I think this may be counter to the intention of the thread, but all I get from these photos is that largely, in spite of some noble intentions to add density via high-rises, Canadian suburbs are quite dull and dreary places. What's they point of having suburban downtowns if they're not... more... downtown like? Especially when they deploy close to none of the things that make downtowns work?
It really reminds me of the Simpsons.
We've tried nothing and we're fresh out of ideas
But perhaps I'm wrong. Are there any suburban downtowns that function very much like traditional downtowns? Good mixed use, small and large retail, tightly packed housing, a good mix of jobs and residents, good transit connections? I certainly can't come up with any.