Isabella Street rental demolition and 70-storey tower approved; 38 units replaced but 16 townhouses scrapped

housing

Isabella Street rental demolition and 70-storey tower approved; 38 units replaced but 16 townhouses scrapped

City Council approved demolition of 38 rental units at 164-166 Isabella Street and replacement with a 70-storey tower containing 599 units, including 50 replacement rental units under a Tenant Assistance Plan. The proposal replaces an earlier-approved plan for two towers and 16 townhouses, fundamentally changing the neighbourhood's approved character. Residents including a neighbour who bought expecting the original vision expressed concern about the departure from planning precedent.

not yet heardToronto City Council · Wed, Jul 29

From the floor

“Planning decisions don't just shape buildings, they shape communities. Residents should be able to trust the approval plans won't later become something fundamentally different without a compelling public planning reason.”A resident

“Many residents, myself included, made important life decisions based on the approved vision for the site and to build their lives here. It replaces 16 approved town houses. The tallest building on the street rising about the length of a football field standing upright is proposed.”A resident

“Good planning is measured by not how much density can fit in a site, but whether the final community is better out than the one that was approved.”A resident

Also in this item

• The approved plan for the site (two towers and 16 townhouses) is being replaced by a 70-storey tower; this represents a fundamental change to the neighbourhood approved under a prior application.

• Only 50 replacement rental units are being created to replace 63 total existing rental rooms and units (25 rental rooms at 168 Isabella plus 38 units being demolished), a net loss despite the Tenant Assistance Plan.

The journey

Wed, Jul 8 · Toronto and East York Community Council · adopted

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

Decision

Demolition application and Residential Demolition Permit approved. The replacement includes 50 rental units (12 studios replacing 25 rental rooms at 168 Isabella, and 38 replacement units for the demolished stock), a Tenant Assistance Plan, and Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment concurrently approved permitting the 70-storey, 599-unit development. The 16 approved townhouses in the original plan are eliminated.

On video

Jump to this item in the meeting video

Why is this story here?

Big deal at city hallThis is a hard-to-reverse decision affecting multi-year housing commitments and the control of a major site. The demolition of 38 rental units and replacement of 16 approved townhouses with a 70-storey tower changes the neighborhood's approved character substantially. Undoing the zoning and Official Plan amendments would require a serious political and procedural fight. The Tenant Assistance Plan is a mitigation but does not restore the demolished stock or the townhouse form. A future council would find this neighbourhood transformation locked in.Felt nowResidents living in and around this site feel this directly: tenants of the 38 units face displacement and relocation despite the Tenant Assistance Plan; the Swansea neighbourhood experiences a major change in skyline, density, and street character; neighbours who bought into the approved vision of two towers and townhouses experience a material change to their neighbourhood. The deputation shows this is felt unprompted by affected residents. The effect is present (tenants are being displaced now) not merely anticipated.

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.

Official title: 164-168 Isabella Street - Rental Housing Demolition Application - Decision Report - Approval · meeting video