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Tips from Downsview Airport on transforming underused urban areas into community spaces
The Green Line team visited Downsview Airport to learn how Northcrest Developments and the City of Toronto are revitalizing YZD, turning 370 acres of land into seven sustainable neighbourhoods over the next 30 years.
Map of Downsview Airport and how it separates surrounding neighbourhoods, including Ancaster, Downsview, Bathurst Manor and Clanton Park.
: Paul Zwambag for The Green Line.
Amanda Seraphina James Rajakumar
Indian immigrant with a post-grad in journalism from Centennial College. Now living in Grange Park, meeting new people, and hearing different stories. Has four names, so it’s a pick-your-player situation.
June 27, 2025
How to transform underused urban spaces:
- Form a group of like-minded residents who want to improve the neighbourhood.
- Look for empty spaces, such as unused parking lots, that could be used more efficiently.
- Brainstorm with residents to understand what the neighbourhood needs. It could be more recreational spaces, community centres, gardens, etc.
- Talk to local artists and creatives to come up with innovative ideas.
- Reach out to your local city councillor and the City Planning team to get permission to build. Here’s the City of Toronto’s development guide for the application process, forms and fees.
What if an underused airport could be transformed into more housing and job opportunities?
In Ancaster, dreams of new sustainable neighbourhoods are taking flight through a unique project at Downsview Airport.
Downsview Airport takes different forms through the years in 1929, 1947 and 1992.
: 1929 - De Havilland Airfield/DAIR; 1947 - Royal Canadian Air Force Base/DAIR; 1992 - Bombardier’s testing facility/Kenneth I. Swartz.
YZD, or Downsview Airport, has changed a lot over the years. First established in 1929, it was an airfield for building planes. In 1947, it became a Royal Canadian Air Force Base until 1992, when it became an aircraft testing facility.
Today, the 370-acre site is taking the next step in urban living, transforming underused space into seven new sustainable neighbourhoods.
But it isn’t the first. Underused airports around the world have been revitalized for different uses. In Denver, Colorado, Stapleton International Airport was redeveloped into the Central Park Neighborhood in 2020. The neighbourhood houses over 30,000 residents, but there are rising concerns about traffic congestion.
Map of YZD reimagined into seven sustainable neighbourhoods located next to Ancaster.
: Northcrest Developments.
Mitchell Marcus, executive director of site activation at Northcrest Developments, which is developing Downsview Airport, says the first step will be revitalizing the hangars. "That's going to be quite transformative for the city to kind of get back these extraordinary buildings that are unlike anything else we have in Toronto, and to see them reimagined from spaces of industrial manufacturing to places for people, places for play,” he says.
Marcus adds that sustainability is a key focus for the project. By building sewers and stormwater management systems from the ground up, YZD has the opportunity to build sustainable systems that won’t harm the planet in the long run.
“I think it's more important than ever that we're all thinking about: How do we make better choices for this planet, but also how do we have people living high-quality lives in an environment that's shifting?”
YZD was last owned by aerospace manufacturer Bombardier, which sold the land to the Public Sector Pension Investment Board in 2018. In a press release, Alain Bellemare, president and CEO of Bombardier Inc., said only 10 per cent of the land was used.
The empty land separated the surrounding neighbourhoods, including Ancaster, Downsview, Bathurst Manor and Clanton Park. Because of this, Northcrest Developments is working with the City of Toronto to build better-connected roads and transit systems.
Rendering of The Hangar District in the next five years at YZD in Ancaster.
: Northcrest Developments.
Sarah Phipps, project director of Update Downsview under City Planning, says YZD has a community development plan that sets out a series of actions within eight priority areas, which include engaging with and prioritizing Indigenous, equity-deserving and Black communities in northwest Toronto.
There are also actions about job targets, local hiring, training in those communities in Northwest Toronto, securing community space and who gets access to the city-owned community space, she adds.
The eight priority action areas include:
1. Access to housing
2. Access to healthy and affordable food
3. Arts, heritage and education
4. Access to recreation and community spaces
5. Access to employment opportunities
6. Establishing an inclusive economy
7. Community safety, health and well-being
8. Environment and climate
Over the next 30 years, YZD will house 55,000 Torontonians in low-carbon buildings. It’ll use 74 acres for green space, and turn two kilometres of the runway into a pedestrian street.
Meanwhile, YZD has been inviting locals to visit the space during community gatherings. It's hosted a pop-up skating rink in the winter, as well as a Christmas market with food stalls. In June, it launched a community plaza with parts of a decommissioned aircraft on display.
YZD’s outdoor community plaza, with parts of a decommissioned aircraft on display, hosts a farmers market and live music on Saturdays at 34 Hanover Rd.
: Amanda Seraphina/The Green Line.
Mariela Mantero, a business owner in Ancaster, has set up her food truck for events at YZD and uses the Experience Centre, an immersive public space, to run a Uruguayan folk dance group called Mate Amargo.
Mantero says YZD helped her business flourish, opening it up to new customers in the neighbourhood, as well as existing locals who weren’t aware of the business. She adds that the project will also help ease traffic.
"[YZD will be] cutting shorter the time from here [Ancaster] to Keele and Sheppard; [it will be] half the time. It's going to be amazing. It's going to be less traffic, and we're going to have more movement because people are going to be able to go past the stores and see them.”
Mariela Mantero, a business owner in Ancaster, stands inside YZD’s Experience Centre at 34 Hanover Rd.
: Amanda Seraphina/The Green Line.
The city hopes to introduce the community development plan in more neighbourhoods, including Mount Dennis. As for YZD, the go-ahead for the development of The Hangar District, its first proposed neighbourhood, goes to City Council for a vote in July.
If approved, it’s anticipated that over 2,900 homes, 7,400 job opportunities and over nine acres of parks and open spaces will be created in the next five years.
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