Ajax Is Changing Again: A 12 Storey Redevelopment Is Coming to Harwood Avenue
If you’ve driven down Harwood Avenue South in Ajax lately, you may have noticed the signs posted at the older plaza near Heron Street. What looks like just another aging commercial plaza today could soon become one of the next major redevelopment projects reshaping South Ajax.
The proposal includes a 12 storey mixed use building alongside a separate 5 storey seniors residence. Together, the project would bring more than 200 residential units to the area, plus new commercial space at street level. The current plaza would eventually be demolished to make way for the development.
This is another clear sign that Durham Region’s growth is no longer just happening in places like Pickering City Centre or downtown Whitby. South Ajax is quietly beginning to transform too.
For years, many of these plazas along Harwood Avenue were built for a completely different version of Ajax. Large parking lots, low rise commercial buildings, and car focused layouts made sense decades ago when the town was smaller and less connected. Today, municipalities are under pressure to increase housing supply, create more density near transit, and make better use of existing infrastructure.
That pressure is now showing up in very visible ways.
What makes this proposal particularly interesting is the combination of traditional residential units alongside a seniors focused building. Durham Region is dealing with growth from multiple directions at once. Young buyers are struggling to enter the market while the aging population is also increasing demand for downsized and accessible housing options. Projects like this attempt to address both.
There will absolutely be debate around it.
Residents are already questioning traffic impacts, parking availability, building height, and what happens to the existing businesses in the plaza. That conversation is becoming increasingly common across Durham Region as older commercial lands become targets for intensification. Some people see growth and opportunity. Others feel like the character of their community is slowly disappearing.
The reality is probably somewhere in the middle.
Ajax is changing because it has to. Durham Region continues to grow rapidly, and municipalities are being pushed to accommodate housing targets from the province. Areas close to Highway 401, transit routes, shopping, and existing services are naturally becoming the focus for redevelopment applications.
This likely will not be the last project of its kind along Harwood.
One thing many people do not realize is that these types of developments also tend to influence surrounding property values and future investment patterns. As density increases, so does demand for nearby retail, infrastructure improvements, transit upgrades, and walkability. That can completely reshape how certain neighbourhoods function over the next decade.
For longtime Ajax residents, it can feel strange watching familiar plazas and low rise corners slowly disappear. For newer buyers and investors, it may look like the beginning of a more urban version of Durham Region emerging right in front of us.
Either way, projects like this are becoming impossible to ignore.
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