Item - 2020.PH15.5

The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that:  

1. City Council adopt the updated Growing Up: Planning for Children in New Vertical Communities Urban Design Guidelines, included as Attachment 1 to the report (June 25, 2020) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning. 

2. City Council direct the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, to apply the Growing Up: Planning for Children in New Vertical Communities Urban Design Guidelines in the evaluation of new and under review multi-unit residential development proposals greater than 20 residential units and future city-wide and area-based planning frameworks.

3. City Council request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, to develop a monitoring program for the Growing Up Urban Design Guidelines to track the provision of residential unit types and sizes, and changes to housing occupancy trends of households living in buildings greater than five storeys, and report back to the Planning and Housing Committee every two years.

This report recommends Council's adoption of the updated Growing Up: Planning for Children in New Vertical Communities Urban Design Guidelines ("the Guidelines"). The Guidelines are a result of a two-year study and two-year period of implementation and monitoring, focused on how new mid-rise and tall buildings can be developed as vertical communities to support social interaction and better accommodate the needs of all households, including those with children.

Toronto is increasingly a vertical city as 94 percent of all new residential units are contained within mid-rise and tall buildings. A single tall building today may contain more units and a higher population than some of the subdivisions and neighbourhoods that formed Toronto in the 19th and 20th centuries. Planning for these buildings must be intentional about how they function as vertical communities to support a diversity of housing, and contribute to Toronto's liveability in the long-term.

The Guidelines address three scales of development: the neighbourhood, the building, and the unit. The Guidelines speak to the collective responsibility of the City and development industry to address quality of life for children and youth. This includes ensuring the provision of safe streets to support children's independent mobility, parks, schools, community facilities, retail and amenities in addition to a diversity of housing sizes to accommodate larger households, including multi-generational households with seniors.

Since City Council directed staff to apply the draft Guidelines to all new development greater than 20 units in 2017, the City has seen a significant increase in the number of two- and three-bedroom units planned for construction. The Guidelines have informed the review of over 100 new developments, and have contributed to Secondary Plan policies across the city. The Growing Up Guidelines have helped shaped the public conversation about the role of vertical development in delivering complete communities and has positioned Toronto as a global leader among rapidly developing urban centres as they grow 'up'.