The verdict is in: The Quarry Rally rocked!
More than 1,000 Birchcliff residents came out April 25 in support of responsible development on the Quarry Lands. There are so many people who did incredible work and need to be thanked -- event organizers, everyone who delivered flyers and signs, the set-up crew, media outreach -- and of course our elected politicians who came out and took a stand for community building and against the Conservatory Group's high rise plans.
We are proud to say that representatives for all three levels of government were present and spoke to a supportive crowd: Thank you to Toronto Councillors Brian Ashton (Scarborough Southwest), Sandra Bussin (Beaches - East York) and Michael Thompson (Scarborough Centre), MPP Lorenzo Berardinetti (Scarborough Southwest) and MP Michelle Simson (Scarborough Southwest). Their message was unanimous: this is a development with zoning from 1968 whose time is long gone, and it's up to political leaders to make it right.
And thanks most of all to everyone in the community who came out on a cold Sunday afternoon to show how much they care about the community. This is just the beginning...but what a start it is.
For some of the media coverage from the event, check out:
http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100425/East_Fight_100425/20100425?hub=Toronto
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/800490--hundreds-rally-against-highrise-development-plan
http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/04/24/13706736.html
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/story.html?id=2951057
We'll be back in touch soon with more updates and post-rally information -- including plans to get more signs!
Board of Directors,
CCQLD
Recent Posts
Monday, April 26, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Local politicians back residents in fight for responsible development
Hundreds expected at rally to prevent urban planning nightmare
April 22, 2010 (TORONTO): --- Local politicians will be lining up behind a citizens group this Sunday in a fight that pits healthy community building against outdated zoning and a proposed 1960s-era high rise tower complex … on a contaminated municipal dumpsite in the heart of a model residential neighbourhood.
Toronto City Councillors Brian Ashton (Scarborough Southwest) and Sandra Bussin (Beaches -East York) and Member of Parliament Michelle Simson (Scarborough Southwest) will be among those speaking at a rally Sunday April 25th at 2pm at the undeveloped Quarry Lands in Toronto’s east end (Gerrard Street east of Victoria Park). They will join hundreds of area residents in opposing a proposed seven-tower high rise complex based on zoning from 1968. The residents are seeking development more in line with the surrounding community based on 21st century planning principles, and leadership from Toronto’s city council to make it happen.
The full 49-acre Quarry Lands site in Birchcliff represents a rare opportunity for the best kind of city-building: a visionary, green, mixed-use brownfield redevelopment in the heart of a thriving community. Instead, Toronto residents could be left with an eyesore that nobody wants and a density roughly seven times greater than the surrounding community.
The views of Birchcliff residents opposed to the high rise development – with between 23 and 27 storeys per tower – are shared by city planners, who have been vocal in their view that Toronto can do much better than 1960s zoning on this site.
“This isn’t a NIMBY issue, it’s bad planning,” said Mark Brender of Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development (CCQLD), the community group organizing the rally. “As a community and a city, we simply cannot allow this kind of development to happen. If 40-year-old zoning trumps modern planning and progressive thinking about what works for communities, we’re throwing up the white flag in our collective ability to build a world-class city.”
The planned 1,455-unit development on 18 acres owned privately by the Conservatory Group is permitted under high-density zoning rights dating back to 1968, when the city planned to bulldoze parts of the east end of the city for the Scarborough Expressway. The highway was later scrapped but the land zoning was never changed by the city.
To make matters worse, the land was an unregulated municipal landfill from 1954 - 1960 and was then sold by the city to private developers. The City still owns lands adjacent to the proposed apartment tower complex, portions of which are so contaminated they are economically unremediable for development.
“The City had responsibility for this land in the past, and so it has responsibility today to make things right,” Brender said. “This will be a litmus test for the willingness of Mayor David Miller, the mayoralty candidates and council at large to show leadership in building healthy communities for all Toronto residents.”
-30-
April 22, 2010 (TORONTO): --- Local politicians will be lining up behind a citizens group this Sunday in a fight that pits healthy community building against outdated zoning and a proposed 1960s-era high rise tower complex … on a contaminated municipal dumpsite in the heart of a model residential neighbourhood.
Toronto City Councillors Brian Ashton (Scarborough Southwest) and Sandra Bussin (Beaches -East York) and Member of Parliament Michelle Simson (Scarborough Southwest) will be among those speaking at a rally Sunday April 25th at 2pm at the undeveloped Quarry Lands in Toronto’s east end (Gerrard Street east of Victoria Park). They will join hundreds of area residents in opposing a proposed seven-tower high rise complex based on zoning from 1968. The residents are seeking development more in line with the surrounding community based on 21st century planning principles, and leadership from Toronto’s city council to make it happen.
