One Toronto neighbourhood is raising concerns regarding a new mixed-use rental building, citing “environmental hazards” as well as the imperative need for affordable housing in the community.
Currently in its site-prep phase, 1375 Queen West is a planned eight-storey building designed by Giannone Petricone Associates for Skale Developments on the southeast corner of Queen Street West and Close Avenue in Parkdale.
In an April letter to Councillor Gord Perks (Ward 4 Parkdale–High Park), Parkdale’s People Economy raised concerns regarding the “ongoing environment hazards emanating from the construction site.”
The group is composed of a network of over 30 community-based organizations and hundreds of community members working to build decent work, shared wealth, and equitable development in Parkdale.
“Residents in the vicinity have reported heavy oil and gas fumes stemming from the site, raising serious health and safety issues for the community. As residents contacted City Planner Patrick Miller, we learned that he was unaware of any digging activities occurring at the location,” the letter reads.
The group notes that the site also holds historical significance as a former Imperial Oil gas station and has since been designated as a brownfield site.
According to the provincial government’s website, these are vacant or underutilized sites where past industrial or commercial activities may have left contamination behind, including factories, gas stations, and waterfront properties formerly used for industrial or commercial activities.
“Brownfields can pose health and safety risks, be costly for the communities where they are located, or be redeveloped to meet health, safety and environmental standards,” the province says.
“Two years ago, the Justice for Queen and Close coalition rightfully demanded environmental remediation due to its hazardous nature. However, to date, there has been no tangible action taken to address this critical demand,” the letter continues.
The coalition’s website also alleges that Skale Developments, a luxury boutique condo developer, is pressing ahead with the 50-unit residence “after a slew of broken promises to a neighbourhood desperate for affordable housing.”
The coalition accuses the developer of making five distinct promises during the approval process to include affordable housing units, only to “abandon” them “as soon as they had won” approval.
“In 2016, Parkdale Neighbourhood Land Trust (PNLT) attempted to purchase this lot in order to bring it into community ownership and provide a range of affordable housing and other community benefits,” the website reads.
“Imperial Oil would only sell to parties who had the fiscal capacity to uphold legal responsibility for contamination that may exist on the site. Opportunities for community ownership and governance were lost when PNLT could not find political or financial support to pursue the opportunity.”
Aside from the need for affordable housing in the area, Parkdale’s People Economy alleges that an environment report commissioned by the developer reveals the “presence of carcinogenic compounds in the soil” on the site.
“This information has not been disclosed to the public, putting our community members at grave risk of exposure to harmful substances,” the letter to Councillor Perks continues.
“It is imperative that the substances being released into the air are identified promptly, and stringent measures are enforced to ensure the safety of our community.”
blogTO reached out to Skale Developments but did not receive a response back in time for this article’s publication.
TORONTO – One expert predicts Ottawa‘s changes to mortgage rules will help spur demand among potential homebuyers but says policies aimed at driving new supply are needed to address the “core issues” facing the market.
The federal government’s changes, set to come into force mid-December, include a higher price cap for insured mortgages to allow more people to qualify for a mortgage with less than a 20 per cent down payment.
The government will also expand its 30-year mortgage amortization to include first-time homebuyers buying any type of home, as well as anybody buying a newly built home.
CIBC Capital Markets deputy chief economist Benjamin Tal calls it a “significant” move likely to accelerate the recovery of the housing market, a process already underway as interest rates have begun to fall.
However, he says in a note that policymakers should aim to “prevent that from becoming too much of a good thing” through policies geared toward the supply side.
Tal says the main issue is the lack of supply available to respond to Canada’s rapidly increasing population, particularly in major cities.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17,2024.
OTTAWA – The Canadian Real Estate Association says the number of homes sold in August fell compared with a year ago as the market remained largely stuck in a holding pattern despite borrowing costs beginning to come down.
The association says the number of homes sold in August fell 2.1 per cent compared with the same month last year.
On a seasonally adjusted month-over-month basis, national home sales edged up 1.3 per cent from July.
CREA senior economist Shaun Cathcart says that with forecasts of lower interest rates throughout the rest of this year and into 2025, “it makes sense that prospective buyers might continue to hold off for improved affordability, especially since prices are still well behaved in most of the country.”
The national average sale price for August amounted to $649,100, a 0.1 per cent increase compared with a year earlier.
The number of newly listed properties was up 1.1 per cent month-over-month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.
MONTREAL – Two Quebec real estate brokers are facing fines and years-long suspensions for submitting bogus offers on homes to drive up prices during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Christine Girouard has been suspended for 14 years and her business partner, Jonathan Dauphinais-Fortin, has been suspended for nine years after Quebec’s authority of real estate brokerage found they used fake bids to get buyers to raise their offers.
Girouard is a well-known broker who previously starred on a Quebec reality show that follows top real estate agents in the province.
She is facing a fine of $50,000, while Dauphinais-Fortin has been fined $10,000.
The two brokers were suspended in May 2023 after La Presse published an article about their practices.
One buyer ended up paying $40,000 more than his initial offer in 2022 after Girouard and Dauphinais-Fortin concocted a second bid on the house he wanted to buy.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
