Have you ever dreamed of living in a neighbourhood where everything you need is within a 15-minute walk or bike ride from your home? Where you can access work, school, shopping, health care, recreation, and culture without relying on a car or public transit? Where you can enjoy a vibrant, diverse, and healthy community that supports local businesses and reduces environmental impact?
If so, you are not alone. The concept of a 15-minute neighbourhood, also known as a 15-minute city, has been gaining popularity around the world as a way to make urban living more sustainable, equitable, and enjoyable. The idea is to create neighbourhoods that are compact, mixed-use, and well-connected, where residents can meet most of their daily needs within a short distance from their homes.
The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is one of the most populous and diverse regions in Canada, with over 6 million people living in 25 municipalities. It is also one of the most car-dependent and sprawling regions, with long commutes, high housing costs, and low-density suburbs. The GTA faces many challenges, such as traffic congestion, air pollution, social isolation, and inequality.
The 15-minute neighbourhood can be a solution for the GTA, by transforming it into a more livable, resilient, and prosperous region. The GTA already has some examples of 15-minute neighbourhoods, such as the Distillery District, Kensington Market, and Liberty Village, where residents can enjoy a variety of amenities and services within walking distance. However, there is still a lot of room for improvement, as many neighbourhoods lack the diversity, density, and connectivity that are essential for the 15-minute concept.
To create more 15-minute neighbourhoods in the GTA, some of the actions that can be taken are:
- Increasing the supply and affordability of housing, especially near transit hubs and employment centres, by allowing more diverse and flexible housing types, such as laneway houses, secondary suites, and co-housing.
- Promoting mixed-use development, by encouraging a balance of residential, commercial, and institutional uses in each neighbourhood, and allowing more flexibility and adaptability in zoning and building codes.
- Improving the walkability and bikeability of neighbourhoods, by creating safe, comfortable, and attractive streetscapes, with wide sidewalks, bike lanes, street trees, benches, and public art. Also, by reducing the speed and volume of traffic, and prioritizing pedestrians and cyclists over cars.
- Enhancing the public transit system, by expanding the coverage, frequency, and reliability of buses, streetcars, subways, and light rail, and integrating them with other modes of transportation, such as bike-sharing and car-sharing.
- Supporting local businesses and services, by providing incentives, subsidies, and grants for small and medium enterprises, especially those that cater to the needs and preferences of the local community. Also, by creating more opportunities for local markets, festivals, and events, that showcase the diversity and creativity of each neighbourhood.
- Creating more public spaces and amenities, by investing in parks, playgrounds, community gardens, libraries, community centres, and cultural venues, that provide opportunities for recreation, leisure, and social interaction. Also, by involving residents and stakeholders in the design and management of these spaces, to ensure they reflect the identity and aspirations of each neighbourhood.
The 15-minute neighbourhood is not a one-size-fits-all approach, but a vision that can be adapted and customized to the context and characteristics of each neighbourhood. It is also not a utopian ideal, but a realistic and achievable goal, that requires collaboration and commitment from various actors, such as governments, developers, planners, businesses, and residents.
The 15-minute neighbourhood is a way to make the GTA a better place to live, work, and play, for everyone. It is a way to create more sustainable, equitable, and enjoyable neighbourhoods, that can benefit the health, happiness, and prosperity of the region. It is a way to reimagine and reinvent the GTA, as a region of 15-minute neighbourhoods.