The full 49-acre Quarry Lands site in Birchcliff represents a rare opportunity for the best kind of city-building: a visionary, green, mixed-use brownfield redevelopment in the heart of a thriving community. Instead, Toronto residents could be left with an eyesore that nobody wants and a density roughly seven times greater than the surrounding community.
The views of Birchcliff residents opposed to the high rise development – with between 23 and 27 storeys per tower – are shared by city planners, who have been vocal in their view that Toronto can do much better than 1960s zoning on this site.
“This isn’t a NIMBY issue, it’s bad planning,” said Mark Brender of Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development (CCQLD), the community group organizing the rally. “As a community and a city, we simply cannot allow this kind of development to happen. If 40-year-old zoning trumps modern planning and progressive thinking about what works for communities, we’re throwing up the white flag in our collective ability to build a world-class city.”
The planned 1,455-unit development on 18 acres owned privately by the Conservatory Group is permitted under high-density zoning rights dating back to 1968, when the city planned to bulldoze parts of the east end of the city for the Scarborough Expressway. The highway was later scrapped but the land zoning was never changed by the city.
To make matters worse, the land was an unregulated municipal landfill from 1954 - 1960 and was then sold by the city to private developers. The City still owns lands adjacent to the proposed apartment tower complex, portions of which are so contaminated they are economically unremediable for development.
“The City had responsibility for this land in the past, and so it has responsibility today to make things right,” Brender said. “This will be a litmus test for the willingness of Mayor David Miller, the mayoralty candidates and council at large to show leadership in building healthy communities for all Toronto residents.”
-30-
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Toronto Star article on April 25 rally
Below is a copy of an article on our April 25 rally that appeared in the April 9 edition of the Toronto Star.
A few points:
The article reinforces what CCQLD has been saying all along: Our community is against the proposed development, our local representatives are against the proposed development, and the city planning department -- the people who have a responsibility to advocate for development of pieces of land just like this one -- is against the proposed development. How telling is that? Not even the planners with a mandate to build up the urban core can stomach this one.
We're hearing more and more every day from officials at the city, from politicians, from media and from people both inside and outside our community. In other words, we're getting noticed. We need to keep building momentum and to continue spreading the word.
If there was ever any doubt about the importance of this rally, the lawyer for the Conservatory Group is quoted as saying the developer wants to proceed "as quickly as possible" with the first building, and that the overall development is -- wait for it, it's a beauty -- "compatible with the neighbourhood." If you believe otherwise, the best way to show it is by forwarding this email to everyone in your address book and telling them why they absolutely need to be at the Quarry Lands at 2pm on April 25.
This city is not powerless to stop this development, and neither are we.
Quarry site condo plan too dense, residents say
Developer is proposing series of highrise towers
Donovan Vincent Staff Reporter
A community group in east Toronto is up in arms over a developer's plan to build a cluster of highrise condos next to a community of single-family homes.
The property, a long-vacant, 20-hectare parcel at Victoria Park Ave. and Gerrard St., known as the Quarry Lands, is where Sheldon (Shelly) Libfeld's Conservatory Group wants to construct four buildings – three of them featuring two towers each, of roughly 25 storeys. Local residents say his towers aren't compatible with the neighbourhood of single-family homes just to the south.
"We understand the need for urban intensification and understand this is a huge parcel of land in the heart of the city. Something special (could be) done with this land, but this proposal is not special, not visionary,'' says Mark Brender, president of Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development.
For now, Libfeld wants to proceed "as quickly as possible'' with the first building, pending the outcome of an appeal before the Ontario Municipal Board, says his lawyer. The 370-unit building would be on 7.5 hectares the developer owns at the eastern side of the Quarry Lands.
A former president of the Greater Toronto Homebuilders' Association, Libfeld is a heavy hitter in the development industry.
Brender's group plans an April 25 rally on a city-owned part of the Quarry Lands and is petitioning Toronto politicians to take "immediate steps'' to keep the proposal from going forward.
"There are certainly examples of terrific eight-storey developments. Here they could be up to (27) storeys. You're putting in a density that's seven times greater than anything in the surrounding community,'' Brender said.
The rub is that the number of units planned – 1,455 – is permitted under zoning that dates back to 1968, so the developer has virtually unfettered freedom to build.
