Item - 2024.PH11.21

The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that:

1.  City Council direct the Executive Director, Corporate Real Estate Management, in consultation with the Executive Director, Housing Secretariat, and Chief Procurement Officer, to issue a follow-up pre-qualification by the fourth quarter of 2024 to expand the City’s existing pre-qualified roster of vendors for rapid-build housing construction.
 

2.  City Council direct the Executive Director, Corporate Real Estate Management, in consultation with the Chief Procurement Officer, and any relevant City Divisions, Agencies, Corporations, to initiate discussions with the Province of Ontario and Infrastructure Ontario regarding the creation of a pre-qualified roster of vendors to facilitate rapid-build construction for access and use by all Ontario municipalities.
 

3.  City Council direct the Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building review and strengthen guidelines, checklists, and other tools that help facilitate approvals and support permit applicants who construct buildings partially or completely off-site in a manufacturing facility, and are then transported to a property and assembled in the City of Toronto, undertake consultation with industry stakeholders as part of this process, and report back to the Planning and Housing Committee by the end of the third quarter of 2024.

4.  City Council direct the Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building review and streamline Toronto Building’s current program which provides certification that building plans meet the requirements of the Ontario Building Code (without site specific information), and report back to the Planning and Housing Committee with any necessary Toronto Municipal Code amendments by the end of the third quarter of 2024.

To increase the supply of housing – and restore affordability – municipalities like Toronto must take steps to unlock rapid build construction technologies that will help us build the housing that we need.

Through programs like the Rapid Housing Initiative, we’ve seen the benefits of modular construction and other rapid build technologies. With these technologies, projects like the modular supportive housing site at 540 Cedarvale in my community can be fully constructed within a matter of days and with far less impact to the surrounding community. We must continue to pull every policy lever available to us as a municipality to encourage and foster this growing industry.

One of the most important steps that we can take as a municipality is to invite both established and emerging builders of rapid build construction to do business in Toronto. That means expanding the City’s pre-qualified roster of vendors so that a greater number of builders will be eligible to bid on City-led housing projects. In addition, the City should engage with Infrastructure Ontario to establish a province-wide roster of vendors that all municipalities may have access to.

Most importantly, Toronto should also create pathways for builders of modular and other rapid build construction technologies to have their designs pre-approved. With adjustments to the City’s existing process for plan certification, builders will be able to achieve efficiencies and drive down costs on their projects by utilizing the same building designs on lots across Toronto. Building permit applications submitted to Toronto Buildings with certified designs will receive approvals in record time.

All options must be on the table to build the homes needed to house all those who call Toronto home, now and in the future. These are a series of actions that Toronto can take today to secure that future.