Sidewalk Labs’ bid to build a smart city hub in Toronto may soon be a reality

Google parent company Alphabet Inc.’s plan to build a smart city on Toronto’s waterfront may soon see the light of day.

As reported by The Wall Street Journal, Sidewalk Labs LLC, a subsidiary of Alphabet, is nearing a deal with the Canadian city to develop a 12-acre section of the eastern waterfront into a digital downtown.

The board of Waterfront Toronto, the agency overseeing the Quayside project, as it’s called, is expected to vote at a meeting on October 20 whether to approve the agency’s recommendation to partner with Sidewalk Labs resulting from a competitive bid process after a request for proposals was launched in May, according to the Toronto Star.

Quayside, whose website envisions the district as “an exemplary waterfront community that achieves precedent-setting standards of sustainability, resiliency, innovation, inclusivity and design excellence,” is an attractive site for Sidewalk, which has been searching for a home for over a year.

The real draw, however, may be an adjacent section of 750 acres that has been designated for “future revitalization,” according to the Journal, where Sidewalk hopes to develop an even bigger district.

Still, there are many details that need ironing out, including the question of who would be funding the project that is estimated to cost over $1 billion, as well as securing approvals from various government officials. Read more here.

Via: The Wall Street Journal