New condo rental units to emerge at Bloor and Bathurst

A 1,000-unit apartment proposal is up for the southwest corner of Bloor and Bathurst, thanks to a B.C.-based condominium developer.
 
Westbank has expressed intentions to occupy the current site of Honest Ed’s to erect a condominium project that will feature mostly two-bedroom or larger units for rent.
 
“We want the project to be as complete as possible, a neighbourhood for big families and little families and middle and high-income and students and seniors and everything in between,” said president Ian Gillespie.
                                                                                                                 
The company said it will include 57 live-work spaces for artists, plus an all-season public market.        
 
Westbank’s proposal appears to be generally welcomed in the area as the rental sector, according to Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) data, is “desperate for square footage”. CMHC mortgage data also showed Toronto’s vacancy rate to be at 1.6 per cent.
 
The Globe and Mail also said “tenants continue to struggle with affordability, unit size and family-friendliness, plus trickier issues such as security of tenure and landlord-tenant relationships. Once the first rush of gladness about new space wears off, many landlords, tenants and market watchers are left frustrated at a piecemeal approach that isn’t necessarily filling the gaps that exist.”
 
“I think the enlightened development community that get it, they see integration as an important public benefit,” Sean Gadon was quoted saying by The Globe and Mail. Gadon is the director of the City of Toronto’s Affordable Housing Office. 
 

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