The Beach earns a spot among Toronto’s most anti-condo neighbourhoods
The Beach isn’t immune to the city’s condo boom—five buildings are proposed or under construction in the neighbourhood—but it’s fighting development harder than most. Last Monday, a vocal and well-organized group of residents gathered for a tense meeting about Reserve Properties’ plan to build a six-storey condo on Queen Street East (a city staffer’s hands reportedly even shook as she faced them) and another homeowner is refusing developers’ offer of more than $1 million for her house, which sits between the sites of two planned condos. However, a small contingent of locals welcomes development, saying that the lakeside community is getting too expensive and that more density would combat sprawl and fill retail vacancies. Others also think buildings could bring some much-needed diversity to the ’hood (8.5 per cent of Beach residents are members of visible minorities, compared to 42.8 per cent citywide). Some (small) changes could be good, according to one condo-sympathetic Beach dad: “Why not have some single young professionals? Maybe a hipster or two — not too many.” [Toronto Star]
I live in The Beach and I can honestly say that I have never encountered so many self-righteous, inflexible and intolerant people anywhere. The Beach is screaming for some diversity!
I live in the Beach too, and the people here, especically those that show up for the meetings, are more articulate and informed then the councillors or city planners. It is so sad that the ones in power do not have an ability to think laterally, as there are many options available to create housing. It seems we need creative thinkers and planning cities the way we have been doing it is not working, as you can see in Vancouver and Australia where there is now condo slums. So listen to the people, they are the ones that have their pulse on the future, not the pshchopathic developers and their cronies, the councillors.
So is Brampton, except it’s brown. And Markham, except it’s Oriental. So white people aren’t allowed to have their ethnic enclaves but everyone else is allowed? You sure aren’t going to get the next Shakespeare out of places like Markham or Brampton.