Toronto's future transit links hold promise of substantial real estate investment

Newswire.ca
Nov. 7, 2017
By Avison Young Commercial Real Estate

The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is projected to be Ontario's fastest-growing region over the next 25 years with its population increasing by 42.3% to reach 9.6 million by 2041. Supporting these projections, the provincial Ministry of Infrastructure made the largest infrastructure investment in Ontario's history: more than $160 billion over 12 years, starting in 2014. Of these funds, 51% will go toward improving roads and transit. Developers are also making significant investments in all types of residential and commercial real estate in locations connected with the expansion of public infrastructure that will be required to accommodate future population growth. Key commercial growth areas in the GTA will emerge at a number of transit-oriented development hubs where there is a confluence of residential and commercial demand, creating significant opportunities for development and investment.

These are some of the key trends noted in Avison Young's Topical Report: "Transit Nodes of Tomorrow: Development Opportunities in the Greater Toronto Area," released today.

"Our topical report profiles four commercial growth areas that demonstrate the importance of transit connections to future development: East Harbour, Vaughan Metropolitan Centre, the Pearson Transit Centre and the Hurontario Light-Rail Transit corridor," comments Bill Argeropoulos, Principal and Practice Leader, Research (Canada) for Avison Young. "With so much planned development on the drawing board and funding in place, this is a time of opportunity for forward-looking commercial property owners and occupiers."

The report concludes that rapid population growth and demand for commercial space will challenge government and private developers' ability to deliver necessary infrastructure. However, strategic investment from both investor groups will provide significant opportunities for commercial property owners and occupiers to capitalize on the GTA's growth.

"The GTA has experienced extraordinary commercial and residential growth in recent years, and that trend looks set to continue and intensify in the coming decades," says Argeropoulos. "The recent news that Toronto is vying for selection as the location of Amazon's proposed $5-billion second headquarters in North America, and Google sister company Sidewalk Labs' plan to build a high-tech neighbourhood called Sidewalk Toronto on the city's waterfront, only serve to emphasize the importance of making investments in the city's future to further increase its appeal to major global corporations."

Argeropoulos concludes: "The initiatives profiled in this report will all add to the Toronto region's increasing profile on the world stage. We are hopeful that the commitments made by private stakeholders and all levels of government will ensure the success of these plans, helping to future-proof the GTA and setting an example for achieving its long-term growth and prosperity."

Avison Young is the world's fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Avison Young is a collaborative, global firm owned and operated by its principals. Founded in 1978, the company comprises 2,600 real estate professionals in 81 offices, providing value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial, multi-family and hospitality properties.