BILD’s Live and Interactive Discussion with Minister Murray
By Lucas on Nov 04, 2013
The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) kicked off November with another Live and Interactive Industry discussion. The keynote speaker was the Honourable Glen Murray, Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation.
The discussion was moderated by OHBA Past President and BILD Past Chair Leith Moore of Sorbara Development. The panel of industry leaders included BILD 2nd Vice Chair Gary Gregoris of Mattamy Homes, BILD Toronto Chapter Co-Chair Gary Switzer of MOD Developments, OHBA 1st Vice President Vince Molinaro of Molinaro Group, and BILD President & CEO Bryan Tuckey.
The purpose of the Live and Interactive discussion was to hear ideas about connecting Places to Grow and transit planning, investing in infrastructure and transit, implementing the Growth Plan, and more.
Minister Murray got the ball rolling, highlighting two main points:
1) How does the City spend infrastructure dollars?
2) Where does that money come from?
Of course, no definite answers were offered by Murray or the panel, but that’s the whole reason that this kind of discussion needs to take place. One of the most interesting points that Murray made was why not let private companies, such as developers, build transit facilities?
Murray suggested that if developers were building transit facilities, such as subway stops or bus stops, it would make it more affordable for the City to move forward with transit plans. There are many factors that probably need to be taken into consideration before we see something like this happening, but on the surface, it seems like the perfect way to intertwine development and transit growth.
In regards to intensification along transit lines, developers still have issues getting approval for their projects. Murray pointed out that while those areas are designated as areas for intensification by the Growth Plan, sometimes the proposal won’t meet other criteria, such as providing housing to meet the needs of people of any age, protecting green space, and reducing traffic.
How does a new development reduce traffic instead of creating more congestion? That’s one of the puzzles that needs to be worked out. Murray’s suggestion of getting developers to build transit facilities just might be the answer.
It would take much more than a single blog post to share Minister Murray’s entire discussion, let alone analyze the issues and solutions that he presented, but it is great to see that the idea of meshing development and transit planning has taken another step forward (thanks to BILD).
We look forward to possibly seeing the public and private sector teaming up in the near future.
