I wish to express my support…

I wish to express my support for OPA 405,I have is consistent with the Midtown in Focus Secondary Report. I am concerned about the concentration of development in the northeast quadrant of the Yonge Eglinton area, and hope you will consider the opinions of many concerned residents in making your decision. I want to be clear that I am not opposed to development per se, and I agree that there are many good reasons to increase concentration along major arteries. What concerns me is that there is so much development, all at once, in a relatively small area. In particular, I am concerned about public amenities and infrastructure. I don’t believe sufficient thought has gone into the impact on the daily lives of the people who live and work in the area. I see this lack of forethought all around me today, when roads and pedestrian routes are changed and closed without apparent consideration for those who use them daily. This does not bode well for future developments. The current infrastructure is insufficient to support the proposed density increases – there will be a need for parks, recreation facilities, schools, and transportation to maintain the quality of life of local residents. The Eglinton crosstown will be wonderful for many people, but for those of us in the area, it will just make it even harder to get on the already overcrowded subway. And as we have seen at Yonge and Sheppard, many of the new condos will be occupied by people who prefer to use their cars; this will make already congested roads even worse. Looking at the high-density proposals for this area made me think of the history of St. James Town, where rapid densification and lack of amenities led to negative consequences. I would hate to see the same thing happen again. Please support the height limits and other provisions of the Amendment and please ensure that the neighborhood’s day-to-day needs are fully considered in the planning process.