Laneways are plentiful in Toronto, covering more than 300
kilometres in the city. To Alex Sharpe, co-founder of Lanescape, a
design and planning organization, he sees that as untapped
potential for the building of laneway housing.
With laneway houses, the detached garages that exist in them are
dependant on the principle residences on the same property,
meaning, if converted into "laneway suites", it could
allow for small rental units to make their way into the market.
Luckily, with laneway suites dependent on the main residence for
utilities and city services, it is in line with provincial
legislation that discusses secondary units, introduced in 2011.
Sharpe's company alongside Evergreen, released a report last month that identifies
roadblocks for the development of laneway suites with suggestions
on how to streamline the city approval process. This report has
passed a Toronto and East York Community council meeting and is on
the next phase before final approval.
