually break ground in the city this year,” he said. “But seven years after being announced, people should be moving into the building rather than construction just starting.”

This project was first announced in December 2018 but faced multiple delays due to factors ranging from changing business terms amid uncertain economic times to pushback from community members concerned about the loss of commuter parking in their neighbourhood.

“We heard and understood local concerns about the loss of the commuter parking lot, which many residents rely on for transit access,” said Kandavel. “Balancing these local needs with our housing goals has highlighted the importance of collaboration between the local community, Alterra, CreateTO, and our planning staff to find solutions.”

While Kandavel noted that the number of accessible parking spots on-site was increased to address community concerns, the initial development proposal faced other challenges. One major issue, according to the mayor’s office, was that the original design was “much smaller” than what is being built today and was deemed “not financially viable.”

In 2024, the project was redesigned with more height and density, increasing the number of units from 508 to 705, though the number of affordable units remained roughly the same.

“More market units were needed to make it more financially viable,” Chow’s office said.

Although Chow believes the federal government’s $291 million in low-cost financing, along with the city’s new approach to streamlining development proposals, will help get shovels in the ground faster than what was seen at 777 Victoria Park Ave., she emphasized that lessons learned during the development process — initiated under former mayor John Tory — have led the city to update its strategy for getting future developments under construction more quickly.

“What I’ve noticed works is packaging a group of similar projects,” she said. “Submit them to the federal government, and say to the minister and CMHC, ‘Approve these — we’re ready, we’re giving them tax deductions and development charges exemptions. We’re ready.’”

Chow added that the city will utilize this same approach once the federal government starts taking applications for its latest housing agency, Build Canada Homes.

“As soon as they open the portal, our package is ready. We’re going to submit a whole package and say, here we are, we’re ready — get shovels in the ground.” she said.

Source: www.thestar.com