664 - 680 Yonge Street - Notice of Intention to Designate a Property under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act

Completed in 1883 according to the designs of notable architect Edward James Lennox for the Scottish Ontario and Manitoba Land Company, the properties support the historic main street character of this part of Yonge Street through their consistent low-rise scale, form and massing. The subject properties at 664-680 Yonge Street were listed on the City of Toronto's Inventory of Heritage Properties (now the Heritage Register) on March 15, 1974 and are identified as contributing properties within the Historic Yonge Street Heritage Conservation District Plan (currently under appeal). Staff have completed the Research and Evaluation Report for the properties at 664-680 Yonge Street and determined that the properties meet Ontario Regulation 9/06, the criteria prescribed for municipal designation under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act under design/physical, historical/associative, and contextual values. As such, the properties are significant built heritage resources. In December 2022, the City received Site Plan Control, Official Plan Amendment, and Zoning By-law Amendment applications related to the proposed redevelopment of the properties at 646-664 Yonge Street. The subject properties at 666-680 Yonge Street are not included in the development applications. The redevelopment proposes a 75-storey mixed-use building with 548 dwelling units, comprising approximately 44,065 square metres of residential space and approximately 500 square metres of retail/commercial space, resulting in an overall density of 33.0 FSI (Floor Space Index). The proposal includes the reconstruction of the facades of 646, 654, 656 and 658 Yonge Street, the restoration of the façade at 650 Yonge Street, the demolition of the listed properties at 660-662 Yonge Street, and the retention of the front portion of the 2-1/2-storey building at 664 Yonge Street. A Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) is required for all development applications that affect listed and designated properties and will be considered when determining how a heritage property is to be conserved. An HIA completed by ERA Architects Inc. and dated December 16, 2022, was submitted to support the application. Although technically outside the boundary of the proposed redevelopment, the HIA also included an evaluation of the properties at 666-680 Yonge Street, which form an intact row of properties with 664 Yonge Street. In June 2019, the More Homes, More Choice Act, 2019 (Bill 108) received Royal Assent. Schedule 11 of this Act included amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act. The Bill 108 Amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act came into force on July 1, 2021, which included a shift in Part IV designations related to Planning Act applications that would trigger a Prescribed Event. Section 29(1.2) of the Ontario Heritage Act now restricts City Council's ability to give notice of its intention to designate a property under the Act to within 90 days after the City Clerk gives notice of a complete application. A "Prescribed Event" is a point of time when the application for an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and/or Draft Plan of Subdivision Application has been deemed complete and the City Clerk provides notice of that complete application to the public in accordance with the Planning Act. The City Clerk issued a complete application notice for the Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment on February 17, 2023. The applicant provided a waiver to extend the 90-day timeline established under Bill 108 until August 3, 2023. Council must make a decision at its July 19-21 meeting to provide sufficient time for the City Clerk to issue a notice of intention to designate before the waiver expires. On November 28, 2022, the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022 (Bill 23) received Royal Assent. Schedule 6 of the More Homes Built Faster Act amended the Ontario Heritage Act and came into effect on January 1, 2023. As of January 1, 2023, should a property be subject to an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and/or Draft Plan of Subdivision Application that would trigger a Prescribed Event, the property must be listed in the heritage register prior to the Prescribed Event occurring to designate a property. A property may be designated under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act, if it meets two or more of the nine criteria. The properties at 664-680 Yonge Street meet five criteria relating to design/physical, historical/associative, and contextual values. Designation also enables City Council to review proposed alterations or demolitions to the property and enforce heritage property standards and maintenance.

2. If there are no objections to the designation, City Council authorize the City Solicitor to introduce the Bill in Council designating the property under Part IV, Section 29 of the Ontario Heritage Act.