A Toronto housing mega project across the sprawling Downsview lands is set to receive a double funding boost from city council and the federal government, with plans to expand infrastructure in the area and build more than 500 modular homes.
A gaggle of federal and municipal leaders gathered on the site — which is planned to host more than 100,000 people when it is completed — on Tuesday to announce that their vision for a “city within a city” was set to move forward.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said $425 million in city funding and $280 million from the federal government would combine to expand the area’s Black Creek Trunk Sewer, which is nearing capacity.
Expanding the 1960s sewer was the key, she said, to “unlocking the potential of this neighbourhood.” Without the upgrades, work on 63,000 units in the area could stall.
Housing Minister Gregor Robertson said the money would give confidence to the city that it could keep approving new units, and provide the infrastructure builders need.
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“We have come to the point now where growth has outpaced capacity, and without an upgrade, the city cannot approve new housing permits in this (area),” he said.
“In the short term, our investment will ensure new housing developments can be approved with confidence and at speed.”
Chow also welcomed to the podium her former mayoral rival and “old friend” Ana Bailão, who was recently appointed to head Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Build Canada Homes organization.
The new entity was created under the promise to spur massive amounts of housing construction and convert public land into public building projects, focusing on Canadian products.
Bailão confirmed Downsview, where the federal government already owns land, will be the site of her organization’s first project, with Build Canada Homes now recruiting companies to deliver factory and modular homes to build on the site.
In total, the federal organization is looking to add 540 modular homes to Downsview. The government said at least 40 per cent would be affordable and the development would provide studios and one- to three-bedroom homes.
“Build Canada Homes is advancing new approaches to housing delivery,” Bailão said in a statement.
“Our first development in Toronto will help demonstrate how coordinated public-private partnerships and innovation in home building can support the accelerated construction of below-market homes in growing communities.”
The broader redevelopment of Downsview is described in city council reports as a 30-plus-year plan with “significant financial implications” for Toronto.
In 2021, Northcrest Developments and the federal Canada Lands Company submitted a joint bid to amend the city’s official plan for the 210-hectare area, including the disused airport.
City staff have envisaged the area as a potential arts and culture hub, as well as a massive boost of new homes.
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