[ad_1]
Toronto’s prestigious office buildings are becoming the city’s new rental community. Amexon Development Corporation plans to transform one of the existing 15-story commercial towers located near Eglinton Avenue East and Don Mills Road into a rental loft.
Amexon describes its E-Lofts project as a “true transportation-oriented community” that provides contemporary loft-style living with a focus on sustainability and connectivity.
“The apartment math is not currently working in Toronto, but the purpose rental is still valid,” said Murtaza Haider, research director at Urban Analytics Institute at Metropolitan University of Toronto.
“In the tallest office building, but rather in the B or lower building, the vacancy rate is high. The second thing is housing affordability and lack of supply. And then even more so, lack of supply or adequate supply of dedicated rental housing.”
Hyde said that as much as 20% of the workforce now works from home and when tenants leave the shiny new office, there is not enough business demand to replenish the old office. But he warned that not every stubborn office building is the ideal choice for conversion.
“The floor plan is the most important, the location of the elevator is the most important, which makes a lot of investment in the feasibility of converting an office building,” he said. “You can have an office without windows, but you certainly don’t go to an apartment without windows.”
In this particular case, one of the project designers said the building is a good candidate.
“Working on the electronic house allows us to create living spaces that make the most of the building’s huge ‘bone’ – high ceilings, ideal floors and exposed concrete elements,” said Dan Menchions of IIV Design.
Haider added that Toronto planners may want to get some clues from some of the leads in Calgary, which struggles with higher office vacancies, exceeding 30% in 2023. The number dropped nearly 23% in 2024, partly due to incentives provided by the city, which inspired these types of conversations.
“Empty office buildings are a nuisance, it is the landlord’s responsibility, the nuisance to the city…it generates no income, no taxes.”
Amexon does not provide a target date for the project, but it is expected to have more than 300 units upon completion.
[ad_2]
Source link
