Planning and Housing Committee

The full agenda, as filed

All 8 items in the clerk’s order. Each carries the city’s own words: the staff recommendation, what the body decided, and its status. Nothing below is written by us.

• PH20.1amended

  Election of Vice Chair - Planning and Housing Committee

  Election of the Vice Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee under Municipal Code Chapter 27, Council Procedures, Appendix A-2, for a term of office starting January 19, 2021 and ending November 14, 2022.

  The Planning and Housing Committee: 1. Elected Councillor Paula Fletcher as Vice Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee for a term of office starting January 19, 2021 and ending November 14, 2022.

• PH20.2amended

  City Planning Division - Study Work Program Update

  This report provides the City Planning Division's annual update on its Study Work Program. It outlines the Division's 58 completions and approvals in 2020, highlighting a remarkable variety of city building work. The report also provides a forecast for the Division's 2021 Study Work Program. Although this past year has not been business as usual given COVID-19 impacts, the collaborative effort with divisions across the Toronto Public Service, external agencies and community partners enabled City Planning to advance studies and initiatives in support of the City's 2019 Corporate Strategic Plan and its four Strategic Priorities on affordable housing, mobility, quality of life, and climate change and resiliency. These include affordable housing policy and programs, such as inclusionary zoning and Housing Now; new planning frameworks to guide longer term investment and growth, for example, the Golden Mile and Keele Finch Plus secondary plans; zoning initiatives including expanding permissions for outdoor patios to support bars and restaurants as part of Toronto's recovery efforts; environmental initiatives such as the Ravine Implementation Strategy; and guidelines, including the Retail Design Manual, to influence better design and development outcomes across the city. Looking ahead, the 2021 Study Work Program reflects Council's direction and the Division's commitment to advancing a suite of activities in response to Toronto's recovery and rebuild efforts. This includes: - responding to affordable housing challenges with recommendations on Inclusionary Zoning, Housing Now sites, Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods and support for Phase 2 of the Modular Housing Initiative; - enhancing opportunities for place-making, growth-supported investment and social equity in all areas of Toronto, by bringing forward reports on various studies including the Mount Dennis Planning Framework Study, the Jane Finch Initiative, Little Jamaica Phase 1, the King-Parliament Secondary Plan Review, Bloor West Village Heritage Conservation District Study, the Christie's Planning Study and the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus Secondary Plan; - delivering environment-focussed tools, such as an update to the Toronto Green Standard, to further advance sustainable site and building design and city-building resiliency practices; - providing key research and analytics, such as the Right-Sizing Housing Bulletin and Toronto Employment Survey and Development Pipeline findings, to support evidence-based recommendations to City Council on policy and programs; - modernizing regulatory tools, including zoning for multi-tenant housing, to support the objective of 'building back better' in all areas of the city; and - moving forward on addressing the various provincial legislative and regulatory requirements including the Official Plan Municipal Comprehensive Review and the Community Benefits Charge. This report also responds to City Council's June 2020 request on what new planning strategies and frameworks should be incorporated into the City's planning processes so the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are considered in all future planning for the City of Toronto. This report emphasizes "a complete community lens" as a useful framing device for understanding the existing challenges, service gaps and disparities that vary across Toronto's neighbourhoods, which COVID-19 has further magnified. By applying a complete community lens, the City and its partners can more fully understand how proposed plans, policies and actions are responding to existing gaps and stimulating positive opportunities in local communities. Ultimately, planning strategies and frameworks that adopt a complete community approach can be an effective at integrating various objectives and actions into cohesive and coherent plans through which government, non-government organizations, community groups and private-sector development partners can drive positive population-serving outcomes.

  The Planning and Housing Committee: 1. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, to prepare a budget briefing note to the Budget Committee presenting the backlog of planning and heritage report requests and the necessary resources that would be required from the appropriate Reserve Fund, to address the backlog of planning and heritage report requests and provide scenarios for completing the backlog of requests within 3 years and within 5 years. 2. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to provide a briefing note to the Budget Committee on current, planned, and 2020 budgeted staffing levels, including all Council approved positions for special projects such as Housing Now. 3. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to initiate the focussed review of the North York Secondary Plan and provide recommendations as an outcome of this work on maximum densities that may be included in the Secondary Plan; and that the work program for this study be undertaken in consultation with the ward councillor.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  The Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning recommends that: 1. Planning and Housing Committee receive this report for information.

