Michael Lewis
Special to Ontario Construction News
Toronto’s Housing and Planning Committee has endorsed proposals that could change the face of neighborhoods across the city.
The committee on January 23 approved Official Plan and zoning bylaw amendments to permit buildings in Ward 23 Scarborough North with increased heights and up to six dwelling units, clearing the way for larger multiplexes city wide.
Toronto City Council is to vote on the proposal at its Feb. 5 meeting.
In the wake of the city’s decision in 2023 to legalize multiplexes with up to four units, the six-unit pilot project encourages low-rise, multi-unit developments in residential areas to address Toronto’s affordable housing shortage.
Six-unit multiplex approvals are also needed to unlock hundreds of millions in support from Ottawa’s Housing Accelerator Fund that would lead to the construction of nearly 12,000 affordable homes.
The expansion of housing options in Ward 23 would be a “significant step towards permitting fiveplexes and sixplexes across the city,” said Ward 23 Coun. Jamaal Myers, who had asked planning staff to prepare the Ward 23 Multiplex Study considered by the Housing Committee.
City staff said 16 residential development applications in the ward would be approved as a result of amendments permitting as-of-right zoning for six-unit multiplexes. Non-profit groups building affordable housing would automatically qualify for development charge relief.
Toronto’s chief planner Jason Thorne in a report said Scarborough North is facing a population decline that “limits the support” for local retail and services, suggesting that the expanded multiplex permissions could help address the challenge.
The report says a city-wide sixplex study is to be submitted to council by the fourth quarter.
According to the report, more than 60 per cent of residential lots in Ward 23 can accommodate larger multiplexes, with water, sewer and other infrastructure in place to handle additional units.
And “multiplexes match the demographics” in Scarborough North, where Coun. Myers said about 14 per cent of all households are made up of multi-generational families.
The sixplex plan has drawn enthusiastic support from builders, but a survey at a public meeting in October attended by more than 100 residents found less than half were in favour of the proposed changes.
It’s a response to increasing densification evident in community feedback to another initiative that would allow taller, mid-rise residential building as of right along avenues — which Thorne defined as major streets with frequent transit where green space would not be destroyed.
Also to be considered by the full council on Feb. 5., the proposal saw push back during consultations with ratepayers’ from Toronto districts including Swansea and Six Points in the west end.
Representatives who appeared before the Housing Committee said the avenues plan threatens the quality of life in their neighborhoods.
Ward 2 Etobicoke Centre Coun. Stephen Holyday said the proposal means homeowners could wake up to find a tall apartment building being constructed next to their single-family dwelling.
Planning and Housing Committee chair, Ward 4 Parkdale-High Park Coun. Gord Perks said the proposal is the first phase of a four-step process that will see zoning changes made to specific streets and discussed with affected communities over the months ahead.
The committee approved the staff recommendations without amendments to carry an Official Plan and zoning bylaw amendment to “implement the intent of the new avenues vision.”
The recommendations also introduce mapping changes to add 283 km. of new avenues, an increase of approximately 165 per cent from thoroughfares currently so designated. More growth is to be directed near subway, light rail transit, and GO transit stations.
The recommendations said applicants should consult with small businesses, community service providers, and the local community when proposing developments.
Staff, meanwhile, should begin the work of redesignating and rezoning lands along avenues.
The avenues policy follows an October 29 letter from Mayor Olivia Chow to members of the Housing Committee that called mid-rise buildings on avenues “an important strategy for unlocking more housing quickly. Toronto’s avenues are in highly liveable areas. They are near transit, employment areas, schools, parks, grocery stores, and other amenities and services.”
She advocated for widespread as-of-right zoning so that developers could build within specified height limits without needing a rezoning application.
Chow proposed recommendations adopted by the committee that update mid-rise design guidelines to allow taller and denser residential buildings along the avenues.
“While this work must happen quickly,” Mayor Chow wrote, “it must also be done with care. I asked staff about increasing the density immediately, but it needs to be more than just assigning new as-of-right heights arbitrarily.”