Toronto City Council has issued zoning and subdivision approvals for the first phase of Northcrest Developments' 370-acre YZD community on the former Downsview Airport lands in the city.
The July 25 council vote clears the way for the launch of onsite servicing for the mixed-use project.
The 101-acre Hangar District, as the initial phase is called, will feature over three million square feet of new institutional, retail, entertainment and community uses with adaptive reuse of the former Bombardier aerospace manufacturing operations, creating some 7,400 jobs, Northcrest has estimated.
The 2.2-million-square-foot residential component adds 2,957 residences including 48 per cent two- and three-bedroom units. Ten per cent of the total is intended to be affordable rental.
Building heights approved range from four storeys to 23, with the majority up to 14 storeys.
Northcrest vice-president of development Peter Maleganovski acknowledged mixed-use development is presently near the bottom of a market cycle but said since the project has such a long time horizon, work is proceeding swiftly on all fronts.
"There's so much work that has to happen before you're actually ready to get to market," he said. "And that's why I think we're full steam ahead still. It was years of work to get us to this point, and we still have years of work before we have shovels in the ground as well, from a residential perspective."
The housing mix and other components of the project can be adjusted in the next few years depending on what's happening in the market, Maleganovski said.
"The other thing is, realistically, you don't want to miss a market either. So if the market does come back at some point and you haven't started your process yet, then you're already behind."
Crown corporation Canada Lands retains 150 adjacent acres that was formerly CFB Downsview. Canada Lands is working on its development plans separately but in loose co-operation with Northcrest.
Northcrest expects to create residences for 50,000 people and jobs for 20,000 by final project buildout.
The Hangar District plan also proposes 14,295 square metres of public parkland across three parks and other parkland and greenways.
Maleganovski said vertical development could begin as early as 2028.
"The infrastructure work is going to start in earnest in 2026, there's some demolition that has to happen onsite," he outlined. "And that leads into the full horizontal program.
"To us, that's a huge milestone. We're looking at hopefully starting vertical construction I think in 2028 at this point, that's what we're projecting. Completion of buildings starting 2030-2031 is really what we're looking at."
Bombardier was still in production on the south hangar complex on the Northcrest site as recently as two years ago.
"It's absolutely exciting that the buildings themselves have a lot of character," said Maleganovski. "Part of the reimagination is trying to understand what they can be while maintaining some of what they were in the past. I think it's a really interesting opportunity."
He explained the towering hanger doors, as an example, are interesting features that will be incorporated into designs and are emblematic of the aerospace sector's spirit of innovation on the site going back to the 1950s.
Maleganovski said work on that phase could start likely in 2028 as well with facilities opening in the 2030-2031 timeframe.
Northcrest has established an extensive program of interim programming including special events and the creation of the temporary 50,000-seat Rogers Stadium, which began hosting concerts this summer.
"Getting people onsite has been a key goal for us, and it'll remain that way," said Maleganovski.
The construction market has stalled due to several factors including uncertainty created by the U.S. trade war and also high costs. But Maleganovski said costs for horizontal work are consistent with what Northcrest had projected and noted the project is still a few years away from the vertical phase.
"I don't think it's impactful to us yet. I still think that there's changes that could potentially be coming from a costing perspective," he said.