Item - 2021.TE22.26

The Toronto and East York Community Council:

1. Authorized the parking by-law changes as indicated in Attachment 1 to the Letter (January 12, 2021) from Councillor Bailão.

I am writing to you to request Community Council's support for a motion that is important to the constituents of Ward 9 Davenport.

The City recently installed several Council-approved changes including a new traffic signal at College Street and Dundas Street West and reconfiguration of the traffic flow on College Street North (changing from two way to one way westbound) and St. Helen's Avenue (changing from one way southbound to one way northbound).

At the end of 2020, my office received notice that the sidewalk width on Lumbervale Avenue was widened to bring it up to code and meet the 1.8m municipal requirement as part of a sidewalk and road base reconstruction and paving program. This improvement, coupled with two-way traffic on the street, alternate side as well as being a school bus route to service Saint-Frère-André Catholic Secondary School, will have a significant impact on Lumbervale Avenue, especially on Thursdays due to the current alternate side parking by-law.

After careful consideration, I requested that Transportation Services staff undertake a review of the alternate side parking, considering heavy truck and school bus maneuvers on St. Helen's Avenue, Lumbervale Avenue and College Street North.

Staff recommend rescinding alternate parking on St. Helen's Avenue, Lumbervale Avenue and College Street North to accommodate current needs and increase safety for vulnerable road users. This was communicated in a letter sent to residents by the City of Toronto's Public Consultation Unit on December 11, 2020. 

Transportation Services, the community and my office support making parking permanent on the west side of St. Helen's Avenue, on the north side of Lumbervale Avenue and the south side of College Street North.  This is an opportunity to make these streets safer for people who walk, cycle and drive to access the adjacent schools, underground and surface parking lots, school bus passenger loading areas and homes.  Now is an ideal time to include these changes to be bundled with the larger Council-approved changes in the area.

In order to help provide a safer environment for local residents and school community, I am moving this motion to approve parking changes on St. Helen's Avenue, Lumbervale Avenue and College Street North.