But city hall planners aren't happy with the proposed densities and heights, saying the zoning permissions are "outdated.''
"I think there's only room for improvement from what was approved back in the 1960s," says Allen Appleby, a director with the planning department.
He wants a review of the entire Quarry Lands property to determine what would work best.
But John Alati, a lawyer for Libfeld's company, says the buildings will fit in. "We think it's compatible with the neighbourhood. You don't have to look the same or be the same to be compatible,'' he said, adding that compatibility can be achieved with elements such as buffers or setbacks between existing and new development.
Local Councillor Brian Ashton has talked with the developer to see if a compromise can be worked out. The city owns property in the western section of the Quarry Lands.
One idea being floated is to spread the new buildings around the site, with higher towers closer to busy Victoria Park. The planning department supports the idea.
A few points:
The article reinforces what CCQLD has been saying all along: Our community is against the proposed development, our local representatives are against the proposed development, and the city planning department -- the people who have a responsibility to advocate for development of pieces of land just like this one -- is against the proposed development. How telling is that? Not even the planners with a mandate to build up the urban core can stomach this one.
We're hearing more and more every day from officials at the city, from politicians, from media and from people both inside and outside our community. In other words, we're getting noticed. We need to keep building momentum and to continue spreading the word.
If there was ever any doubt about the importance of this rally, the lawyer for the Conservatory Group is quoted as saying the developer wants to proceed "as quickly as possible" with the first building, and that the overall development is -- wait for it, it's a beauty -- "compatible with the neighbourhood." If you believe otherwise, the best way to show it is by forwarding this email to everyone in your address book and telling them why they absolutely need to be at the Quarry Lands at 2pm on April 25.
This city is not powerless to stop this development, and neither are we.
Quarry site condo plan too dense, residents say
Developer is proposing series of highrise towers
Donovan Vincent Staff Reporter
A community group in east Toronto is up in arms over a developer's plan to build a cluster of highrise condos next to a community of single-family homes.
The property, a long-vacant, 20-hectare parcel at Victoria Park Ave. and Gerrard St., known as the Quarry Lands, is where Sheldon (Shelly) Libfeld's Conservatory Group wants to construct four buildings – three of them featuring two towers each, of roughly 25 storeys. Local residents say his towers aren't compatible with the neighbourhood of single-family homes just to the south.
"We understand the need for urban intensification and understand this is a huge parcel of land in the heart of the city. Something special (could be) done with this land, but this proposal is not special, not visionary,'' says Mark Brender, president of Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development.
For now, Libfeld wants to proceed "as quickly as possible'' with the first building, pending the outcome of an appeal before the Ontario Municipal Board, says his lawyer. The 370-unit building would be on 7.5 hectares the developer owns at the eastern side of the Quarry Lands.
A former president of the Greater Toronto Homebuilders' Association, Libfeld is a heavy hitter in the development industry.
Brender's group plans an April 25 rally on a city-owned part of the Quarry Lands and is petitioning Toronto politicians to take "immediate steps'' to keep the proposal from going forward.
"There are certainly examples of terrific eight-storey developments. Here they could be up to (27) storeys. You're putting in a density that's seven times greater than anything in the surrounding community,'' Brender said.
The rub is that the number of units planned – 1,455 – is permitted under zoning that dates back to 1968, so the developer has virtually unfettered freedom to build.
But city hall planners aren't happy with the proposed densities and heights, saying the zoning permissions are "outdated.''
"I think there's only room for improvement from what was approved back in the 1960s," says Allen Appleby, a director with the planning department.
He wants a review of the entire Quarry Lands property to determine what would work best.
But John Alati, a lawyer for Libfeld's company, says the buildings will fit in. "We think it's compatible with the neighbourhood. You don't have to look the same or be the same to be compatible,'' he said, adding that compatibility can be achieved with elements such as buffers or setbacks between existing and new development.
Local Councillor Brian Ashton has talked with the developer to see if a compromise can be worked out. The city owns property in the western section of the Quarry Lands.
One idea being floated is to spread the new buildings around the site, with higher towers closer to busy Victoria Park. The planning department supports the idea.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
CCQLD Release - Hundreds rally to oppose urban planning nightmare
City leaders must ensure responsible development on former toxic dump with 1960's zoning
April 8, 2010 (TORONTO): --- Question: What do you get when you combine truckloads of toxic waste with archaic 42-year-old zoning? Answer: A seven-tower high rise complex on a former dump site in the middle of a predominantly single family-home residential neighbourhood.
Except this is real-life Toronto in 2010, and nobody is laughing.
