Item - 2018.TE29.15

The Toronto and East York Community Council recommends that:

1. City Council refuse application 17 164359 STE 20 OZ for an Official Plan Amendment in the area of the rail corridor generally bounded by Bathurst Street to the West, Blue Jays Way to the east, Front Street West to the north and the Northern Linear Park to the south including 433 Front Street West for all of the reasons set out in the report (December 20, 2017) from the Acting Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District including:

a. the application does not conform with the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe;

 
b. the application is not consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement; 

 
c. the application does not conform to the Official Plan including but not limited to policies related to structuring growth, the downtown, the greenspace system, transportation, built form and public realm, parks and open spaces, Utility Corridors, Mixed Use Areas, and Parks and Open Space Areas; 

 
d. the application does not conform to the Railway Lands Central and Railway Lands West Secondary Plans including but not limited to policies related to major objectives, structure form and physical amenity, parks open space and pedestrian systems, transportation and circulation, environment, future development areas and Utility Corridors;

 
e. the application does not address the emerging directions from the TOCore Planning Study; and 

f.  the proposal is inconsistent with the Railway Lands Central and West Urban Design Guidelines and the Tall Building Design Guidelines.

2. City Council authorize the City Solicitor together with City Planning staff and other appropriate staff to appear before the Ontario Municipal Board in support of City Council’s decision to refuse the application, in the event that the application is appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board.

3. City Council authorize the Acting Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District in consultation with the Ward Councillor, to ensure services, facilities and/or matters pursuant to Section 37 of the Planning Act, as may be required by the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, in consultation with the Ward Councillor are secured, should the proposal be approved in some form by the Ontario Municipal Board.

4. In the event this decision is appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board and the Board approves some form of development, City Council authorize the City Solicitor, to request the Ontario Municipal Board to withhold its order to ensure that the amendment contains  policies requiring the use of the holding symbols in association with zoning by-law amendments, precinct plans and agreements, subdivision plans and agreements, environmental reports and agreements and public art plans, prior to the removal of the holding symbol to ensure that adequate servicing and infrastructure to support the proposal will be provided and secured.   

The Official Plan amendment application made by P.I.T.S. proposes to amend the Railway Lands West and Central Secondary Plans to permit a mixed-use development over the rail corridor in the area generally bounded by Bathurst Street to the west, Blue Jays Way to the east, Front Street West to the north, and the Northern Linear Park to the south.  A decking structure is proposed to be constructed over the rail corridor to support the development. The application includes the existing Northern Linear Park that extends along the south side of the rail corridor.

The proposed mix of uses includes residential, commercial, retail, institutional and open space uses as well as a potential Metrolinx RER Station at Spadina Avenue and a co-generation plant.   Overall the development proposes, seven primarily residential buildings ranging in height from 27 to 59 storeys, one 36-storey office building and one 4-storey retail building. The proposed overall gross floor area is 368,100 square metres including 159,800 square metres non-residential and 208,300 square metres of residential floor area.  There are 2,750 dwelling units, 1,225 parking spaces and 3,000 bicycle parking spaces proposed. The application proposed to maintain the rail activities below the decking structure.

The Northern Linear Park is proposed to be regraded with portions paved with driveways to provide access to a two level garage for parking and loading to service the development.  The city-owned Puente du Luz pedestrian bridge is proposed to be removed and the area incorporated into the development. 

The application proposes to construct a deck over the rail corridor between Bathurst Street and Blue Jays Way to support a large scale residential and commercial development over a highly active and critical transportation corridor for the movement people and goods for the city, the Province and the country as a whole.  The site is also situated in an area of the city that has experienced rapid growth over a relatively short period of time with over 20,000 people now living in the Railway Lands neighbourhoods. Areas surrounding the Railway Lands have also undergone significant transformation, and have evolved into densely populated mixed-use communities, and high levels of growth in these areas are expected to continue.  In addition to residents, attractions such as the Rogers Centre and Metro Convention Centre and other tourist facilities such as the CN Tower and Ripley’s Aquarium bring many visitors to the area year round, making this a major destination in the City.

The development proposal raises significant planning concerns in respect to the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS), the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, the Official Plan and Railway Lands Secondary Plans. The policy framework recognizes the downtown as an area that will absorb significant growth while at the same time recognizing the need to provide a full range of hard and soft infrastructure in step with growth to create complete communities.   The PPS recognizes the Official Plan as the most important document to implement the PPS.  The proposal is not consistent with the PPS and does not conform to the Growth Plan as it does not address the objectives of the plans to balance growth and infrastructure and poses potential challenges to sustain major transportation infrastructure with the addition of major buildings above the rail corridor.

It does not conform with City of Toronto Official Plan policies to dispose of existing parkland and deliver a high quality built form and enhanced public realm. 

The proposal does not meet major objectives of the Railway Lands Secondary Plans including those to:

-  reduce the barrier effect of the rail corridor by creating new connections across the rail corridor and protecting views across the corridor north and south to adjacent communities and the waterfront;

-  ensure compatibility with the existing and future rail uses and activities in the rail corridor;

-  create connections to and within the Railway Lands both east/west and north/south; and

-  contribute to an attractive, accessible and safe public realm and parks and publicly accessible open spaces which meet a high standards of urban design.

City staff recommend refusal of the application as it does not meet Provincial and Municipal policies and does not represent good planning.