Item - 2024.PH12.8

The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that:

1. City Council request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, in consultation with the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to review zoning regulations that restrict outdoor parking of commercially licensed vehicles on private property in residential areas, with consideration for the need for vehicle operators to have convenient parking for commercial vehicles available near their residence, and to report to the Planning and Housing Committee by the first quarter of 2025 on the outcome of the review with any appropriate recommendations for zoning by-law amendments.

2. City Council request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, in consultation with the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards to consider the impacts of COVID on working arrangements in the review of zoning regulations requested above.

Recently, constituents in Etobicoke North have raised the issue of commercial vehicles parking in residential driveways. The City-wide zoning by-law 569-2013 prohibits approximately ten types of vehicles from parking on private residential properties. These prohibitions include vehicles with more than six wheels, large industrial vehicles, or commercially licensed vehicles to name a few.

City Council adopted MM43.12 in May 2022 which directed the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning in consultation with the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards to conduct a review of zoning regulations that restrict outdoor parking of commercially licensed vehicles on private property in residential areas. Through this motion, a report back to Planning and Housing was requested along with the consideration to provide more convenient parking for commercial vehicles near their residence.

However, the City’s strategic priorities in addressing the housing crisis has put this matter on the back burner. Given the changing workplace environment because of COVID, a thorough review of this policy must be done to support and understand the diverse needs of Torontonians. Individuals and their families provide for their households and sustain their livelihoods in various ways. It is crucial to ensure our policies effectively capture these various means of contributing to the economy and align them with our policies.

After meeting with City staff, I am recommending that this item be brought back to the table and made a priority. Building on the existing adopted recommendations, I would also like to request that COVID’s impacts on working arrangements be considered in this review. The modality of working remote or hybrid has become the norm after the pandemic which has impacted the number of parking spaces at commercial buildings and has shifted some service providers’ model of operations to a “on call” basis. Given the City-wide implications of this zoning by-law, this matter is urgent to address and must be assessed through an adaptive lens.