On May 9th, the City of Toronto (the “City”) Planning and Housing Committee (the “Committee”) recommended select changes be made to the City’s Official Plan and Zoning By-law to allow for small-scale apartment buildings (“SSABs”) and townhomes (“THs”) to be built as-of-right on lands located on “Major Streets” and designated as “Neighbourhoods” in the City’s Official Plan. These changes will be brought for approval before City Council on May 22nd.
A draft proposal of these changes was previously contemplated by the Committee last autumn, which we detailed in a previous post. Changes to the previously proposed draft official plan amendment include:
- A new policy provision, which explicitly promotes minor variances to facilitate building setbacks, provided these are necessary for tree preservation.
- The removal of a reference to “areas of transition” between SSABs and the remaining parts of a “Neighbourhood” that are not situated on a Major Street.
The draft zoning bylaw amendment has also undergone several changes. These include an increase in TH heights from 12m to 13m, revised landscaping and lot coverage calculation requirements, and the removal of a requirement for “pick-up and drop-off” areas. The draft bylaw also exempts SSABs and THs from circular driveway and amenity space requirements, provided they remain below 30 units.
In addition, the zoning bylaw changes introduce a new definition for “Primary Window”, which is defined as “a window in a dwelling unit other than a window of a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, hallway, or storage area”. To enhance privacy, light and ventilation, setback distances have been increased in relation to Primary Windows.
No changes were made to the proposed building heights permitted for SSABs, which remain capped at 19m (equivalent to six stories), irrespective of the width of the Major Street on which the SSAB is located. Additionally, not all arterial streets in the City are designated as “Major Streets” within the City’s Official Plan. Consequentially (apart from those parts of neighbourhoods that are in the “Residential Zone (R)”), SSABs and THs remain prohibited on many arterial streets that are not designated as Major Streets.
Notably, however, the Committee requested that staff provide additional information and recommendations for Council’s consideration on May 22nd on two matters. First, the Committee asked staff to investigate the potential to increase the proposed maximum permitted number of dwelling units in SSABs from 30 to 60 units. Second, the Committee asked staff to report on the impact of removing circular driveways on the City’s wheel-trans service, and whether the proposed exemption should be eliminated from the final zoning bylaw amendment.
Davies Howe LLP will continue to monitor changes to Toronto’s Official Plan and Zoning Bylaws. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us.
