On the Map
Former plaza to be transformed into a dense urban neighbourhood
When Shoppers World opened in 1969, it was the first indoor mall in Brampton. At the time, the Toronto suburb had 40,000 inhabitants. The plaza, whose anchor tenants were Kmart and a Dominion grocery store, sprawled over 50 acres of land that was formerly a farmer’s field, surrounded by other farmer’s fields with a few early subdivisions in the distance.
Since then, everything has changed. None of the original tenants remain — not the Jumbo Video, not the Simpsons. In the intervening years, a Goodlife Fitness and a Giant Tiger had taken in their place. More importantly, in the same time, Brampton has transformed from tiny suburb to Canada’s ninth largest city and one of the fastest- growing, with a population expected to reach 725,000 by 2031, up from 603,000 today.
Another shift: The Hurontario LRT, a mass- transit line, is underway. When finished over the next four or five years, the 18-kilometre-long Metrolinx project will link Brampton to Mississauga and connect to Go Transit and regional bus lines. The Brampton terminus is slated for Shoppers World. Which is exactly why the modest mall will soon be getting a total overhaul.
“Where there is transit, there would be a sizable population of people to use it,” says Jonathan Gitlin, president and chief operating officer of Riocan REIT, the real estate investment firm that has owned Shoppers World since 2000. ( It was purchased from
OMERS, who owned the property for five years prior, for $ 46.5- million). “And because there will soon be transit right at the door of our property, we thought we should seek a higher and better use for the land, including retail but also commercial office and residential as well.”
Over the next 25 to 30 years, the mall, surrounded by an equally sprawling lot containing 3,000 parking spots, will be transformed into a dense urban neighbourhood. Although Riocan REIT’S plans are still being finalized, the company currently envisions nine blocks on a grid of four new streets lined with modern buildings up to 23 storeys high. The parking will move underground.
According to a master
plan prepared by Toronto’s SVN Architects + Planners, 5,000 residential units are proposed, including some town houses but mainly condos and dedicated rentals. “We haven’t finalized the suite counts yet,” says Gitlin. “But we are imagining a
wide variety of tenants will be living there, so there will be a broad mix, including three- bedrooms for families as well as smaller layouts for young professionals.”
The project is still in the early days, but Riocan REIT has been in talks with community members for some time to gather ideas that will help shape the vision. “There were a number of pieces of feedback that informed the design and the concept,” says Gitlin. “One common thing we heard was a desire for more open space.” In the concept renderings, public plazas and parks abut wide pedestrian- friendly walkways edged by bike lanes.
It’s like something from an urbanist’s fever dream — many of the buildings even have green roofs — in the middle of suburbia. But Gitlin emphasizes that although the original mall will be torn down, the area will still be replete with retail. Shoppers World currently has about 780,000 square feet for its 190 shops. The new neighbourhood has provisions for almost 950,000 square feet of combined commercial and retail space.
“We plan on having a lot of amenities in the buildings tailored to the demographics living there — fitness facilities, co- working spaces,” says Gitlin. “But we also plan on having great retail spots nearby or within each building. That’s first and foremost, because to us, retail is the best amenity — stores and services that help animate streetscapes and help residents carry out their daily lives. It’s an important part of all our residential projects.”
The redevelopment will be phased over many decades, in part because of the overall size and complexity of the project — Riocan REIT’S largest by land area — but also because the developers have to work with existing tenants to wind up their leases, rolling those that are interested into the new retail spaces.
That said, the earliest manifestations should start in 2021.
“The first phase will be on a discrete portion of the property, adjacent to Shoppers World,” says Gitlin. “We’ve submitted an application to be approved for two towers, which are about 23 storeys and have about 60,000 square feet of retail of the total 430,000 square feet.”
Gitlin hopes the project will start next year.
“The rewards take many years to realize. We just hope that in the long run the project becomes a meaningful part of Brampton’s continued growth,” he says.