The Public GalleryToronto

Toronto City Council · 2026-07-29 · 2026.TE34.33

housing

137-149 Church Street and 18-20 Dalhousie Street zoning amendment; 61-storey tower approved with reduced setback

City Council approved a zoning amendment to allow a tower to increase from 54 to 61 storeys (201.5 metres) and reduce its setback from the south property line from 10 to 6.5 metres. The existing heritage building at 147 Church Street will be conserved. Residents of the adjacent 77 Howard Street building objected to facade retention construction impacts; one resident also reported a notification error that may have limited public participation.

not yet heardToronto City Council · Wed, Jul 29

From the floor

I could not imagine being a resident of 77 Howard Street listening as giant steel beams are bolted to my wall. So I would assume that having talked with residents of 77 Howard Street, they're not particularly enthused about it.A resident
I don't think this condo is in any way beneficial to either the condo market or the residents of Howard Street because there's already a condo that's empty that people could live in. And I'm sure 77 Howard residents don't need giant steel beams bolted to the exterior of their building for several years at a time.A resident
The notice posted in our lobby did not identify TE34.35, the application affecting our own building. It directed residents to a different agenda item on a different subject, TE34.58.A resident
Whatever the intention the effect was the same. It became harder for residents to participate on the very day their participation mattered most.A resident

Also in this item

Resident reported that building notification directed affected neighbours to wrong agenda item, and unit inspections scheduled same day as public hearing, reducing resident participation opportunity.

The journey

Wed, Jul 29 · Toronto City Council · not yet heard

Decision

Zoning by-law amendment approved to permit 61-storey tower (201.5 metres including mechanical penthouse), reduced from 54 storeys; setback reduced from 10 metres to 6.5 metres on the south property line; heritage building at 147 Church Street to be conserved and integrated into base building.

On video

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Why is this story here?
ContainedThe decision permits a single site to increase in height and density. While a tower of this scale is substantial in absolute terms, the zoning change is bounded to one property and would be reversible by a future council through a new zoning by-law amendment, though at political cost. It does not constrain what future councils can do on other sites or systemically.Touches a narrow groupThe decision affects the immediate neighbourhood and specifically residents of 77 Howard Street (facade retention construction), plus purchasers of units in the new tower. This is a small, geographically specific group. Most Toronto residents will not experience the effect of this zoning change in an ordinary week.

Stories are ordered by how much weight a decision carries and how directly it reaches daily life. They rise as a decision date approaches and fall as they age.

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Official title: 137-149 Church Street and 18-20 Dalhousie Street Zoning By-law Amendment Application - Decision Report - Approval · meeting video