Item - 2015.TE7.60

The Toronto and East York Community Council recommends that:

1.  City Council adopt the Bathurst Quay Neighbourhood Plan Preliminary Directions listed in Attachment 1 to the report (June 9, 2015) from the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District to guide the ongoing development of the Bathurst Quay Neighbourhood Plan.

2.  City Council request the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District to refine Concept 3, described in the report (June 9, 2015) from the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District, as a starting point to develop a more detailed Neighbourhood Plan for Bathurst Quay and that the Neighbourhood Plan refinements include:

a.  retaining the school, community centre and day care on Bathurst Quay with opportunities to expand and provide outdoor space to serve these facilities; and

b.  accommodating a possible future aquatic facility in the neighbourhood.

3.  City Council request the Director Community Planning, Toronto and East York District as part of the refinement of the Neighbourhood Plan to further investigate the following, in consultation with the appropriate City Divisions:

a.  opportunities to manage parking and traffic in locations off-site so as not to funnel all traffic on to Eireann Quay;

b.  preliminary costing of the proposals and proposed infrastructure improvements;

c.  a Phasing Plan to implement the Neighbourhood Plan over time;

d.  options to improve the intersections of:  Bathurst Street and Lake Shore Boulevard West; Stadium Road and Lake Shore Boulevard West; Bathurst Street and Queens Quay West; and Lake Shore Boulevard West and Dan Leckie Way; and

e.  the feasibility of closing all or part of Fleet Street between Bathurst Street and Bastion Street to vehicular traffic.

4.  City Council request the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District to work with the Ward Councillor and Build Toronto to refine proposals for the Canada Malting Silos site and a process to identify potential public and private sector partners for the site’s revitalization.

5.  City Council request the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District in consultation with the Ward Councillor, the local community and other stakeholders and appropriate City Staff to identify interim or temporary uses on and around the Canada Malting Silos site to animate the area on an interim basis.

6.  City Council request the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District and other appropriate City divisions to work with the Ward Councillor to identify quick starts that can be initiated to address existing operational challenges in the neighbourhood.

7.  City Council request the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District to conduct further consultation with the community and other stakeholders and report back in the fourth quarter of 2015 on policy changes and other necessary actions to support the Bathurst Quay Neighbourhood Plan.

a.  the needs of the community centre and schools joint facility for parking, loading, drop-off, and accessible loading;
 

b.  an audit of pedestrian and traffic patterns serving the joint facility; and
 

c.  a review of pedestrian safety around the joint facility based on the City of Toronto's School Zone Safety Strategy.

This report presents an update on the status of the Bathurst Quay Neighbourhood Plan Study for the Bathurst Quay neighbourhood situated in the Central Waterfront west of Spadina Avenue.  It summarizes the work completed to date including:

- an overview of existing conditions and the policy framework;

- a summary of the extensive community and other stakeholder consultations;

- an overview of the consultants' work on the Neighbourhood Plan and preliminary concepts developed for the area;

- preliminary directions for the long term planning of the neighbourhood;

- next steps; and

- identifying more immediate actions that can be taken to improve the neighbourhood.

Bathurst Quay is an established neighbourhood built over the last thirty years, comprised mainly of apartment buildings and townhouses, with limited retail or service uses.  There are a range of housing options in the neighbourhood including rental, cooperative, condominium, and Toronto Community Housing buildings.  The community services and facilities include:  two co-located public schools, the Waterfront School and City School, the Harbourfront Community Centre and St. Stephen's Child Care Centre all situated on the east side of Eireann Quay south of Queens Quay West.

Bathurst Quay is a waterfront community rich in heritage, including the Canada Malting Silos site, the Crosse and Blackwell building at the southeast corner of Lake Shore Boulevard West and Bathurst Street and the Tip Top Tailor building on the southwest corner of Lake Shore Boulevard West and Stadium Road.

There are a variety of parks and open spaces in and near the neighbourhood offering a wide array of recreation and cultural experiences for residents and visitors.  These include Little Norway Park, Ireland Park, Stadium Road Park North, Stadium Road Park South, the Music Garden to the east and Coronation Park to the west.

The Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (BBTCA) is located south of the neighbourhood across the Western Channel.  BBTCA is currently the ninth busiest airport in Canada with an annual volume of 2.4 million passengers.  The only access to the airport is via Eireann Quay through the Bathurst Quay community.  City Council requested the Neighbourhood Plan Study as one of the actions arising from the March 2014 report on the requested expansion of BBTCA.

The co-existence of the airport and a liveable complete community immediately adjacent is a key element of this study.  The Planning Study includes an assessment of existing challenges and opportunities within the neighbourhood and the development of a vision to complete the neighbourhood providing the basis for planning policies and for a public realm, transportation and urban design framework, including how to manage change at the BBTCA.  A Neighbourhood Plan will ensure that ongoing groundside airport operations align appropriately with City's policies and objectives for the waterfront.

To assist in undertaking the Study, City Planning retained the services of a consultant team, led by Urban Strategies including experts in planning, urban design, landscape architecture, public realm, transportation, and costing.  As well, to maximize opportunities for community and other stakeholder participation, a comprehensive engagement strategy was developed.  Since initiating the study, staff held two community consultation meetings to seek community input into the study.  This was in addition to numerous focused meetings with residents in each of the buildings within the neighbourhood, business owners, and other key stakeholders within the community, as well as a youth engagement program involving students from the elementary and secondary schools within the neighbourhood and youth from the Harbourfront Community Centre programs.

This report provides an overview of the work completed to date and the findings in relation to preliminary directions and concept plans and a vision for the future of Bathurst Quay.  It also seeks Council's concurrence on a process for the completion of the Study that includes ongoing review and assessment of outstanding issues, further refinement and community and other stakeholder consultation on the preliminary directions and concepts, and a report back to Toronto and East York Community Council to consider a draft Official Plan Amendment and other documents necessary to implement the findings of the Bathurst Quay Neighbourhood Plan Study.