• PH20.3adopted

  Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods - Beaches-East York Pilot Project

  The City of Toronto is working on a range of initiatives to facilitate more housing in residential neighbourhoods through the Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods (EHON) initiative. The City is working to expand opportunities for "missing middle" housing forms in Toronto, ranging from duplexes to low-rise walk-up apartments. This initiative builds on recent work in support of secondary and laneway suites, Inclusionary Zoning and dwelling room protections. Enabling more options for housing that can be built in the city's neighbourhoods is one part of the Housing Action Plan to increase housing choice and access for current and future residents of Toronto. The Beaches-East York Pilot Project is one element of the Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods (EHON) work program. The Pilot Project will review appropriate City-owned sites in Beaches-East York and work with the community and development industry to build "missing middle" demonstration projects that could be used as models for missing middle projects on other sites, both publicly and privately owned, within the City. The Beaches-East York Pilot Project will assess the feasibility of building missing middle, ranging from duplexes to low-rise walk-up apartments, on selected City-owned sites that are designated Neighbourhoods in the City's Official Plan.

  The Planning and Housing Committee: 1. Endorsed the contents of the report (January 5, 2021) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning as the basis for consultation with the public, development industry, and other stakeholders. 2. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to work with Real Estate Services, CreateTO, and the Housing Secretariat, in consultation with the local Councillor, to facilitate, through an appropriate development procurement process, the design and construction of demonstration projects, as part of the Beaches-East York Pilot Project.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  The Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning recommends that: 1. Planning and Housing Committee endorse the contents of this report as the basis for consultation with the public, development industry, and other stakeholders; 2. Planning and Housing Committee request that the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning work with Real Estate Services, CreateTO, and the Housing Secretariat, in consultation with the local Councillor, to facilitate, through an appropriate development procurement process, the design and construction of demonstration projects, as part of the Beaches-East York Pilot Project.

• PH20.4adopted

  Proposed Review of Parking Requirements for New Development

  This report responds to a request from Planning and Housing Committee for information related to parking requirements for new developments. The City establishes its parking requirements for new development in zoning by-laws. A review of these requirements is timely. The last review of these standards concluded in 2013. The City's Official Plan vision is about creating an attractive and safe city that evokes pride, passion and a sense of belonging - a city where people of all ages and abilities can enjoy a good quality of life. The Plan emphasizes the importance of getting the basics right, including embracing sustainability and creating compact complete communities served by streets made for walking and by an attractive transit system. This vision is supported by policies aimed at reducing auto-dependence and limiting the amount of land occupied by automobile parking. Among other things, these policies direct parking underground and support the use of parking maximums in some areas. The City-wide Zoning By-law 569-2013 parking requirements are complex. There are requirements identified for nearly 90 different uses which may also vary in different parts of the City. The City's current requirements for automobile parking in new development are variable across the City and may be too high in some areas; of recent applications, a significant proportion have been approved with parking levels below the zoning by-law minimums. The demand for parking is shifting as a result of societal changes and other factors. Decreases in automobile ownership and increases in the popularity of automobile alternatives have influenced parking demand in many new developments. Ongoing significant investments in transit infrastructure are intended to provide travel choices to more people and reduce demand for automobile-based travel. Removing minimum automobile parking requirements from and increasing the use of maximum automobile parking requirements in zoning by-laws would also reduce the risk of a future oversupply of automobile parking. Increasing the supply of affordable housing is a Council priority. A common comment from affordable housing advocates and the development industry has been that parking minimums increase the cost of housing, by adding to construction costs which may in turn be passed on to residents. The ability to avoid the cost of parking by choosing housing without parking is limited by the existence of minimum parking requirements. Some of Council's recent decisions recognize that the current automobile parking standards represent a barrier to the City achieving its housing vision. This report expands on the justification for a review of the City's parking requirements and proposes an approach for reviewing them.

  The Planning and Housing Committee: 1. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning conduct a review of the parking requirements in the Zoning By-law 569-2013 consistent with the approach described in the report (January 5, 2021) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, in consultation with the General Manager, Transportation Services, the Acting President, Toronto Parking Authority and other staff as appropriate. 2. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning undertake public and stakeholder consultations on the City's parking requirements and report back to Planning and Housing Committee with the results of the consultations and emerging recommendations on changes to the Zoning By-law 569-2013 in the fourth Quarter of 2021.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  The Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning recommends that: 1. Planning and Housing Committee request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning conduct a review of the parking requirements in the Zoning By-law 569-2013 consistent with the approach described in this report, in consultation with the General Manager, Transportation Services, the Acting President, Toronto Parking Authority and other staff as appropriate. 2. Planning and Housing Committee request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning undertake public and stakeholder consultations on the City's parking requirements and report back to Planning and Housing Committee with the results of the consultations and emerging recommendations on changes to the Zoning By-law 569-2013 in Q4 2021.

