Expressway would destroy 71 homes in Riverdale

After two months of intensive work, the City of Toronto planners located at the Riverdale Planning office have released a report on the impact that the proposed Scarboro expressway will have on Ward Seven.

The section of the proposed expressway through Ward Seven calls for a 133 foot right-of-way starting at the Gardiner expressway and the Don River and running north-east parallel to the CNR tracks to Pape and Gerrard.

Only a partial interchange would be located in Ward Seven but it would reduce the Consumer’s Gas site from 19.3 acres to 10.3 acres.

Other effects the expressway will have on Ward Seven are as follows:
and would “probably preclude residential use of the remainder of the site”.

The report also notes that noises, air and visual pollution would be increased with the upper floors of McCleary Towers being the most affected.

Homes adjacent to the expressway would have the level of noise doubled while near-by homes would have a 50 per cent increase in noise level. There would also be a general rise in air pollution adjacent to the open-cut portions of the expressway.

• The Scarboro expressway will destroy 71 houses containing 84 living units as well as 14 apartments over stores. Destroyed will be 9 detached houses, 38 semi-detached and 24 row houses.
• The expressway will displace 63 families containing 275 people. Of these, 83 are school children.
• The expressway will destroy 12 industrial plants that provide employment to 690 people. Out of these 690 employees, 225 of them live within walking distance and the advantage of living close to work would be lost to them.
• The expressway would result in the destruction of twelve stores and the possible loss of jobs for their 30 employees.
• Some parks would be destroyed and some parks would be relocated – and there would be a net gain to the community of Ward Seven of one acre of parkland.

The impact study is now being distributed to affected industry, business and citizen groups for comment. The comments will be made up into an addendum, and that together with the report will go to the City of Toronto Planning Board.

Pat Murphy, co-author of the study states that there will be no public meetings on it as there have been too many meetings on the Scarboro Expressway already in the area.

However, it is known that Ward Seven Alderman John Sewell favors having meetings to study the report’s findings and such meetings may be held with the report reaches City Council.