Why It Matters\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n That proposals within MTSAs\/PMTSAs are already bigger, denser, and more transit-oriented have several implications for lenders, developers, and planners.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bigger, taller MTSA\/PMTSA projects mean larger equity checks, deeper trades stacks, and longer build durations per site. For lenders and developers alike, that concentrates execution risk in a smaller number of nodes. The upside is clearer leasing and sales narratives near transit; the downside is delivery clustering that can strain local capacity (forming trades, hoists, crane time) at the same time. So long as the population keeps growing, land values in these areas will increase much faster than outside properties.\u00a0<\/p>\n Less car parking spaces per unit alters the revenue mix and OpEx profile of projects as well: although there will be less parking income, there will also be less parking operations and maintenance costs; meanwhile, there will be an increase in bike room management, and changes in long-standing transportation demand management practices. Amenity planning shifts too\u2014think bike repair, cargo elevator time windows, and on-site delivery lockers sized for non-car households.<\/p>\n Station areas must absorb more frequent and higher volume foot traffic, move-ins\/outs, and parcel volume. The private development program is implicitly asking the public realm to do more \u2014 curbs, sidewalks, and cycling infrastructure need to be designed for actual throughput, not legacy car counts. Smaller units and less space for cars likely means fewer young families and children in these areas, as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lastly, this is just the beginning. Developers for project proposals currently in MTSAs\/PMTSAs were making a bet as to their exact boundaries, since these boundaries were not finalized until August of this year, while many of these proposals were made up to a few years ago. (Public and private meetings about potential locations have been ongoing for some time, giving savvy developers insight into the most likely boundaries ahead of time.) Now that the exact boundaries are confirmed (with more MTSAs\/PMTSAs to be added soon following further review around certain stations), expect even more and bigger proposals in these areas.\u00a0<\/p>\n Summary and Conclusions<\/strong><\/p>\n Developers have been anticipating the announcement of the official boundaries for MTSAs\/PMTSAs for many years now, which offer much more liberalized standards for heights and densities. Many have already submitted proposals that are within the new boundaries. On average, a project within an MTSA\/PMTSA is twice as tall, with twice as many units, and a third as much car parking as a project outside of an MTSA\/PMTSA.\u00a0<\/p>\n While many envisioned MTSAs\/PMTSAs as simply being large circles with a 500-to-800-metre radius around a subway, LRT, or GO Transit station, the final maps were much more polygonal. This means that the final areas were in effect smaller than many expected, but nevertheless, with their boundaries finalized and hundreds of existing proposals in these areas, they will soon become magnets for even more high-density transit-oriented development.\u00a0<\/p>\n Finally, MTSAs\/PMTSAs are just one of several new ways that real estate regulations will be liberalized in the short-term in Toronto. The other major change is as-of-right permissions to build six-plexes across the city. So while high-rise developments may cluster around the MTSAs\/PMTSAs, the rest of the city may finally get the ‘gentle density’ to distribute some of the growth over a wider area of the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n UTPro is the leading data source for developers, planners, and suppliers looking for leads for active real estate developments in the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Our data is updated in real-time as changes are made to applications, construction status, and the companies working on building these projects.\u00a0<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n UrbanToronto has a research service, <\/em>UTPro<\/em><\/a>, that provides comprehensive data on development projects in the Greater Golden Horseshoe \u2014 from proposal through to completion. We also offer <\/em>Instant Reports<\/em><\/a>, downloadable snapshots based on location, and a daily subscription newsletter, <\/em>New Development Insider<\/em><\/a>, that tracks projects from initial application.\u200b\u200b\u200b<\/em> Development Insider<\/em><\/a>, that tracks projects from initial application.\u200b\u200b\u200b<\/em><\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Thank you to the companies joining UrbanToronto to celebrate\u00a0State of Housing Month<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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