Hundreds of people will be rallying Sunday April 25th at 2pm at the Quarry Lands in Toronto’s east end (Gerrard Street east of Victoria Park) to demand accountability from political leaders and an end to the madness. The residents are seeking development more in line with the surrounding community based on 21st century planning principles.
The full 49-acre Quarry Lands site in Birchcliff represents a rare opportunity for the best kind of city-building: a visionary, green, mixed-use brownfield redevelopment in the heart of a thriving community. Instead, Toronto residents could be left with an eyesore that nobody wants and a density roughly seven times greater than the surrounding community.
Birchcliff residents opposed to the high rise development – with between 23 and 27 storeys per tower -- have the support of local city councillors, city planning staff and environmental groups including the Toronto District Conservation Authority.
“This isn’t a NIMBY issue, it’s bad planning,” said Mark Brender of Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development (CCQLD), the community group organizing the rally. “As a community and a city, we simply cannot allow this kind of development to happen. If 40-year-old zoning trumps modern planning and progressive thinking about what works for communities, we’re throwing up the white flag in our collective ability to build a world-class city.”
The planned 1,455-unit development on 18 acres owned privately by the Conservatory Group is permitted under high-density zoning rights dating back to1968, when the city planned to bulldoze parts of the east end of the city for the Scarborough Expressway. The highway was later scrapped but the land zoning was never changed by the city.
To make matters worse, the land was an unregulated municipal landfill from 1954 - 1960 and was then sold by the city to private developers. The City still owns lands adjacent to the proposed apartment tower complex, portions of which are so contaminated they are economically unremediable for development.
“The City had responsibility for this land in the past, and so it has responsibility today to make things right,” Brender said. “This will be a litmus test for the willingness of Mayor David Miller, the mayoralty candidates and council at large to show leadership in building healthy communities for all Toronto residents.”
-30-
Contact
Mark Brender:
mbrender@sympatico.ca
April 8, 2010 (TORONTO): --- Question: What do you get when you combine truckloads of toxic waste with archaic 42-year-old zoning? Answer: A seven-tower high rise complex on a former dump site in the middle of a predominantly single family-home residential neighbourhood.
Except this is real-life Toronto in 2010, and nobody is laughing.
Hundreds of people will be rallying Sunday April 25th at 2pm at the Quarry Lands in Toronto’s east end (Gerrard Street east of Victoria Park) to demand accountability from political leaders and an end to the madness. The residents are seeking development more in line with the surrounding community based on 21st century planning principles.
The full 49-acre Quarry Lands site in Birchcliff represents a rare opportunity for the best kind of city-building: a visionary, green, mixed-use brownfield redevelopment in the heart of a thriving community. Instead, Toronto residents could be left with an eyesore that nobody wants and a density roughly seven times greater than the surrounding community.
Birchcliff residents opposed to the high rise development – with between 23 and 27 storeys per tower -- have the support of local city councillors, city planning staff and environmental groups including the Toronto District Conservation Authority.
“This isn’t a NIMBY issue, it’s bad planning,” said Mark Brender of Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development (CCQLD), the community group organizing the rally. “As a community and a city, we simply cannot allow this kind of development to happen. If 40-year-old zoning trumps modern planning and progressive thinking about what works for communities, we’re throwing up the white flag in our collective ability to build a world-class city.”
The planned 1,455-unit development on 18 acres owned privately by the Conservatory Group is permitted under high-density zoning rights dating back to1968, when the city planned to bulldoze parts of the east end of the city for the Scarborough Expressway. The highway was later scrapped but the land zoning was never changed by the city.
To make matters worse, the land was an unregulated municipal landfill from 1954 - 1960 and was then sold by the city to private developers. The City still owns lands adjacent to the proposed apartment tower complex, portions of which are so contaminated they are economically unremediable for development.
“The City had responsibility for this land in the past, and so it has responsibility today to make things right,” Brender said. “This will be a litmus test for the willingness of Mayor David Miller, the mayoralty candidates and council at large to show leadership in building healthy communities for all Toronto residents.”
-30-
Contact
Mark Brender:
mbrender@sympatico.ca
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Quarry Rally - Sunday April 25, 2pm
Hi everyone,
On Sunday April 25 at 2pm, it’s time to make a very public stand for the future of the Quarry Lands.
The Rally for the Quarry 2010 will take place in the open parkland on the north side of Gerrard Street, halfway between Victoria Park and the Quarry plaza, just to the east of the Olco service station. We envision hundreds and hundreds of people – parents, grandparents, children, families from our community -- rising together to say that seven high-rise towers in the heart of Birchcliff is a development outcome that we are unprepared to stand by and let happen. As a city and a community, we can and must do so much better.
