The mid rise challenge : tools for incentivizing private developers

The research paper explores the opportunities and obstacles to mid-rise development in the city of Markham. Mid-rise buildings represent a practical solution to intensification strategies, and changing consumer patterns, which reflects a demand from planning for more human scale development. Despite these benefits, mid-rise developments between three to eight storeys are comparatively rare in the suburban communities of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Through interviews, and an examination of comparative hypothetical development scenarios, it revealed that the costs and risks that continue to discourage the development industry from constructing mid-rise buildings. The results of the study suggest that the attractiveness of mid-rise development can increase with direct financial incentives and minor policy changes