Tall Stories: Topping Off 2022 on UrbanToronto

As calendars turn their final pages and a new year begins, people around the world reflect on the moments that have shaped the last 12 months, the triumphs, the challenges, the curveballs and everything in between.

For all of us here at UrbanToronto, 2022 has been an action-packed year; We’ve seen the development industry work hard to recover from the toll of the pandemic, we’ve seen the pressures of the housing crisis prompt a dramatic reappraisal of community zoning as developers strive to build taller than ever , and state-of-the-art sustainable building practices became vital to viability, and governments used both policy and funding to advance the role of transportation in the future of Toronto and its residents.

With so much hindsight, we’ve prepared top 10 lists for the most read news, most searched database files, and busiest forum threads from all of 2022 to provide a quick rundown of what mattered most to UT audiences of the last year. Here is the topping-out ceremony for 2022.

Our top 10 most read news stories of 2022

At number 16 on our Top 10 News Stories list, we have a story about a proposed master plan community in the Humber Bay area of ​​South Etobicoke. The project is one of several master plan communities being developed within Toronto’s borders, a trend that is gaining traction as an effective method for transit-focused development and the creation of entire communities.

16. First Capital and Pemberton submit phase one plans for giant Humber Bay Shores site

If we look at the 10 most read news stories of the year, we see that three more masterplanned communities are accumulating a remarkable number of clicks and capturing the attention of UT readers with intriguing elements like the promise of more than 20 different buildings on a single one Location attraction, or the redevelopment of a shopping center. The other trend we could clearly see was the fascination (albeit with a hint of skepticism) for the Ontario Line, with three stories earning a place in the top 5.

10. Balcony guards begin to show cloud-like patterns on Menkes’ Sugar Wharf condos

9. Increase in height could make Pinnacle One Yonge the tallest building in Canada

8. Toronto approves major motions after debate

7. The 1970s Brutalist building at the university will be replaced with a 62-story tower

6. Proposed major remodeling of 22 buildings for Centerpoint Mall in Yonge and Steeles

5. The Ontario Line – All We Know, Part 1

4. The Ontario Line – A major step forward for the successor to Toronto’s Relief Line

3. Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario award $9 billion contract for Ontario Line

2. RioCan proposes redevelopment of Vaughan’s 25-tower Colossus Center

1. Ambitious redevelopment of the Yorkdale shopping center presented to the Design Review Panel

Looking east towards Exhibition Station, the terminus of the Ontario Line LRT, pictured from the handover to the City of Toronto

Our top 10 most searched database files of 2022

Rounding up the top 10 most searched database files of the year starts at number 13 with the Lower Don Lands cleanup. Led by Waterfront Toronto, the project puts a positive spin on terraforming by restoring a more natural course of the Don River estuary while creating a vibrant urban ecological zone. The project is a nod to the growing movement to increase biodiversity in urban centers, a long-term trend that we hope will grow in 2023.

13. Redevelopment of Lower Don Lands

When we looked at the results of the Most Searched Database Files list, we found that projects 1 through 7 were remarkably the same as last year. Aside from some positional wrangling, the city’s high-profile projects have held their ground as top interests for UT readers… but some intriguing new projects have managed to climb the ranks. Interestingly, 8 Elm quickly climbed into the top ten and reappeared in August with a fresh new design and a top-notch amenities program, not to mention “heroic” support from Toronto’s own Marvel movie star, Simu Liu.

10. Condominiums in time and space

9. Form

8. 8 elm

7. Nobu Residences Toronto

6. CIBC SQUARE

5. Sugar Wharf Condominiums (Phase 1)

4. 160 Front West

3. The fountain

2. Peak One Yonge

1. The One

69-story 8 Elm seen against the Toronto skyline in the evening, image courtesy of Capital Developments and Reserve Properties

Our top 10 busiest forum threads of 2022

The transit buzz was a phenomenon that was particularly noticeable on the UT forum throughout 2022. Whether through updates positive or reverse, transit projects have been a big talking point for our forum attendees, many of whom were hoping for the opening of the Eglinton Line 5 Crosstown as once promised by Crosslinx and Metrolinx. However, as news of the delays hit the message cycle, traffic on the thread only got hotter, and with no clear timeline for completion yet, the conversation remains active on the LRT.

15. Crosstown LRT

Finally, as we go through our top 10 busiest forum threads of the year, we just can’t overlook the remarkable tenure that The One is enjoying at the top. Month after month, our forum staff monitors this project like no development we’ve seen before, setting an exemplary standard for the vibrant and active community on which UT is built. With the first traces of the outer fairing now appearing on the super tall Mizrahi development, we look forward to seeing what we learn in his thread and everything else in 2023!

10. GO Transit: Service Thread

9. Condominiums in time and space

8. Redevelopment of Lower Don Lands

7. Concord Sky

6. Sugar Wharf Condominiums (Phase 1)

5. Peak One Yonge

4. 160 Front West

3. The fountain

2. CIBC SQUARE

1. The One

Looking southwest at The One, currently under construction with 18 floors, image by UT Forum contributor Johnny Au

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UrbanToronto has a research service, UrbanToronto Pro, that provides comprehensive data on metro Toronto development projects from concept to completion. We also offer instant reports, downloadable snapshots based on location, and a daily subscription newsletter, New Development Insider, that tracks projects from inception.