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<\/a>Rendering: The Orbit,\u00a0Partisans<\/a><\/em><\/p>\nNew government approvals issued by the province this week will help to fast-track the development of a massive transit-focused community near Lake Simcoe.<\/p>\n
On Monday, the Town of Innisfil announced that the Province of Ontario had created a Ministerial Zoning Order (MZO) to designate lands for the Orbit<\/a>, a master-planned smart city centred around a new GO Transit station.<\/p>\n\n The MZO, according to the town, will help to expedite the construction of the GO station, as well as the planning process for the project. It also allows the Orbit to \u201c\u200b\u200bget shovels in the ground faster,\u201d in addition to supporting the town\u2019s economic recovery from the pandemic and secure private investment for the development, explained a media release<\/a> from the Town of Innisfil.<\/p>\n \u201cOur government is proud to work with our municipal partners to get one step closer to building a new Innisfil GO Station that will provide convenient transit to this growing community \u2013 at a lower cost to taxpayers,\u201d said Stan Cho, Associate Minister of Transportation, in the release.<\/p>\n \u201cThrough the Transit-Oriented Communities Program, we are building critical, reliable transit that is connected to vibrant, live-work-play communities that benefit individuals, families and businesses,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n The Orbit would be built around 6th Line and the Metrolinx rail line, with construction expected to start as early as 2022. In 2019, Toronto-based architectural firm Partisans<\/a> was given the contract to create the Orbit, which is being developed by Cortel Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Orbit is said to be designed to prevent urban sprawl, marrying together the town\u2019s existing rural appeal with modern features. Previous reporting by Livabl<\/em><\/a> details that the master-planned, 40 million-square-foot transit hub would accommodate 150,000 people within a variety of housing types.<\/p>\n Over three development phases<\/a>, the Orbit would be laid out as a series of concentric \u201csquircles\u201d \u2014 a combination of squares and circles \u2014 that would ripple outwards from the transit centre. A fibre-optic network would be installed throughout the community, alongside a ridesharing transit system, pedestrian-first streets, and a range of public and private amenities.<\/p>\n \u201cThe idea is a full-walkable, high-density community that actually captures what it\u2019s like to have that piece of greenspace that everybody typically moves north of Toronto to get,\u201d said Jason Reynar, Innisfil\u2019s former Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), in an UrbanizeThis podcast<\/a> episode in March. \u201cYou sort of move into suburbia because you want your backyard, you want greenspace. So how can we replicate that concept, but with high-density? And so you end up with the vision.\u201d<\/p>\n On Innisfil’s webpage<\/a> for the Orbit, it\u2019s noted that an expedited planning process is required for the developer to secure construction financing and \u201cto meet the designated time frame for construction.\u201d Council endorsed the MZO draft, which was submitted to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Steve Clark, in November 2020 for consideration, the media release states.<\/p>\n \u201cPublic consultation prior to and during the pandemic revealed that the construction of the Innisfil GO Station remains a high community priority,\u201d reads the website<\/a>. \u201cTo respond to this, construction will commence as early as 2022, and the Ministerial Zoning Order (MZO) will facilitate the construction of much needed housing and jobs with access to transit, which is of even greater priority during these unprecedented times.\u201d<\/p>\n According to recent reporting<\/a> by the Toronto Star<\/em>, the Orbit\u2019s MZO is one of seven issued by Minister Clark over the past two weeks. Since 2018, Premier Doug Ford\u2019s provincial government has issued 53 MZOs.<\/p>\n \u201cToday\u2019s announcement is a good example of how our government is using Minister\u2019s Zoning Orders, in partnership with municipalities, to help get shovels in the ground quickly on important projects that will benefit residents for generations,\u201d said Clark in the release issued earlier this week. \u201cThis is an exciting community-building project and I am proud to be able to support the Orbit transit hub.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>Rendering:\u00a0The Orbit,\u00a0Partisans<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/a>Rendering:\u00a0The Orbit,\u00a0Partisans<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/a>Rendering:\u00a0The Orbit,\u00a0Partisans<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/a>Rendering:\u00a0The Orbit,\u00a0Partisans<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n