Item - 2021.NY25.8

North York Community Council recommends that:

1. City Council direct the City Solicitor, together with City Planning staff and other appropriate staff to attend the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal hearing to oppose the Zoning By-law Amendment Application in its current form, for the reasons set out in the Report dated May 31, 2021.

2. City Council direct City Planning Staff to continue to work with the applicant to resolve the issues detailed in this report.

3. In the event that the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal approves the application in whole or in part, City Council authorize the City Solicitor to request the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal withhold its Order approving any Zoning By-law Amendment applicable to the subject lands until such time as the City Solicitor confirms that:

a. the final form and content of the draft Zoning By-law Amendment is satisfactory to the City Solicitor, and the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning Division, in consultation with the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services;

b. the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal has received confirmation from the City Solicitor that:

i. the Owner has submitted revised architectural plans and landscaping plans reflecting the proposal, to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning;

ii. the Owner has addressed the comments in the Engineering and Construction Services memo dated July 27, 2020, to the satisfaction of the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services;

iii. the Owner has at his sole expense provided a revised Functional Servicing Report and Stormwater Management Report, Hydrogeological Assessment Review, including the Foundation Drainage Report, all to be satisfactory to the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services, and the General Manager, Toronto Water;

iv. the Owner at its sole expense designed and provided financial securities for any upgrades or required improvements to the existing municipal infrastructure identified in the accepted Functional Servicing Report and Stormwater Management Report, and Hydrogeological Review, including the Foundation Drainage Report, to support the development, all to the satisfaction of the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services and General Manager, Toronto Water, should it be determined that improvements or upgrades are required to support the development, according to the accepted Functional Servicing Report and Stormwater Management Report, Foundation Drainage Report, and Hydrogeological Review, accepted by the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services and the General Manager, Toronto Water;

v.  should it be deemed necessary by the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services, the by-laws require the owner, at no cost to the City, prior to the issuance of any above grade permit for all or any part of the site, including any conditional above-grade building permit, to design, financially secure, construct, and make operational, any upgrades or required improvements to the existing municipal infrastructure identified in the accepted Functional Servicing Report and Stormwater Management Report, and Hydrogeological Review, including the Foundation Drainage Report, to support the development, all to the satisfaction of the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services, the General Manager, Toronto Water, and the City Solicitor;

vi. the Owner has demonstrated within the revised Servicing drawings that space is provided within the development for installation of maintenance access holes and sampling ports on the private side, as close to the property line as possible, for both the storm and sanitary service connections, in accordance with the Sewers By-law Chapter 681.10;                                                    

vii. the Owner has provided a revised Arborist Report which accurately details the tree preservation plan, to the satisfaction of General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation;

viii. the Owner has submitted an updated complete Toronto Green Standards (TGS) Checklist and Statistics Template; and

ix. all other required plans and reports have been submitted and accepted by relevant City Divisions and external agencies to enable the City to complete the review of the Zoning By-law Amendment application.

This application proposes to amend the Zoning By-law for the property at 2 Valleyanna Drive to permit a three-storey residential addition with a flat roof (9.6 metres). Four new three-bedroom units are proposed and the existing heritage building would be retained and converted into a three bedroom dwelling, and partially incorporated into the proposed building as the 5th unit via a single-storey connection. The proposed units would be three storeys (plus a basement level), and the converted heritage building would comprise two storeys (without a basement level). The proposed gross floor area is 2,096.7m2, which equates to a density of 1.11 FSI.

The applicant appealed the Zoning By-law Amendment application to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) on March 30, 2021. The appeal was made citing Council's failure to make a decision on the application within the timeframe prescribed by the Planning Act. A Case Management Conference has yet to be scheduled.

The proposed development in its current form is not consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement (2020) and does not conform with A Place to Grow: Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (2020), the City's Official Plan and the Townhouse and Low-Rise Apartment Guidelines.

This report recommends that the City Solicitor, together with City Planning staff, and other appropriate City staff, attend the LPAT hearing in opposition to the current proposal. It is also recommended that staff continue to work with the applicant in an attempt to resolve the outstanding issues with the application as outlined in this report.