• PH20.5adopted

  Requesting a Secondary Plan West of the Downtown Core

  Communities located west of the downtown core in Toronto are experiencing significant growth related pressures. Numerous developments of unprecedented scale for these communities are being proposed in light of policy directions originating with the provincial government around Major Transit Station Areas and the City's current Municipal Comprehensive Review process. The City of Toronto is planning to accommodate over 650,000 additional residents in our city by 2051 as required by the Provincial Growth Plan. We need to be proactive about preparing for this growth. This includes working with community members to ensure that we create complete communities that include employment uses, the provision of affordable housing and address population density issues as well as ensuring that they are well served by transit and that they are connected to the services and amenities we need in our daily lives. Furthermore, with the amount of change that is forecast to occur, it is important to plan at multiple scales and I believe this secondary plan will respond to the needs of this diverse and yet distinct part of our City.

  The Planning and Housing Committee: 1. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to initiate a Secondary Plan planning process along Bloor Street West, west of Bathurst Street, the exact study boundaries to be determined in consultation with the affected local Councillors. The findings from this local area study will be used to inform the delineation of Major Transit Station Areas, as part of the ongoing Municipal Comprehensive Review.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  Councillor Ana Bailão recommended to the Planning and Housing Committee that: 1. The Planning and Housing Committee request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to initiate a Secondary Plan planning process along Bloor Street West, west of Bathurst Street, the exact study boundaries to be determined in consultation with the affected local Councillors. The findings from this local area study will be used to inform the delineation of Major Transit Station Areas, as part of the ongoing Municipal Comprehensive Review.

• PH20.6amended

  Committee of Adjustment Changes to Improve Tenant Participation

  I believe that tenant participation is critical for good City planning and public process. This motion aims to build on MM27.27 and PH16.4, both dealing with the Committee of Adjustment, by addressing barriers to tenant participation. If a resident lives in an apartment building that is the subject of an application to the Committee of Adjustment, they will not receive direct notice of the hearing from the City, whereas property owners up to 60m from the site receive this type of notice; regardless whether they live in the community or not. Applicants are required to post signage in a conspicuous location, however the absence of a clearly stated deadline for public comment submission makes these signs less effective participation resources than they could be. For these reasons, I am asking for Planning and Housing Committee's support to look at these Committee of Adjustment changes to improve tenant participation.

  The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that: 1. City Council request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to report back to the Planning and Housing Committee meeting in the second quarter of 2021 on potential improvements to virtual hearings at the Committee of Adjustment with regards to: a. advice on the feasibility of sending notices to all residential mail-boxes within the 60 metre radius from the subject property; b. including a clearly stated deadline for comment submission on posted notices; c. reviewing the feasibility of moving the deadline for public submissions closer to the meeting date, from 5 business days to 3 business days prior to the meeting; and d. reviewing the feasibility of extending the deadline for elected officials, providing a period of 1 business day after the notice deadline to review comments received from community members.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  Councillor Ana Bailão recommends to the Planning and Housing Committee that: 1. City Council request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to report back to the Planning and Housing Committee meeting in the second quarter of 2021 on potential improvements to virtual hearings at the Committee of Adjustment with regards to: a. Advice on the feasibility of sending notices to all residential mail-boxes within the 60m radius from the subject property and b. Including a clearly stated deadline for comment submission on posted notices.

