Is this rare new rental building the answer to Toronto’s rental housing woes?
LivMore Community. PHOTO BY ALEC DONNELL LUNA OF DED AGENCY - ALL RIGHT RESERVED ©
NATIONAL POST
Matthew Hague
Until recently, a building like the Livmore, a new 43-storey, 595-unit housing tower in downtown Toronto, would have been a rarity in the city. Not just because of its unique mix of amenities — which includes a dog spa, an outdoor dog park and a two-storey sky lounge — but because it’s a purpose-built rental, not a condo like many of its Bay Street neighbours.
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“There are lots of things we can do in the city to increase rental development,” says David Sajecki, an urban planner who often consults with builders interested in rental housing. “The city could loosen zoning regulations prohibiting building in the yellow-belt” — the 70 per cent of the city currently restricted to single-family housing. “That would free up more land for what I call ‘gentle density,’ small-scale buildings that allow more people to live in established neighbourhoods. We could also give HST credits to those involved in building, to make their development more competitive with condo builders.”