The Toronto City Council has approved a major redevelopment of the Cloverdale Mall site in Central Etobicoke, paving the way for a mixed-use community that will introduce more than 5,500 new homes across 10 residential high-rises. The 29.7-acre property will transform the mid-century retail complex into a high-density urban district integrating housing, retail, parks, and community infrastructure.

Originally opened in 1956 as an open-air shopping plaza and later enclosed in the 1970s, Cloverdale has long served as a retail anchor in Etobicoke. The approved master plan introduces buildings ranging from 25 to 41 floors supported by seven- to eight-story podiums and mid-rise buildings arranged around new public spaces. In total, the redevelopment will deliver approximately 371,905 square meters of residential floor area, alongside 17,176 square meters of retail space designed to animate the ground plane and maintain the site’s commercial role.

The plan emphasizes public realm improvements and connectivity, dedicating more than 45 percent of the site to open space, streets, and community infrastructure. Two new public parks totaling more than 3.5 acres will anchor the development along The East Mall, complemented by a network of landscaped trails and pedestrian connections. A green edge along Highway 427 and Dundas Street West will create a landscaped buffer at the perimeter of the site.

Density is concentrated along Highway 427 and Dundas Street West, with building heights stepping down toward surrounding neighborhoods in a strategy described as “gentle urbanization.” The master plan also restructures circulation by introducing a new internal street network aligned with Lynnford Drive and additional mid-block pedestrian routes that break down the large mall parcel into smaller, walkable blocks.

Community facilities are integrated into the phased redevelopment, including a new childcare center with outdoor play space delivered in the first phase and a future community agency space planned for later stages.

Together with a nearby 2.3-acre parcel now solely controlled by the owner, QuadReal, the redevelopment represents a large urban intensification project that reimagines a suburban retail site as a mixed-use, transit-connected residential district at the western gateway to Toronto.

Read more at Urban Toronto.