PEDAL PUSHERS
Condo projects are springing up around Toronto’s network of bike lanes with amenities that cater to cyclists
Stephanie Mills says she sold or gave away “heaps” of old furniture and knick-knacks before moving into her new one-bedroom unit in the fouryear-old Jack condo building on Yonge Street just south of St. Clair. One possession she was sure to hang onto: Her commuter bicycle.
From 2019 to 2021, the thirtysomething graphic designer alternated between biking and taking the subway to her downtown desk on weekdays. With the 2021 launch of a pilot project that installed dedicated bike lanes on Yonge between Bloor and Davisville, however, Mills now cycles “95 per cent of the time. I save so much money over transit or driving, I get some exercise, and I reduce my carbon footprint. I have an indoor bike parking spot in my building” — The Jack is home to 168 of them — “and there’s no sitting in traffic or waiting for shuttle buses when there’s an issue with the subway.”
In February 2023, Toronto City Council voted 22 to four in favour of making the Yonge pilot permanent.
“The cheapest, fastest, most important thing we can do is change who has priority in public space — people before cars, active transportation before fossil fuels,” Toronto City Councillor Dianne Saxe commented at the time. “Right now everyone in this city, especially people who don’t have cars, are subsidizing people who are driving.”
The health and environmental benefits of biking are considerable. A New Economics Foundation study reveals that bike commuters report lower stress levels than drivers and transit-takers; Portland State University research found that the “Commute Well-being” of cyclists is about triple that of drivers. Compared to the latter, a much higher rate of bike commuters say they like their commutes, reports the Victoria Transport
Policy Institute. With carbon emissions from cars and light trucks accounting for about 10 per cent of Canada’s total, there’s also plenty to like about biking as a way to reduce environmental impact.
For commuters who are willing and able to cycle, the financial benefits add up quickly. According to the Canadian Automobile Association, the average annual cost of car ownership is around $9,500. For Toronto condo-dwellers renting on-site parking and paying for it at work, add at least another $4,000. A year’s worth of monthly transit passes in Toronto, meanwhile, clocks in at $1,716.
I SAVE SO MUCH MONEY OVER TRANSIT OR DRIVING, I GET SOME EXERCISE, AND I REDUCE MY CARBON FOOTPRINT ... AND THERE’S NO SITTING IN TRAFFIC OR WAITING FOR SHUTTLE BUSES WHEN THERE’S AN ISSUE WITH THE SUBWAY. — STEPHANIE MILLS
After making an initial three- or four-figure purchase, bicycle maintenance costs around $150 a year. Pay $110 for a Toronto Bike Share annual membership, and overhead can be avoided completely.
No wonder Toronto city council voted to eliminate minimum car parking requirements for new condo developments in 2021.
Those parking spots are being replaced in part by amenities designed to accommodate the cycling set, like those in the following projects, built along approved or proposed bike lanes.
CENTRICITY (DOWNTOWN)
❚ What: A 53-storey, 594-unit tower by Graywood Developments.
❚ Where: On the northeast corner of Church and Dundas, steps from the bike lanes along Shuter, Richmond, Adelaide, Gerrard and Sherbourne.
❚ Bike Score: 98 out of 100. As of 2012, the Seattle-based Walk Score consultancy has been calculating these scores based on the availability of bike lanes, hilliness, road connectivity, nearby cycling amenities, and the percentage of people in the area who bike to work.
❚ On-site bike amenities: A street-level bike lobby with service and wash stations next to Centricity’s residential entrance allows cyclists to either leave their rides in short-term lockup or take a dedicated elevator to underground storage for nearly 600 bicycles.
❚ Starting price: Mid$600,000s
GRAIN LOFTS (WEST END)
❚ What: Constructed out of cross-laminated timber, this six-storey Gairloch Development project is home to 28 units.
❚ Where: On the north side of Dupont just east of both Dundas Street West and Phase 1 of the West Toronto Railpath, which runs 2 kilometres south to the intersection of Sterling Road and Dundas. Phase 2 from Dundas to Liberty Village has been approved and designed, with construction slated to begin in 2024.
❚ Bike Score: 99
❚ On-site bike amenities: Secure racks for at least 28 bicycles — one per unit — that connect to the laneway behind the building.
❚ Starting price: Mid$600,000s
BIRCHLEY PARK (SCARBOROUGH)
❚ What: More than 850 units spanning three low-rise developments and townhouses by developer Diamond Kilmer. The first phase is a 375-unit 12-storey building.
❚ Where: On the west side of Victoria Park Avenue halfway between Danforth Ave. and Gerrard Avenue East. Two blocks to the north, the Bloor-danforth bike lanes begin their 17-km westward journey.
❚ Bike Score: 71, which is sure to rise once the approved Danforth bike lane extension runs all the way to Scarborough Golf Club Road, and if proposed bike lanes north along Vic Park come to fruition.
❚ On-site bike amenities: 400 bicycle storage spots in Phase 1.
❚ Starting price: $499,900
THE BURKE (DOWNTOWN)
❚ What: A 53-storey, 501-unit tower by Concert Properties. ❚ Where: On the east side of Sherbourne Street less than a block south of its namesake Bloor-danforth subway stop and the corresponding bike lanes. More bike lanes run south along Sherbourne all the way to the Lake Ontario waterfront.
❚ Bike Score: 95
❚ On-site bike amenities: 635 underground parking spaces ❚ Starting price: $569,000
THE DAVISVILLE (MIDTOWN)
❚ What: A 12-storey mid-rise residence by the Rockport Group encompassing 86 suites.
❚ Where: On the Northeast corner of Yonge and Manor Road, six blocks north of the intersection of the Midtown Yonge bike lanes and the Kay Gardner Beltline Trail that spans nine km between the Allen Expressway and Mount Pleasant.
❚ Bike Score: 68, likely to increase with the installation of proposed north-south bike lanes one block west on Duplex Avenue.
❚ On-site bike amenities: A communal “wet room” is available for washing dogs and bikes; 82 of the latter can be securely parked underground.
❚ Starting price: $689,900