• PH20.7forwarded without recommendation

  Update on Short Term Rental Regulations

  In December 2017, and January 2018, City Council approved regulations for short-term rentals in Toronto. However, the City's zoning bylaw amendments to permit short-term rentals as a use were appealed to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) and so implementation of the regulations was delayed. In January 2019, City Council voted to request Airbnb and other short-term rental platforms to voluntarily abide by rules approved by City Council in 2017 permitting short-term rentals, while they are currently under appeal at the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal. Alas, Council's request went largely unheeded. In November, 2019 the LPAT issued a ruling that dismissed the appeals and upheld City Council's adopted zoning bylaw for short-term rentals and since then City staff have been working to implement the regulations adopted by Council. In February 2019, Council considered a City commissioned report on Toronto's housing market that warned: In the absence of government intervention and action across the housing continuum, Toronto's low- and moderate income households will face a grim housing situation. Unremedied, the housing situation in Toronto will produce consequential challenges for equity, cohesion, and economic prosperity in the city. The report projects worsening conditions among those already severely burdened households, including low-income households; seniors with multiple health conditions and fixed incomes; lone parent families, households receiving social assistance, and immigrants. With concerns about mass residential evictions resulting from the economic crisis caused by the pandemic and changes to provincial regulations, it would be helpful at this time to get an interim update on the short term rental regulations and registration implementation process and for that to address the questions that arise out of concerns in implementing short term rental regulations in other jurisdictions.

  The Planning and Housing Committee submits the item to City Council without recommendations.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  Councillor Paula Fletcher recommends to the Planning and Housing Committee that: 1. The Planning and Housing Committee request the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards to report directly to the February 2, 2021 meeting of City Council with an interim update on the implementation of the City's Short Term Rental regulations and registrations process and include in that answers to the following questions: a. Will Short Term Rental Companies de-list all those properties that have no valid, city-issued permit number attached? b. Will Short Term Rental Companies ensure that only valid city registration numbers are used? c. How will Short Term Rental Companies distinguish between a valid and a made up registration number? d. Will Short Term Rental Companies de-list all properties that currently say "exempt" in their registration field?

• PH20.8amended

  Stopping the Demolition to Protect Ontario’s Heritage at the Dominion Foundry Buildings

  Yesterday, the Province of Ontario deployed a demolition crew to begin razing the four heritage buildings at the provincially owned Dominion Foundry Complex at 153 to 185 Eastern Avenue, also known as Blocks 17 and 26. This site contains the largest concentration of heritage buildings to be preserved within the 80 acre West Don Lands precinct. At the time of writing, there have been no development plans nor community consultation about the future of the Foundry site. The Foundry site was subject to one of three Minister's Zoning Orders (MZOs) last year. The MZO issued on Blocks 17 and 26 permits up to three tall buildings, with no specified unit count. The MZO is entirely silent on matters of heritage and affordable housing, as such there is no evidence from the Government of Ontario that they are committed to these matters. The four buildings on the Foundry site were constructed between 1917 and 1929, and were owned by the Canadian Northern Railway (later, the Canadian National Railways). They were used by the Dominion Wheel and Foundries Company to produce railway equipment. As noted when the properties were added to the City's heritage register in 2004, the four buildings were deemed "historically and architecturally significant as a good example of an industrial enclave in the area adjoining the lower Don River." The province has provided no justification as to why these buildings are required to be demolished to accommodate the development parameters in its MZO. Since before the MZO was issued, there has been no consultation with the community about the future of the Foundry site. As the site is provincially owned, the advice from City staff is that the province is not required to obtain a building permit from the City to proceed with demolition. At the request of the Province, Transportation Services issued a staging permit that would allow the demolition of the four buildings without consulting other divisions and my office first. I have requested to the Manager, Transportation Services, that the staging permit be revoked. By its own heritage policies outlined in Standards and Guidelines for Conservation of Provincial Heritage Properties (2010), the Province of Ontario is required to "consider removal or demolition as a last resort, subject to heritage impact assessment and public engagement. Use best efforts to mitigate loss of cultural heritage value." Per this document, the Government of Ontario must carry out a Strategic Conservation Plan and Heritage Impact Assessment with public engagement before undertaking any removal or demolition of the provincial heritage buildings. The Chief Planner and Executive Director has submitted a letter to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Infrastructure requesting confirmation to this effect. There are many other issues that require more information as well, including the potential presence of an endangered bat species that the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks noted in a permit they issued to Infrastructure Ontario on December 30, 2020 that was discovered by a local resident. Residents have also raised concern about potential contaminants on site, as well as trees that may be lost without any apparent accounting or replacement plan by the Province. The action the Province is taking is more than just the potential loss of four buildings in the West Don Lands. The MZOs that were sprung on the City last year--part of more than an unprecedented three dozen MZOs that were issued by the province in 2020--are part of a pattern. That pattern shows a disinterest by the Province in engaging with local planning, local decision-makers, and critically, local residents. The MZOs are not just threatening heritage buildings, they are also threatening the provincially significant wetlands in the GTA, in many cases without any consultation with local residents and stakeholders. It is prudent for the Government of Ontario to carefully consider their response to Toronto's Chief Planner. At minimum, any plans to demolish the Foundry Buildings must be stopped. Any further disregard of their own heritage policies represent an irreversible mistake and a willful attack on the heritage and cultural identity of our province and city. It is also prudent that the Province be transparent about what its future plans are for the site, including how it came to the numbers contained in the MZO for Blocks 17 and 26. There are too many unanswered questions, and a full accounting is necessary to ensure that the Province is working in good faith with the City and the West Don Lands and Corktown community.

