By: Jessica Mach | September 19, 2018 |
Most Toronto residents think that building new homes would help the city’s affordability crisis, but many of those same people are having trouble mustering up enthusiasm for new builds in their own neighbourhoods.
A staggering 88% of residents in Toronto, as well as 86% of people living in the surrounding suburbs in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), are in favor of building more homes as a way to ease housing demands and high prices, according to a new poll by Ipsos commissioned by the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) and the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB).
A similarly high proportion of the 1,503 GTA locals polled (nearly nine out of 10) also agree that the municipal government should review and change zoning laws so that builders could have more flexibility about where and how they can erect middle-density housing — defined as stacked townhouses, small condo buildings, and mid-rise condo buildings.
But, it seems that for many residents, these sentiments are difficult to reconcile with their long-standing attitudes of NIMBYism, or “not in my backyard”, which is an opposition to having development happen in one’s own neighbourhood.
Thirty percent of those surveyed — including some of those who are in favor of new builds as well as new zoning laws to accommodate them — are opposed to seeing a new detached house being built within a half kilometer of their current home.
And opposition only grows more intense as the proposed new builds get bigger.
Thirty seven percent of the GTA residents polled don’t want a new townhouse within a half kilometer of their home. This number expands to 44% for stacked townhouses, 49% for small condo buildings, 52% for mid-rise condo buildings, and 59% for high-rise condo apartments.
BILD and TREB note that resistance to new developments is a big factor in slowing the growth of housing supplies in the city.
“In order to build a livable GTA for the future, we need to be able to build more homes, faster. Clearly we need to have a broader discussion on how to accommodate growth, particularly in established neighbourhoods,” said BILD president and CEO Dave Wilkes, in a statement.
“If we want to truly address housing issues in the GTA, we need to take a comprehensive approach and that means being open to innovative ideas and change,” added John DiMichele, TREB chief executive officer, in a statement.