I don't love looking at snapshot Census housing data bc construction can be highly variable over the years. That said, Austin has absolutely insane housing construction right now, and all the major TX cities are building like crazy. Nashville and smaller Florida metros are also going crazy.

Chicago is a definite laggard, at least relative to size. And it's amazing how little is u/c in Silicon Valley, ensuring a continuation of extreme housing pricing. The Rust Belt metros tend to have the least construction, which isn't surprising.

Its always amazing how few single family homes get built in the Miami area. South Florida is building fewer than Jacksonville and half as much as New York, which isn't exactly known for churning out single family subdivisions either. Part of the reason the single family home I bought 2 years ago has already increased in price by 70%.
Then again there isn't much of anything getting built in South Florida these days. Fewer single family homes AND fewer multi-family then Provo, Utah for example.

Damn, thats impressive. Make me so jealous that we cant get projects going here short of 4 years from the time of proposal to ground breaking.

Toronto is insane. Every time I visit it looks different.

As a kid, I spent a ton of family time between Detroit and Toronto in the late 80's/early 90's, as we have relatives in the GTA. The skyline has absolutely exploded since then, while the Detroit skyline has barely changed.

The RenCen is so dominant in Detroit, and while the CN Tower and Bay Street office towers still loom large, basically everything else has changed.

skyline-wise, toronto has certainly made the leap to "next level".

it's not so much that it's building so many highrise buildings (it's been doing that for a long time), it's more about the fact that it's now finally building so many truly tall buildings (700+ feet) that has it "rising" to a definitive 2nd/3rd place in north america (spilt the hairs with chicago as you will). NYC is obviously still out in front at #1, especially with the recent-ish super-tall frenzy that has taken hold of the city.


just to attach some numbers to that observation, over the past 3 decades, here are the number of 100M+ towers built in each city (+ U/C) according to the CTBUH database :

toronto: 234 + 38
detroit: 1 + 1

I should have included this one as well, but here is all of Central Toronto

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...0dc3022f_k.jpg
https://urbantoronto.ca/forum/thread....27943/page-15

Even during Covid, I was living at my parents place outside of the city for pretty much all of 2020/2021 until June of this year. Went back to my condo sporadically, but when I started walking around downtown again it was like jumping forward in a time machine where a building that was basically a stump when I left the city was now a 40-storey tower.

Four major office towers are nearing completion with The Well, Bay Adelaide North, CIBC Square Phase 1, and 160 Front continuing ahead during the lockdowns. Doubt we will see another major office development commence over the next few years as the long-term implications of Covid on office space requirements are sorted out. Condo market has rebounded quickly so no doubt we will continue to get our fill of tall, spandrel-filled crap.

Toronto's growth is just wild. Nothing in North America comes close. It's exciting to have a city like that in the great lakes region. Give me that cyberpunk aesthetic!

Detroit's tower construction was in hibernation for awhile lol. But that's okay, the pre-war skyscraper collection is one of the best on earth so it certainly wasn't lacking anything. Luckily though things have changed recently with several high-rises planned or under construction.

in terms of skyline growth, NYC supersedes toronto, particularly at the upper end, but toronto ain't all that far behind.

in the US/canada, since the start of the new millennium, there are 4 cities that have gobbled up the lion's share of new 500 footers (including U/C):

NYC - 130
toronto - 80
miami - 55
chicago - 54

the rest - 199

so those 4 cities alone have combined for 62% of all the new 500 footers in the two nations.

Proportionally it's still not even close though.

yes that's true.

toronto started from an extremely small base of 500 footers (miami would also be in that same category). in 1999, toronto only had 10 such towers. sure, there were a bazillion 20-story commie blocks sprinkled everywhere across the city, but the toronto skyline as a truly sky-piercing affair is mainly a 21st century phenomenon, quite unlike NYC and chicago, the two old school juggernauts (who have still kept pace admirably).

It's sad to think how much more Toronto could have built if not for the NIMBYism that dominates the culture and the policy-making of the city. Looking at those pictures, one can only think of Toronto's unrealized potential due to the anti-high-rise attitudes of its populace. Toronto can be more than a low-rise city if the people and the politicians there were willing to open their minds. They need to allow Toronto to finally become a real city instead of just a glorified suburb.

In it's latest marketing material, the HUB is still planning on Occupancy in 2025 so it would need to start in 2022
https://thehub30bay.com/

https://cdn.skyrisecities.com/sites/...059-126786.jpg
https://www.rsh-p.com/assets/uploads...851_medium.jpg
https://www.rsh-p.com/assets/uploads...061_medium.jpg

They can plan occupancy as much as they want but until they secure an anchor tenant it's smoke and mirrors. Likely they are marketing this as "If you sign a lease before the end of 2021 we can have you in your new landmark tower by 2025".

Its true that 'The Hub' does not yet have a head lessee signed.

However, .......

11 Bay does...........

And there are lots of interested parties buzzing around.

There will likely be several major office towers rising.

Nothing is ever certain, until after it has happened; but I feel confident in that projection.

Wow I didn't even know about this project until you mentioned it.
the renders look tasty

https://cdn.skyrisecities.com/sites/...134-127095.jpg

11 Bay has a tenant? Haven't heard anything out of the Quadreal guys. Depends on if some marquee companies want to spend the money for brand new space. There won't be a shortage of good deals to be had in the traditional financial core as large amounts of space is vacated for the aforementioned projects.

Absolute insanity.

https://urbantoronto.ca/forum/thread...7/post-1719708

Public confirmation should be out by year-end, I think.

There are still some 'i' s to dot and 't' s to cross.

****

They aren't the only big name shopping for space in Toronto either.