  The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that: 1. City Council request the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and the Minister of Infrastructure to immediately halt any demolition or construction work at 153-185 Eastern Avenue for a minimum of 30 days and to provide the following for the City to comment on and review: a. Cultural Heritage Evaluation; b. Archaeological Assessment; c. Heritage Impact Assessment; d. Strategic Conservation Plan; e. Environmental Site Assessment; and f. Any other studies done with relation to 153-185 Eastern Avenue. 2. City Council request the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and the Minister of Infrastructure to immediately engage and consult with residents about the future of 153-185 Eastern Avenue. 3. In the event that the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning is unable to report on the studies referred to in the letter of January 19, 2021 to the Chief Planner from the Assistant Deputy Minister, Housing Division, Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and confirm that the Province will cease demolition until reviews of such studies have been completed, City Council direct the City Solicitor and appropriate City Staff to seek an immediate injunction on any work to demolish the buildings located at 153-185 Eastern Avenue until such time that a Strategic Conservation Plan and required public engagement can be undertaken, and until any other obligations that the Province may be required to fulfill by law or contract have been fulfilled. 4. City Council immediately send a copy of this item to the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and the Minister of Infrastructure.

  Staff recommendation as filed

  Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam recommends that: 1. City Council request the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and the Minister of Infrastructure to immediately halt any demolition or construction work at 153-185 Eastern Avenue for a minimum of 30 days and to provide the following for the City to comment on and review: a. Cultural Heritage Evaluation; b. Archaeological Assessment; c. Heritage Impact Assessment; d. Strategic Conservation Plan; e. Environmental Site Assessment; and f. Any other studies done with relation to 153-185 Eastern Avenue. 2. City Council request the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and the Minister of Infrastructure to immediately engage and consult with residents about the future of 153-185 Eastern Avenue. 3. The Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, request the Province to provide to him the studies referred to in the letter of January 19, 2021 to him from the Assistant Deputy Minister, Housing Division, Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, for the purpose of review by City staff and third party review as may be necessary, and confirmation from the Province that demolition will cease until such reviews have been completed, failing the receipt of such studies and confirmation from the Province, City Council direct the City Solicitor and appropriate City Staff to seek an immediate injunction on any work to demolish the buildings located at 153-185 Eastern Avenue until such time that a Strategic Conservation Plan and required public engagement can be undertaken, and until any other obligations that the Province may be required to fulfill by law or contract have been fulfilled. 4. Planning and Housing Committee request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, the Senior Manager, Heritage Preservation Services, the General Manager, Transportation Services and the City Solicitor to report to the February 2, 2021 meeting of City Council with the information and recommendations for the following: a. Historic agreements and restrictive covenants between the Province, City, Toronto Region Conservation Authority and any others on properties at 153-185 Eastern Avenue; b. Requirements under the Standards and Guidelines for Conservation of Provincial Heritage Properties (2010) or other relevant municipal, provincial or federal policies that would discourage or prevent the demolition of the listed heritage properties at 153-185 Eastern Avenue; c. Revoking the right of way permit that was issued by Transportation Services to facilitate any future demolition on the site; d. Site conditions, including potential asbestos and soil contamination, species-at-risk and trees on-site; and e. Any actions the City could take to halt or delay the demolition of the buildings at 153-185 Eastern Avenue. 5. The Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, request the Province to provide to him information as to who the identified development proponent is for 153-185 Eastern Ave; the number of affordable and market housing units being proposed; and any draft concept/development plans that were used to help prepare the Minister's Zoning Order (O. Reg 595/20) that was issued on October 22, 2020. In addition, pre-consultation meetings between the development proponent and the City are to commence immediately, and if necessary, additional meetings with the local Councillor and/or the local community. 6. City Council immediately send a copy of this motion and letter to the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries and the Minister of Infrastructure.