We will let the private developer, Conservatory Group, know that on April 25.
Allowing archaic 40-year-old zoning to run roughshod over unanimous opposition from the community, local leaders and urban planners is no way to build a world-class city. City negligence led to the situation we have today. It was the City that allowed this land to become contaminated, it was the City that sold portions of the Quarry land to private interests, and it was the City that was asleep at the wheel for decades while the planning context changed. Now it’s up to the City to make things right.
We will let the City know that on April 25.
The media will be there. Local politicians will be there. We will have speakers and information tables. We will be circulating a petition demanding that Toronto’s political leaders take immediate action to prevent a high-density, high-rise development concept ever being implemented on these lands. We will be demanding that Build Toronto (which owns a parcel of land on the Quarry) live up to a promise it made to our community more than two years ago: that any development involving Build Toronto on this land will result in something special and visionary – something of which we can all be proud.
For seven years, Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development has been working to build consensus around a better vision for these lands than the tower complex proposed by the Conservatory Group (also known as Gerrard Clonmore Developments). We have done lots of talking and even more listening. We have never shouted….until now.
We will shout on April 25.
Outreach is underway to media, political leaders, and most importantly to the community to let everyone know how important it is that they come out and be counted. The greater the turnout, the more attention we will receive from media and the stronger our case becomes. The most important thing we need to do now is reach every street and every house with our message. Please forward this message to everyone in your address book who lives in Birchcliff or The Beach. If you can help with delivery of flyers on your street or area, please send your name and phone number via email as soon as possible to Wilf and Sybil Longley at slongley@sympatico.ca. Someone will be back in touch with you shortly.
A final note: The land on which the rally will be held is owned by the City of Toronto. We have written confirmation from city officials that we are allowed to have the rally on this site.
Thank you to everyone doing fantastic work planning for this event. This is just the beginning. See you on April 25th.
Sincerely,
Board of Directors
Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development
On Sunday April 25 at 2pm, it’s time to make a very public stand for the future of the Quarry Lands.
The Rally for the Quarry 2010 will take place in the open parkland on the north side of Gerrard Street, halfway between Victoria Park and the Quarry plaza, just to the east of the Olco service station. We envision hundreds and hundreds of people – parents, grandparents, children, families from our community -- rising together to say that seven high-rise towers in the heart of Birchcliff is a development outcome that we are unprepared to stand by and let happen. As a city and a community, we can and must do so much better.
We will let the private developer, Conservatory Group, know that on April 25.
Allowing archaic 40-year-old zoning to run roughshod over unanimous opposition from the community, local leaders and urban planners is no way to build a world-class city. City negligence led to the situation we have today. It was the City that allowed this land to become contaminated, it was the City that sold portions of the Quarry land to private interests, and it was the City that was asleep at the wheel for decades while the planning context changed. Now it’s up to the City to make things right.
We will let the City know that on April 25.
The media will be there. Local politicians will be there. We will have speakers and information tables. We will be circulating a petition demanding that Toronto’s political leaders take immediate action to prevent a high-density, high-rise development concept ever being implemented on these lands. We will be demanding that Build Toronto (which owns a parcel of land on the Quarry) live up to a promise it made to our community more than two years ago: that any development involving Build Toronto on this land will result in something special and visionary – something of which we can all be proud.
For seven years, Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development has been working to build consensus around a better vision for these lands than the tower complex proposed by the Conservatory Group (also known as Gerrard Clonmore Developments). We have done lots of talking and even more listening. We have never shouted….until now.
We will shout on April 25.
Outreach is underway to media, political leaders, and most importantly to the community to let everyone know how important it is that they come out and be counted. The greater the turnout, the more attention we will receive from media and the stronger our case becomes. The most important thing we need to do now is reach every street and every house with our message. Please forward this message to everyone in your address book who lives in Birchcliff or The Beach. If you can help with delivery of flyers on your street or area, please send your name and phone number via email as soon as possible to Wilf and Sybil Longley at slongley@sympatico.ca. Someone will be back in touch with you shortly.
A final note: The land on which the rally will be held is owned by the City of Toronto. We have written confirmation from city officials that we are allowed to have the rally on this site.
Thank you to everyone doing fantastic work planning for this event. This is just the beginning. See you on April 25th.
Sincerely,
Board of Directors
Concerned Citizens of Quarry Lands Development