-- M I S S I S S A U G A -- || -- M C C --

[urbanlife]

you crazy canadians.

[Grumpy]

A little touch of Dubai on Lake Ontario

In Paris there is a similar proposal to built such shaped towers

[jodelli]

Only 25 years ago Square One was all by itself with fields to the north. Times they are a changin'.

jodelli

[Monetto]

Do you know how much the condos cost in those 2 towers?
It would suck to pay Marilyn Monroe prices to be stuck with its ugly overweight sister

[Kingofthehill]

Seems better than alot of suburbs...decent density to boot.

[MolsonExport]

^try going for a stroll in MCC

[10101000]

I could take some snow right now.

[ue]

Ah, Mississauga before Absolute World, even more non-descript. At least now you've got these swank towers to partially take your attention away from the blandness that surrounds. I'll at least give the city credit for trying to build up more and producing a decent skyline for what is basically a giant suburb.

[universitasterbaik]

are u canadian?

[Nouvellecosse]

I completely forgot about this thread until I noticed it in the recent index thread. I'm still a bit shocked that flar would have actually photographed MCC. Somehow they seem like mutually opposing forces. But I suppose it's an excellent learning experience.

Also, considering this was almost 6 years ago, it would be cool to see some updated pictures.

Originally Posted by matt602

Well Mississauga certainly proves you can't build a real downtown from scratch these days. You've either had one for a long time, or you never will.

Certainly an interesting skyline however.

Not sure about that. It if was really "from scratch" I suspect it would actually be easier. This is trying to convert an area that was already planned, built, and used as a low density, car-dependent, suburban area into an actual urban area. Whether or not that's really impossible, only time will tell.

But if they're going to do it, there needs to be an incentive, ie a reason for people to use it. Right now it's a destination due to the shopping, which is in a car-focused format. If they were to develop a light-rail system and make MCC the main hub, it would give people across Mississauga access to it as a convenient, central location. Next, the hub would also need to have high-frequency rail connecting it to Toronto and preferably also the airport. That way the residential population could quadrupedal due to having easy access to downtown at the same time as having easy access to shops and services within walking distance.

As long as it's just cars and buses, it isn't going to happen. Maybe once the Hurontario LRT opens, that could help. But either way, the city needs to realise that zoning for residential and having people live there is not enough to make something into a downtown. Healthy downtowns also have layers of infrastructure and a rich diversity of activities an one cannot re-create the whole experience by introducing one element.

[volguus zildrohar]

Really?

[Beedok]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

Next, the hub would also need to have high-frequency rail connecting it to Toronto and preferably also the airport.

Isn't there already a rail link to Pearson?

[Nouvellecosse]

There is a rail link between downtown Toronto and Pearson nearing completion, but such a link between MCC and Pearson has never even been contemplated as far as I recall.

[M.R.Victor]

Originally Posted by volguus zildrohar

Really?

MCC started out as highly autocentric but it's slowly being developed into a more pedestrian friendly format. In a separate thread in the City Discussions section, I wrote this description of the various phases of development, and my interpretation of how successful they are likely to be in creating livable urban fabric.

Originally Posted by M.R.Victor

I think a reasonable template for setting expectations regarding how this effort will play out is Mississauga City Centre, which I would argue is neither a resounding success nor a complete failure. It's merits and detriments are fairly well known, so I won't belabor the point. It's worth knowing, however, that there are three distinct "neighbourhoods" around the Square One mall, each representing the urbanistic philosophies of a certain decade. I use these examples as a study of the evolution of the planning principles that govern the creation of such suburban nodes.

The first area is the neighborhood directly south of Burnhamthorpe Road, west of Hurontario Street and bound by Central Pkwy E. This area is characterized by tower-in-the-park style rental apartment buildings, a suburban strip-mall, a typical suburban school and plenty of natural open space. It was the first to be developed and has been fully built out for quite some time. This area is decidedly non-urban, and rather fits the typical Ontario high-rise suburb. It also happens to be the most family-friendly of the three areas that I critique.

The second area is that unfolding along Webb Dr., directly south of Burnhamthorpe Road and west of Confederation Pkwy. I would also include the developments around Enfield Pl. in this category as well. Though the towers are placed closer together and house certain non-residential uses in their podiums, they are very much inward oriented and create a fairly hostile pedestrian experience outside of them. In fact, I would argue that the pedestrian experience is significantly worse here than in the previous neighbourhood, thanks to improper scale and massing of the buildings and the street and the less mature tree canopy. I would say this is the worst of both worlds.

Finally, the latest area and newest area to get developed is the segment unfolding north of Burnhamthorpe Rd., between Living Arts Rd. and Duke of York Blvd. It contains the highest degree of non-residential uses, has the widest sidewalks, the most amount of public space, and is arguably the most successful attempt at good urbanism so far. In my humble opinion, it still does not stack up to traditional urban form, yet, by suburban standards, it is a hopeful step in the right direction. The buildings attempt to meet the street, and the public space begins to look positively urban. For a set of pictures of this neighbourhood, check out post #5104 in this skyscrapercity photo thread, since the Google Streetview for the area is not up to date.

My overall opinion is that I would never live here, yet I would rather have the suburbs develop in this manner over any currently available north american suburban alternatives.

[Beedok]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

There is a rail link between downtown Toronto and Pearson nearing completion, but such a link between MCC and Pearson has never even been contemplated as far as I recall.

I had thought the LINK train went there, I didn't know it only went to a parking complex. . .