Addressing Development Pressure at Bloor Street West and Spadina Avenue

Thousands of new residents will potentially be housed at this single intersection. While there are planning studies and frameworks, development guidelines, and policy documents such as the Official Plan and TOCore, the breadth of development that is now anticipated for this area exceeds what was initially expected. While there are height restrictions and building envelope guidelines, coordination of the development proposals and understanding of the cumulative impact of development (human density) to infrastructure is an important piece that needs to be considered. The Bloor-Spadina intersection also holds significance for Indigenous communities. The name Spadina itself originates from Ojibway "Ishpadinaa", "a place on a hill". Immediately to the north of Bloor on Spadina, there are two important Indigenous cultural and housing organizations, Wigwamen Terrace, a seniors housing residence managed by Wigwamen Inc, Ontario's largest Aboriginal urban housing provider as well as Native Canadian Centre of Toronto. Through engagement with Toronto-based Indigenous organizations, the importance of the south east corner in terms of its significance as a gathering space for indigenous people in the city, including those who have recently arrived to Toronto, was highlighted. During the Working Group meetings for the Development Application of 334-350 Bloor, the importance of meaningful Indigenous engagement to inform the redevelopment of the Bloor and Spadina intersection came up as an important element, that both residents, the Applicant, and City Staff felt should be properly pursued in all applications in this area.

City Council request the Chief Planner to initiate Indigenous-led engagement to inform the redevelopments at the Spadina and Bloor intersection.