Waterfront Toronto Launches International Competition for Quayside Development Partner
Waterfront Toronto has launched an international competition to secure a development partner for the Quayside lands. The first step in this effort is to issue a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) to identify potential development proponents with the proven experience, design portfolio, financial resources, and shared vision necessary to bring Quayside to reality.
“The people of Toronto have told us that they want to see a bold vision realized on the waterfront that reflects the confident, welcoming, and imaginative civic spirit of our city,” said Stephen Diamond, Chair of the Board for Waterfront Toronto.
“We are looking for leaders in the development field that will share our ambition to create a place that fuses Quayside to the water, and provides more beauty, utility, and originality than previously imagined. We want Quayside to be timeless, adaptive, and to propel us into our rightful place among the great waterfronts of the world,” Diamond concluded.
According to Waterfront Toronto, Quayside will usher in a new chapter in Toronto development. It will remind people of everything they want from living in the city and demonstrate what is possible when vision, passion, and design excellence are brought together.
Quayside will be a sustainable community for people of all ages, backgrounds, abilities and incomes. A place providing market and affordable housing options for individuals and families. It will offer opportunities for aging in place, including the supports and amenities that will allow seniors to live independently. Inclusive economic development opportunities will create jobs and spaces for business owners that reflect Toronto’s diversity.
Waterfront Toronto’s vision for Parliament Slip is a signature piece of the project and delivers on the Corporation’s promise to reorient the city to the water.
“Quayside is an opportunity to reimagine a stronger economic future and create a post-pandemic landmark community that addresses many of the vulnerabilities that the COVID-19 crisis has exposed,” said George Zegarac, CEO for Waterfront Toronto.
“The past year has driven people apart, when they’d rather be together. We’ll know we have been successful when anyone who’s ever thought about moving away from the city looks at Quayside and remembers every reason they wanted to live in Toronto in the first place,” Zegarac added.
Key Facts
The Quayside site totals 4.9 hectares (12 acres), including 3.2 hectares (8 acres) of developable land across five development blocks. It is one of the last undeveloped expanses of land steps from Toronto’s downtown. Through the RFQ stage of this competition, a short list of proponents will be selected to participate in the Request for Proposals (RFP) to select a winning development team that will deliver a dynamic, inclusive and resilient community, including new affordable and market rate housing, and the conditions for a diversity of businesses to succeed.
To view the RFQ, proponents and interested parties can visit https://waterfrontoronto.bonfirehub.ca/. The RFQ Submission deadline is May 12, 2021. Waterfront Toronto aims to select a winning proponent before the end of 2021.