Item - 2022.NY33.16

North York Community Council recommends that:

1. City Council direct the City Solicitor and appropriate City staff to attend the Ontario Land Tribunal in opposition to the current Application regarding the Zoning By-law Amendment appeal for the lands at 801 York Mills Road and 1855 Leslie Street and to continue discussions with the Applicant in an attempt to resolve outstanding issues.

2. In the event that the Ontario Land Tribunal allows the appeal in whole or in part, City Council authorize the City Solicitor to request the Ontario Land Tribunal to withhold the issuance of any final Order(s) until such time as the Ontario Land Tribunal has been advised by the City Solicitor that:

a. the final form and content of the draft Zoning By-laws are to the satisfaction of the City Solicitor and the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning;

b. where applicable, community benefits and other matters in support of the development, including but not limited to parkland conveyances and pedestrian and vehicular access easements for public use, are to be secured in a Section 37, or other agreement executed by the owner and registered on title to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning and the City Solicitor;

c. the owner has addressed all outstanding issues identified in the Engineering and Construction Services memorandum dated January 17, 2020 or as may be updated in response to further submissions filed by the Applicant, to the satisfaction of the Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services; and

d. the owner has submitted a Travel Demand Management plan to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning and that such matters arising from the accepted Travel Demand Management plan, be secured if required.

3. City Council approve a development charge credit against the Parks and Recreation component of the Development Charges for the design and construction by the owner of the Above Base Park Improvements to the satisfaction of the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation. The development charge credit shall be in an amount that is the lesser of the cost to the owner of designing and constructing the Above Base Park Improvements, as approved by the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation, and the Parks and Recreation component of development charges payable for the development in accordance with the City's Development Charges By-law, as may be amended from time to time.

4. City Council authorize the City Solicitor and City staff to take any necessary steps to implement City Council's decision.

On November 4, 2019, a Zoning By-law Amendment application was submitted at 801 York Mills Road and 1855 Leslie Street to permit two, 21-storey towers (69 metres each), and a 9-storey apartment building (31.9 metres).

On April 25, 2022, the applicant appealed the Zoning By-law Amendment application to the Ontario Land Tribunal (the "OLT").  The appeal was made to a revised proposal from the original and citing Council's failure to make a decision on the application within the timeframe prescribed by the Planning Act.  The current application proposes two, 16-storey towers (52.06 metres each) joined by an 8-storey base building (height of 27 metres) along York Mills Road, that includes 10-storey (34.2) and 8-storey (28.3 metres) wings at the south end of the site, and a 5-storey townhouse building (15 metres).

This report recommends that the City Solicitor with the appropriate City staff attend the OLT hearing to oppose the application in its current form and to continue discussions with the Applicant to resolve outstanding issues.