“Toronto is full.” “Toronto is dense enough.” There’s “no more space.” These are assertions I frequently hear as part of my job as an architect and urban planner. But we content there is plenty of room. Here's why.

Toronto’s housing market often overlooks a significant demographic: families. While there's a growing trend towards compact living and urban density, the demand for larger units that cater to families' needs remains largely unmet.

In Toronto, we often point fingers at the federal government for overspending, and at the same time, criticizing it for not stepping in with enough funding and tax programs to support the delivery of affordable housing. 

Toronto will soon update its Tall Building Design Guidelines, which were adopted city-wide in 2013. Although not perfect, they are a crucial tool in shaping our city. Here are some aspects where the guidelines are falling short.

Are planning thresholds "magic" numbers? Why are rates and policies applied across the board for all developments as soon as the "magic" number is hit? Most importantly, is there a better way?

Allow me to share some ideas that could genuinely transform the future urban landscape of Toronto. I realize some of them might be less feasible than others, but hey, it's a hypothetical letter, so why not go big?

Almost every policy begins with good intentions, some of which are genuinely inspiring as they aim to substantially transform our cities. This task is no simple feat. Some are successful, some are not, and some simply become outdated.

In light of an initiative by Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow to facilitate construction of 25,000 additional rental housing units in Toronto, I reached out to 12 leaders within the rental development sphere, spanning the private, governmental, professional and non-profit sectors.

Of all the new homes built during the past decade, only 11 per cent were rental units.  With hundreds of thousands of new Canadians aspiring to call Toronto ‘home’ by 2025, our housing affordability crisis seems to remain as severe as ever.

We are expecting 1.5 million new Canadians by 2025. Almost half of them will settle in Ontario (approximately 42 per cent), but in Toronto less than 30,000 units were completed in the years 2020-2021 combined.

In a culture that sanctifies the backyard in the midst of a housing crisis, as if it is a must-have for everyone, can we truly sacrifice having balconies in multi-unit residential buildings to meet sustainability goals?

Toronto is a city of studies, guidelines and plans. Sometimes these plans don't come to fruition, while others are criticized for being too dominant or rigid, with negative effects. But not too often do you actually get to see some of these visions materialize in a short period of time, to brick and mortar.

Will reduced demand for offices result in the death of the Central Business District (CBD) in our cities?

Q1 2023 is over, here are seven housing-related initiatives we have three-quarters of the year to figure out.

The belief that the city is the wrong place to raise a family is well-cemented in Canadian culture; relocating to the suburbs upon having a child remains a common course of action for many.