Liuna Pension Fund of Canada and Fengate Asset Management have announced the launch of Toronto Rail Yards, a transformative new mixed-use community to be built above the active rail corridor between Bathurst St. and and Spadina Ave.

Planned to be among city’s most transit-connected neighbourhoods, Toronto Rail Yards will bring together housing, transit, office, retail, child-care and public spaces within a complete mixed-use community located in the heart of downtown Toronto, say its developers.

Once complete, the project will deliver nearly 4,000 new homes, more than two acres of urban park space, 85,000 square metres of office space, two childcare centres, 4,700 square metres of retail space and a six-acre deck that is extended over the rail yard.

It is the deck that will likely get the most immediate attention, described as a “feat of engineering,” by Jordana Ross, Fengate’s v-p of engineering.

The deck reclaims “underused air rights above a critical piece of rail infrastructure“ and transforming it into a vibrant destination with multiple pathways, urban park space, play areas, cycling paths and attractive building frontages.

Conspicuously absent from the list of features however is parking — there will be no provisions for cars — “but the walkability will be off the charts,” says Ross, adding that the whole idea behind the project is to be transit-oriented.

Connections to GO Transit and the city’s broader transit network are only staps away. Numerous local attractions including the Entertainment District, the Rogers Centre, the CN Tower and Fort York are close by.

As Toronto faces a growing demand for housing, Toronto Rail Yards will deliver thousands of new homes to help address the city’s critical housing needs, and high on the list, says Ross, are the needs of families.

The project will include a mix of housing types and sizes, with a large percentage of the units to include family-sized two- and three-bedroom units.

According to Fengate, the project will be delivered in phases to minimize construction impacts while delivering the project efficiently. Site preparation is anticipated to begin in 2028, with construction on the deck to begin later in the year.

The deck will take approximately three years to complete. The towers and public space will be delivered in phases as deck construction progresses.

In addition, the project will continue to be refined subject to feedback from the city and the community, says Ross.