SmartStop Self Storage has hit a milestone with its Canadian properties, opening its 50th self-storage facility in the country at 1983 Kipling Ave., in Toronto.

The class-A facility spans five storeys and offers approximately 90,300 square feet of leasable space. As with all of SmartStop’s recent Canadian builds, the building is climate-controlled, includes multiple elevators, interior loading areas and a range of security features.

“The opening of our 50th property in Canada represents a significant milestone for SmartStop and reflects the strength and scale of our Canadian platform,” H. Michael Schwartz, chairman and CEO of SmartStop, said in the announcement. “Canada continues to be a key growth market for us, and this Toronto location exemplifies our focus on delivering institutional-quality facilities in premier urban locations. 

“We are proud to reach this milestone and remain committed to meeting the evolving storage needs of residents and businesses across the country.”

SmartStop and its Canadian operations

The facility is located with direct connectivity to Highway 401, and is to serve customers throughout the region including the communities of Rexdale, Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Woodbridge and North York.

SmartStop says it is the largest owner and operator of self-storage facilities in the Greater Toronto Area.

The company is headquartered in Ladera Ranch, Calif. SmartStop has an owned or managed portfolio of over 460 operating properties in 35 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada, comprising over 270,000 units and more than 35 million rentable square feet. 

SmartStop and its affiliates own or manage 50 operating self-storage properties across four provinces in Canada, which total approximately 43,000 units and 4.3 million rentable square feet. 

Edmonton land acquisition

As the Toronto facility opens, SmartStop and Canadian partner SmartCentres REIT (SRU-UN-T) just announced the acquisition of a 1.75-acre parcel of land in Edmonton for another new facility.

The site is located at 8403 127 Ave. NW., approximately six kilometres north of downtown. The proposed development is to deliver a four-storey building with two elevators and approximately 99,650 net rentable square feet of storage space.

Construction is scheduled to begin in Q2 2027, with a planned soft opening in Q3 2028. When complete, the facility will serve the neighbourhoods of Balwin, Delton, Elmwood Park, Killarney, Calder, Sherbrooke and Westwood.

This development will be SmartStop’s sixth location in the Edmonton metropolitan area.

“This acquisition is a compelling opportunity to expand our presence in a growing, supply-constrained market,” Schwartz said in that announcement, noting the Edmonton area continues to show “strong fundamentals.”

SmartStop and Toronto-based SmartCentres have been partners on many of the Canadian properties since forging their agreement in 2018. SmartCentres develops, owns and operates a diversified portfolio of almost 200 properties across Canada.