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The Strength of the Centre: Downtown Offices and Metropolitan Decentralization Policy in Toronto

Within the context of recent attempts by Toronto to restrict office development in its downtown, the author examines, from several perspectives, the apparent locational conservatism of office activities in the existing core. He begins by arguing that in terms of overall systems efficiency the rationale for the decentralization strategy for Toronto was incomplete and that existing data on the frequencies of face-to-face contact indicated that a substantial increase in the difference between core and suburban rents was necessary to induce a significant removal of office activities from the central area. The subsequent increase in this difference beyond the theoretical level where out-migration should occur suggests the importance of other variables besides those traditionally measured by information linkage studies. Neglected among these factors is the quality of information, reflecting the ability to ‘shop’ among alternative information sources, which in a fundamental sense depends on accessibility. It is suggested that Toronto should not be surprised at increasing resistance to outward movement among the remaining office functions and the consequent higher differences between core and suburban rents, which are necessary to induce decentralization. Finally, through an examination of the origins of demand for suburban office-space in Metropolitan Toronto, the increasing level of resistance to removal by the office functions which remain in the core is shown to be consistent with recent migration trends.