Quality In Our Backyards
in Erin Mills South
Save our Shops and Services at 4099 Erin Mills Parkway
Save Our Shops & Sevices: Our Bank, Our Grocery Store, Our Ice Cream Shoppe, Our Hair Salon, Our Vet, Our Pharmacy, Our Pizza Shop, Our Bakery, Our Pasta Shop, Our Dentist, Our Medical Centre, .... Erin Mills was carefully planned 50 years ago to have walkable amenities: shops and services for each of the neighbourhoods (outlined in yellow in image from "Erin Mills New Town")
The Commercial Nature of 4099 Erin Mills Parkway
Since it was built in the 1970s, Michaelangelo’s Plaza, Iqbal Plaza, at 4099 Erin Mills Parkway, has been commercial, not residential. It is the ONLY centre of shops and services within the boundaries of EMSRA. Today it is the home to at least 30 thriving businesses that provide walkable shops and services to the residents of Erin Mills South. All of these shops and services are essential to our 3000 homes in the same way that the main street small businesses, of Port Credit and Streetsville, provide essential shops and services, to the residents of Port Credit and Streetsville. The City of Mississauga recognizes the importance of maintaining existing walkable shops and services in Mixed Use zoning within its Official Plan.
No reasonable person would suggest that the shops and services of main street Port Credit or Streetsville should be downsized to 10% of their existing size in order to build housing, particularly if new housing is anticipated and new residents are expected in their surrounding neighbourhoods. No reasonable politician or Tribunal should be amenable to the downsizing of the existing shops and services at 4099 Erin Mills Parkway.
Erin Mills is a very different setting than most urban or suburban areas of Ontario. Erin Mills was built as a planned community starting in the 1960s. Housing was planned with a network of walkways, bicycle trails, and modified-pinwheel streets connected to shops and services. Housing was planned to be diverse and affordable with diversity as to:
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Diversity of Environment
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Diversity of Dwellings
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Diversity of Tenure
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Diversity of Housing Costs
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prestige residential sites
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high quality residential sites
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moderate cost housing
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social housing
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low income
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elderly persons
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students
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The “Development Concept” stated in the book "Erin Mills New Town" 1969 noted at p. 2.1:
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"The development concept for Erin Mills is directed to the creation of a large and diversified community offering its residents and workers a superior range of urban experiences."
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"The development objectives of Erin Mills are straightforward:
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to enhance the attractiveness of the community and its surroundings by exploiting their unique identifiable characteristics
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to establish a strong functional and physical relationship between places of residence and places of work ...
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to accommodate a broad economic and social cross-section of the general population by providing a complete range of dwelling types and a wide range of physical and social facilities"
There are available places in Erin Mills for new high density apartment-style buildings, adjacent to transit, in accordance with the original plan of Erin Mills and the City of Mississauga Official Plan. 4099 Erin Mills Parkway is not one of those high-density places because 4099 Erin Mills Parkway is a commercial centre, in the midst of planned, diverse housing with modified-pinwheel streets, that is not part of a major transit hub. Highway 403 forms a dangerous wall to the closest Major Transit Station Area. There are available places to build high-density housing along Eglinton and at South Common Community Node in accordance with the original plan of Erin Mills and the City of Mississauga Official Plan.
The original commercial area plan for Erin Mills contemplated a 25-acre Community Shopping Centre at South Common surrounded by high-density residential units. The original commercial plan contemplated two 5 or 6 acre "neighbourhood shopping centres" for Pheasant Run, Arbour Green, and Olde Burnhamthorpe/Sawmill Creek, Bridlepath/Promomtory neighbourhoods. One was planned for Glen Erin Drive at St. Clare School. Another was planned for the area of St. Mark School north of the original Burnhamthorpe (now Burbank drive). Please note the larger black circles in the diagram from Erin Mills New Town" at the very top of this page.
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The original plan for Erin Mills "neighbourhood shopping centres" as described in the book "Erin Mills New Town" 1969 included at p. 2.3:
"A dozen neighbourhood shopping centres, occupying sites of five to seven acres, will be established to serve the immediate local shopping requirements of the residents. They will be located at focal points connecting major and minor collector roads where thy can serve adjoining neighbourhoods....The proposed neighbourhood shopping centres will cater to both pedestrian and automobile trade, and will each provide up to 50,000 square feet of floor space." Pheasant Run/Arbour Green should have had 50,000 square feet of commercial floor space near St. Clare School. Olde Burnhamthorpe/Sawmill Valley/Bridlepath/Promontory should have had 50,000 square feet of commercial floor space near St. Mark school.
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When construction started in the 1970s the two "neighbourhood shopping centres" were merged into 4099 Erin Mills Parkway, with 71,000 square feet (6600 sq. m.) commercial floor space, as the only neighbourhood shopping centre actually built within EMSRA boundaries.
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Queenscorp's 2024 re-submission reduces the 71,000 square feet commercial floor space to 8,500 square feet commercial floor space.
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[Note: There seems to be some confusion as to the current total commercial space at 4099 Erin Mills Parkway. The City has advised me: "The existing commercial space is around 6,600 sq m." or 71,000 square feet. An online listing states the building size is 88,500 sq. ft..]
The City of Mississauga Official Plan states that 4099 Erin Mills Parkway is designated as “Mixed Use”. There is room for improvement of the site at 4099 Erin Mills Parkway to include some housing as contemplated by the Official Plan. EMSRA and its members should discuss what sorts of housing that might include. However, the historical commercial nature of the site at 4099 Erin Mills Parkway should be preserved at all costs. Any application by a Developer that does not comply with the following requirements in Mississauga’s draft Official Plan 2051 should be rejected outright by the City, and on appeal, by the Ontario Land Tribunal:
10.2.6.2 The planned function of lands designated Mixed Use is to provide a variety of
retail, service and other uses to support the surrounding residents and businesses.
Development on Mixed Use sites that includes residential uses will be required to
contain a mixture of permitted uses. This mix of uses is required in order to create
complete communities with destinations that are close enough for walking and cycling
to be the most attractive transportation option. In addition to mitigating traffic
congestion, this enhances human health and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
10.2.6.3 Redevelopment of Mixed Use sites must maintain the same amount of non-
residential floor space.
11.3.2 Redevelopment within Mixed Use, Mixed Use Limited, and Downtown Mixed Use
designated lands that results in a loss of non-residential floor space, will not be
permitted unless it can be demonstrated that the planned function of the non-
residential component will be maintained or replaced as part of the redevelopment.
