Evolving Neighbourhood Character
Affordability & Vibrancy are worth it
Preserving neighbourhood character is the most common objection to new development in single-family home neighbourhoods. Long-tenured residents do not want triplexes, sixplexes, and definitely do not want low-rise apartment buildings replacing their neighbours’ homes. They value peace and quiet, stability, and predictability. If you’ve owned your home for decades, you enjoy the way things are, and also like how much your home value has appreciated, why change anything?
The incentives of these existing home owners are at odds with what is necessary for Toronto to continue to grow in a healthy, sustainable way. A Toronto with streets that are vibrant and walkable, with a mix of retail, residential, and welcoming public spaces. With a mix of types and sizes of homes, woven into all neighbourhoods, rather than the majority of the city having nothing but detached, single-family homes. Where those who cannot afford such a home are not relegated to a tiny condo unit or to a more suitable home far outside the city limits.
Strong Towns calls this the “next increment of development”. Healthy neighbourhoods evolve gradually rather than being built once and never changed. In my own neighbourhood in uptown Toronto, there has indeed been incremental development over the years. Originally, these streets were lined with small bungalows, most of which have now been replaced with much larger two and three-storey homes. Some of the original bungalows remain, fewer every year. Owners of these homes wanted more space, and could afford to build it. This example of the next increment of development happened because it was aligned with the interests of existing home owners. The next increment after this one, building a variety of types and sizes of homes, will benefit future residents of these neighbourhoods, while existing residents perceive these changes as net-negative.
Existing home owners have the loudest and strongest voice at the table where new development is approved or denied. In Scarborough, for example, the Committee of Adjustment recently blocked the development of a six-storey building with eight three-bedroom units, citing neighbourhood character. This committee is comprised of 35 volunteer residents. What are they missing? Are they right that allowing this kind of development in their neighbourhood only benefits those who would move in, while being a very bad thing for existing residents?
This is at the core of the issue. Building more density and variety of homes into neighbourhoods benefits everyone, including long-term residents.
More neighbours means more customers for local businesses. The most popular neighbourhoods have a local cafe to walk to in the morning, a dry cleaner down the street, and a few lovely locally-owned restaurants nearby. Enough housing density is required to drive enough business to keep these around, and to encourage new small, local retail and dining options to open up. Some of Toronto’s most desirable areas, such as the Annex, Roncesvalles, and the Danforth are popular because of local, walkable retail and dining, supported by the housing density in these communities. More walkable destinations also increases the feeling of vibrancy in a neighbourhood.
Another significant benefit to more housing density is financial sustainability. Low-density single-family homes do not generate enough tax revenue to support the infrastructure and services that a thriving, vibrant city requires. Strong Towns has studied this extensively, and the data is clear. We need to budget a significant amount of money every year just to prevent Toronto from falling apart, let alone build new infrastructure like transit, libraries, community centres, and parks. Shifting the majority of our neighbourhoods from low to medium density will grow the tax base and put the city on much more solid financial ground.
Finally, a neighbourhood with a mix of types and sizes of homes will open up more options for existing residents in the future. As they grow older, their children move out, and they require less space, they can move into a smaller unit while continuing to live in the same community. Or perhaps as those children move out, they may choose to live nearby, renting a unit in a low-rise apartment building or in a garden suite.
Accepting trade-offs is how we move forward. I understand that for someone who’s owned a detached, single-family home for decades, a sixplex or a low-rise apartment seems like nothing but trouble. While there will be some downsides, there are also many benefits to accepting the missing middle into your community. Neighbourhood character is not static; for Toronto to continue to grow and evolve in a strong, healthy way, that character must evolve too.