Title EARLY RAILWAY SUBURBS AND THEIR LINKS TO CONTEMPORARY TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENTS Case Study: Town of Mount Royal, Montreal Zahra Zarabi Urban Design and Housing School of Architecture McGill University, Montreal August 2014 A report submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Masters of Architecture ©Zahra Zarabi 2014 Acknowledgments It is a pleasure to thank those who made this report possible. First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisor Professor Vikram Bhatt for his constant support and encouragement throughout the production of this research paper. I would also like to thank Professor Avi Friedman who provided invaluable suggestions which contributed to the overall quality of this work. A special acknowledgment goes out to the Post-Professional Master of Architecture Class of 2013, who challenged me academically in a congenial work environment from which I learned enormously. I am also grateful to Miss Marcia King, secretory of graduate programs, for her unwavering helps and support. Finally, the completion of this degree would not have been possible without the love and support of my family who strove to provide me with the best opportunities in life. ii Table of content Title ......................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................. ii Table of content .................................................................................................................... iii List of figures .......................................................................................................................... v List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................... vi Abstract ................................................................................................................................. vii Abrégé ................................................................................................................................. viii Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 8 1.1 Background .................................................................................................................................... 8 1.2 Problem Definition ....................................................................................................................... 10 1.3 Research Questions ...................................................................................................................... 11 1.4 Research Arguments .................................................................................................................... 12 1.5 Research Objectives ..................................................................................................................... 13 1.6 Methodology ................................................................................................................................ 13 1.7 Research Outline .......................................................................................................................... 14 Chapter 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................. 16 2.1 What is Transit-Oriented Development? ..................................................................................... 16 2.1.1 Viewing TOD in its Historical Context .................................................................................... 18 2.1.2 How Does the Built Environment Impact the Transit Ridership? .......................................... 21 2.2 Benefits of Transit-Oriented Development .................................................................................. 21 2.3 Evaluation of Transit-Oriented Development .............................................................................. 23 2.4 Transit-Oriented Development and Smart Growth ...................................................................... 25 2.5 Transit-Related Development in North America .......................................................................... 26 Chapter 3 TOWN OF MOUNT ROYAL, A MODEL CITY AND AN EARLY TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT ..................................................................................................................... 31 3.1 Town of Mount Royal: A Hundred Years of History ..................................................................... 31 3.2.1 The Development Context .................................................................................................... 32 iii 3.2.2 The Transition from Farmland to Townsite ........................................................................... 35 3.2.3 The Design Genesis of the Model City ................................................................................... 37 3.2.4 Men in Charge ....................................................................................................................... 43 3.2.5 The Design Stages of the Town ............................................................................................. 45 3.2.6 Municipality, Transit Authority, and the Developer .............................................................. 52 3.2.7 Mount Royal Tunnel: A Marvelous Construction .................................................................. 53 3.3 Town of Mount Royal, a Model City and a Transit-Oriented Development ................................. 55 3.3.1 Density, Diversity, and Design in Town of Mount Royal ....................................................... 56 3.3.2 Transportation Facilities and Accessibility ............................................................................ 61 3.3.3 Growth, Change and Citizen Involvement ............................................................................. 63 Chapter 4 CANADIAN TODS AND TMR; A COMPARATIVE STUDY ........................................... 65 4.1 Recent Canadian Efforts in Transit-Oriented Development ......................................................... 65 4.1.1 A Brief Description of Some Case Studies ............................................................................. 67 4.1.2 Transit-Oriented Development in Montreal ......................................................................... 70 4.2 Comparing Town of Mount Royal with CMHC Research Highlights ............................................. 74 4.2.1 What TOD Features Are Integrated into the Projects? ......................................................... 74 4.2.2 Transit: A Motivational Factor for Developers and Occupants ............................................. 78 4.2.3 Financial Success and the Role of Municipalities .................................................................. 79 4.2.4 Land Economics and Selling prices ........................................................................................ 80 4.2.5 Local Amenities and the Occupants’ Satisfaction .................................................................. 81 Chapter 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................ 83 5.1 Transit-Oriented Development, So Far ........................................................................................ 83 5.2 Future Transit-Oriented Development ......................................................................................... 85 Bibliography ......................................................................................................................... 87 iv List of figures Figure 2-1: Transit-Oriented Development ................................................................................................ 17 Figure 2-2: Shaughnessy Heights, Vancouver: Plan (1926) (top); aerial view (left); long lines of prospective buyers standing outside the railroad’s land office (right), 1914 ............................................. 27 Figure 2-3: Shaker Heights,Cleveland: Development around Rapid Transit Railroad, 1922 .................... 29 Figure 2-4: Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia: Rail station (left) and vibrant commercial main street (right) .... 30 Figure 3-1: The spatial pattern of urban growth in the Montreal area ....................................................... 33 Figure 3-2: Town of Mont Royal in relation to Mount Royal Tunnel and central business district of Montreal, 1912. .......................................................................................................................................... 34 Figure 3-3: The land was previously a farmland ....................................................................................... 35 Figure 3-4: Welwyn (Left) and Letchworth (Right) Garden Cities in England ......................................... 39 Figure 3-5: Garden City Diagram .............................................................................................................. 40 Figure 3-6: Riverside, Illinois, F. L. Olmsted & Vaux, 1877 .................................................................... 41 Figure 3-7: The L’Enfant Plan for Washington, D.C. ................................................................................ 42 Figure 3-8: Frederick Gage Todd .............................................................................................................