Item - 2024.NY11.10

North York Community Council recommends that:

1. City Council refuse the application for an Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendment Applications (Application Number 23 198805 NNY 18 OZ) in its current form, for the lands municipally known as 26-34 Nipigon Avenue.

2. In the event the applications are appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal, City Council, pursuant to subsections 22(8.1) and 34(11.0.0.1) of the Planning Act, use mediation, conciliation or other dispute resolution techniques in an attempt to resolve the Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendment applications, to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning and City Solicitor.

3. City Council direct the City Clerk, should an appeal be filed, to notify all persons or public bodies who may have filed an appeal to this decision of City Council’s intention to rely on subsections 22(8.1) and 34(11.0.0.1) of the Planning Act and the City Clerk shall provide notice to all prescribed persons or public bodies under subsections 22(8.2) and 34(11.0.0.2) of the Planning Act. 

4. City Council direct the City Clerk, should an appeal be filed, to notify the Ontario Land Tribunal of City Council’s intention pursuant to subsections 22(8.1) and 34(11.0.0.1) of the Planning Act, and that the Ontario Land Tribunal shall receive the record, the notice of appeal and other prescribed documents and materials seventy-five (75) days after the last day for filing a notice of appeal for these matters.

5. Should the Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendment applications be resolved, and there is no appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal or the appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal has been withdrawn, City Council direct the Director, North York District, Community Planning to bring forward an Approval Report to North York Community Council for a statutory public meeting as required under the Planning Act.

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

7. City Council direct the City Solicitor to request that, in the event of an appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal, the Tribunal withhold its final order, until the following conditions are met: 

a. the final form and content of the draft Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendment is satisfactory to the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning and the City Solicitor;

b. the owner has submitted revised architectural plans, and revised sun / shadow and wind studies reflecting the proposal as approved in whole or in part, to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning;

c. the owner has submitted an updated and complete Toronto Green Standards Checklist and Statistics Template, to the satisfaction of the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning;

d. the owner has addressed all outstanding issues raised by Urban Forestry and Tree Protection and Plan Review as they relate to the Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment application, to the satisfaction of the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation;

e. the owner has satisfactorily addressed the matters in the Engineering and Construction Services Memorandum dated January 24, 2024, and any outstanding issues and requests arising from the ongoing technical review (including provision of acceptable reports and studies), as they relate to the Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment application to the satisfaction of the General Manager, Transportation Services, and Chief Engineer and Executive Director, Engineering and Construction Services; and,

f. the owner has provided a legal undertaking to the City, to the satisfaction of the City Solicitor and the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, to secure the required Tenant Relocation and Assistance Plan pertaining to the four existing rental dwelling units and two rental dwelling rooms proposed to be demolished.

This application proposes to amend the Official Plan and Zoning By-law to permit a 50-storey (165.3 metres) mixed use building (the 'proposal') at 26-34 Nipigon Avenue (the 'subject lands'), as shown on Attachments 7 to 9B of this Report. The proposal contains 569 residential units and a residential gross floor area ('GFA') of 38,099.89 square metres, for an overall density of 17.0 times the area of the lot.

The proposal does not conform to the City's Official Plan, or the Council-adopted Yonge Street North Secondary Plan, which represents Council's vision for the area.

This Report reviews and recommends refusal of the Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment application, particularly as it relates to the height of the proposal; the proposed building massing and intensity; and the impact of the proposal on adjacent properties in the existing and planned context which may prevent an orderly development of the block. The recommendation for refusal is also based on inadequate soil volumes; unconfirmed servicing capacity; failure to provide adequate pedestrian connections, in the form of a mid-block connection to support active transportation; and failure to provide an adequate tenant assistance and relocation plan.

This report recommends refusal of the application to amend the Official Plan and Zoning By-law because the outstanding issues could not be resolved within the legislated timeline for decision of 120 days. If City Council does not make a decision within the legislated timeline, the City may be subject to a request to refund all or part of the application fees. The report also recommends that Staff work with the applicant to use mediation to resolve the outstanding issues.