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Metrontario History
The Metrontario Group is a family-owned group of companies whose involvement in the real estate industry dates back to 1946, when it was founded by the late Nathan Silver. While the Group's business began as house building, for the past 40 years it has focused primarily on the development of land for single-family residential purposes, mainly in the area centred around Metropolitan Toronto. In total, the companies comprising The Metrontario Group have been responsible for the development of several thousand acres of land as well as the construction of thousands of residential units including detached homes, townhouses, and high-rise condominiums. In the last 18 years, more than 1,000 condominiums, some 900 single-family homes and townhouses, and over 900 rental apartments have been constructed by The Metrontario Group, either on its own or in joint ventures.
The Metrontario Group has also been involved in development in the United States since 1975. The Group was the majority owner, with local partners, of approximately 800,000 square feet of first class office accommodation known as Troy Place in the suburban Detroit area. The Group also owns land and buildings in Houston, Texas. It owns, or has major joint venture interest in, several shopping centres in central Florida and the Atlanta, Georgia area. The Group is the developer and builder of a golf course residential community west of Orlando, Florida and will shortly complete construction of a 560 unit rental apartment project in the Hunter s Creek area of Orlando.
In 1997, The Metrontario Group began the development of Oak Park, a community in Oakville, Ontario, west of Toronto. Master-plan designed on the basis of the principles of new urbanism. Oak Park will house some ten thousand residents, offer employment opportunities for ten thousand, and feature over one million square feet of retail development and thirty-five acres of parkland. The cost of the development is estimated at over C$800 million over the life of the project. The initial phase of housing, consisting of 230 townhouses, semi-detached and detached units, were offered for sale in October, 1996. More than 500 families already live in Oak Park, and additional phases are under development. Over 250,000 square feet of retail development has already been constructed, and another phase opens later this year.
In addition to Oak Park, this year will see development of the next phase of another 400 acre subdivision also in Oakville, the first phase of a 120 acre community in Burlington, west of Toronto, and the second phase of a 300 acre property in Oshawa, known as the Neighbourhoods of Park Ridge.
The Metrontario Group is the managing partner in the development and construction of a 121 unit condominium loft project known as The Candy Factory situated in an 80 year old downtown Toronto building. This project is unique in the downtown Toronto housing market and has been very well received by the market place. Over 100 families have moved in already, and construction will be fully completed in the second quarter.
Construction has just commenced on Liberty Walk, a joint venture 350 unit townhouse development in north central Toronto. Projects in the planning stages include high density residential in a northern suburb of Toronto; high density redevelopment in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto; residential development in Houston, Texas, and shopping centres in two suburbs of Toronto.
This description is a small sampling of some of the current and past projects that The Metrontario Group is carrying out, and has carried out. We hope you find this helpful and informative.