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Great Streets: Getting the Design of Buildings Right at Ground
Level
Mark Emery
Weston Consulting
Land & Development Conference
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
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Ground floor retail: Challenges with the current planning
paradigm
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Toronto: Layers of Policy
• City of Toronto Official Plan
• City-wide Avenues & Rid-Rise Buildings Study (2010)
• Mid-Rise Urban Design Guidelines (draft form)
• Individual Avenue Studies
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City of Toronto: Official Plan
Toronto Official Plan Map 2: Urban Structure (July 2015
Consolidation) 4
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City of Toronto: Official Plan
3.5.3 the Future of Retailing 3. Retail development along the
Avenues is encouraged and will suit the local context of built form
and support the establishment of a high quality pedestrian
environment. 4.5 Mixed Use Areas 1. Mixed Use Areas are made up of
a broad range of
commercial, residential and institutional uses, in single use or
mixed use buildings, as well as parks and open spaces and
utilities.
2. In Mixed Use Areas development will: f) provide an
attractive, comfortable and safe pedestrian environment.
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• Queensway Avenue Study 2003
New buildings fronting on The Queensway should be designed to
incorporate accessible retail, commercial or residential frontages
that will animate the street at the sidewalk level
• Queensway Zoning By-law 514-2003
– Avenue (AV) designation, permits mixed use
– Maximum building setback of 3.0 m
The Queensway
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The Hive Lofts, 892 the Queensway
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Brampton Official Plan
4.10.3.1 Multi-Storey Buildings
Mid-rise buildings should be permitted to develop to 3 FSI/FAR
which generally allows four storeys with commercial uses at grade,
and three storeys of residential uses above
4.10.3.6 Mixed-Use Development
…in appropriate locations encourage ground floor retail,
restaurants and other pedestrian friendly uses; creating
interesting architectural character and built form specially at
street level through massing, staggering frontage, display windows,
the use of weather protection features such as awnings and canopies
etc.
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George Street North, Brampton
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Maple Heritage District, Vaughan Heritage Conservation District
Plan, 2007
9.5.3 Commercial Development includes guidelines for Scale and
Massing, Architectural Style, Storefronts, and Signage
Section 9.1 Architectural Styles 10
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New Mixed Use development in Maple
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Potential Challenges
Keele St and Killian Rd, Vaughan
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Demand for new housing in an area automatically anticipates
demand for new retail (City of Toronto Avenue policies), which may
or may not exist
Avenues with Retail-Commercial at Grade Required (Toronto Avenue
Study, 2010)
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New mixed use buildings often attract the same types of tenant,
with the same type of space - Chain store, pharmacy, dry cleaner,
dentist (lower risk tenants)
- Poor mix and balance of uses may result in monotony and/or
sterility of streetscapes
Bremner Blvd, Toronto
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Commercial units are often built without the infrastructure and
design needed to attract tenants
– Retail floor plates may be inappropriately size
– Lack of parking and loading facilities, or ventilation
required for restaurants
Types of cladding, glazing, materials, lack of doorways can
contribute to a sterile streetscape
Kipling Ave and Woodbridge Ave, Vaughan 15
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Without the right physical design, or retail market,
ground-level retail units can be challenging to sell or lease
This can negatively impact the perception of the entire
building
Bathurst Street and Bloor Street, Toronto
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Points for Consideration
• More thought given to retail floor plates articulation
• Design of façade and frequency of doorways
• Use of materials and landscaping to encourage interest
• Flexible ground-floor units: townhouses with no use
restrictions, allowing for the gradual evolution of the space as
the street develops (less prescriptive)
• Provide additional guidance for designing more useful and
adaptable ground floor retail spaces
• More careful analysis of ground floor space and market… not an
“afterthought”
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Thank you
Front Street and Jarvis Street, Toronto
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