A new urban centre to be built around Woodbine Racetrack over at least the next 25 years will be the largest development site in Toronto, says Chris Caverson, executive vice-president, development at Woodbine Entertainment.

The 684-acre Woodbine site in the Rexdale area also represents the largest undeveloped plot of land in Toronto and “when it’s all said and done, we’re going to have a place here that all Torontonians, all stakeholders are going to be super proud of.”

Development is set to begin on the site after the Ontario government, Metrolinx and Woodbine Entertainment announced in late June they are partnering to build a new GO Transit station along the commuter rail service's Kitchener Line. It will be located at Woodbine, where construction is now under way.

The Woodbine GO station will be less than 30 minutes from Union Station and will connect with UP Express and nearby Pearson International Airport. It will replace the Etobicoke North station beside Kipling Ave. and Highway 409. UP Express connects the airport with Toronto's downtown Union Station rail and transit hub.

“The property has it all,” Caverson says of the Woodbine site. “It has the GO train station that’s being built. It’s a stone’s throw from the largest international airport in Canada.

"It’s very closely connected to just about every 400 series highway, and we’re going to push to get the Finch LRT extended down from Humber College to the Woodbine property, which will connect the city’s largest campus to the GO station and beyond.”

Woodbine plans to partner with developers

Woodbine Entertainment, which operates like a not-for-profit corporation, will develop and retain ownership of the land and explore strategic joint ventures.

About 150 to 200 acres of the site includes the main racetrack, grandstand, casino and a hotel and the backstretch infrastructure related to horseracing operations. Some of the backstretch infrastructure will be moved and replaced with updated infrastructure to make way for development around the GO station.

Development on the site will include an approximately 185-acre mixed use area at the southeast quadrant of the property and a 70-acre “employment” block in the southwest quadrant of the property that could include office and industrial uses. 

Given the site’s proximity to the airport, residential development is not possible on as many as 250 acres. There are also height limits of 15 storeys for residential buildings, Caverson says. 

That still leaves room for a massive residential development that will be “the model of a complete community." 

What's proposed for the property

It will include lowrise, midrise and highrise (up to 15 storeys) buildings and everything from family-oriented to affordable homes. Affordable housing will include accommodations to replace the dormitories for backstretch workers who care for the 1,700 horses stabled at Woodbine.

“We’re looking at really every type of building type.”

Caverson says that as a long-term landowner, Woodbine’s preference will be to maintain ownership of as much of the land as possible. “We’ll do that through rental, but the market will ultimately dictate how much rental and how much new homes is appropriate.”

A “world-class” entertainment district, community services, parks and open spaces will comprise significant parts of the development. 

He notes the overall project will have to benefit the site's existing vocation – horse racing.

Caverson says discussions have not yet begun with potential developers.

“We’re very early on in the process of establishing that framework and I’m optimistic that over the next 12 to 24 months we’re going to have a solid framework in place. At that point I think that we would get much more serious about sitting down with various strategic partners.”

However, “as stewards of the land and no one’s ever going to care more about the properties than we do,” he says, “we’re going to be the developer. We’re going to be the one that controls and oversees how these lands are developed.”

Members of the planning team

An internal team of seven and an external team that includes Urban Strategies as lead planning firm, civil engineering firm Crozier Consulting Engineers and a British architectural firm have been assembled to work on the project.

“Given the prominence of this project and the significance of the development that we’re going to undertake, we’re going to look to supplement that team,” Caverson says. He joined Woodbine last December, after formerly holding roles at Mattamy Homes, SmartCentres and CanFirst. 

The project will be “a 25-plus years endeavour, but we’re certainly ambitious that we’re going to get going on this certainly sooner rather than later.”

Both the city of Toronto and Ontario government want to see the project happen and so far, the city “has been a pleasure to work with,” he says. “I have every bit of confidence that we’re going to establish a new model of how to get things done and fast. The city deserves a lot of credit for that.” 

Caverson says Woodbine will move as fast on development as the approvals process allows. “We’re eager to get going.”