Item - 2024.PH14.7

The Planning and Housing Committee recommends that:

1. City Council request that, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Secretary Canadian Board for Harmonized Construction Codes consult directly with the City of Toronto, including the Chief Building Official and Executive Director Toronto Building, and the Fire Chief General and Manager, Toronto Fire Services in considering any potential Ontario Building Code and/or National Building Code of Canada changes related to single means of egress in residential buildings between four and six storeys and address safety considerations for both building occupants and first responders.

2. City Council forward this report including the "Single Exit Stair: Ontario Building Code Feasibility Study" to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Secretary, Canadian Board for Harmonized Construction Codes, to inform the development of any specific Ontario Building Code/National Building Code of Canada proposals in this area and address safety considerations for both building occupants and first responders.

3. City Council request that the Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building develop a public-facing guideline for building permit applicants to access the "Single Exit Stair: Ontario Building Code Feasibility Study" to assist in the preparation of alternative solution proposals under the Ontario Building Code where a single means of egress is proposed.

4. City Council request that the Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building, in consultation with the Fire Chief and General Manager, Toronto Fire Services, and the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, report to the Planning and Housing Committee no later than the third quarter of 2025 on any proposed amendments to the Ontario Building Code and Model National Building Codes that would permit a single means of egress in multi-residential buildings up to six storeys.

5. City Council request that the Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building, continue to engage with industry stakeholders to identify further opportunities to address Building Code-related challenges that may be impeding the design and construction of “missing middle” housing beyond land use planning policy, while addressing safety considerations for both building occupants and first responders, and to report back to the Planning and Housing Committee with recommendations no later than the third quarter of 2025.

The purpose of this report is to respond to City Council direction that the Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building, in consultation with the Fire Chief and General Manager, Fire Services, engage a Building Code Consultant to study the feasibility of supporting a single means of exiting multi-residential buildings of up to four storeys, including additional life safety and other measures which would meet the objectives and intent of the Ontario Building Code.

Exits are a fundamental and essential component of a building's fire and life safety system. Some designers and others have advocated that the Ontario Building Code threshold for requiring a second exit stair in small multi-unit residential buildings is too high compared to other jurisdictions in North America, Europe and around the world. They suggest that a single exit staircase would support innovation in the design and construction of higher density small multi-unit buildings on constrained sites in higher density urban areas resulting in more missing middle housing.

Building regulators and emergency responders have identified that there are potential impacts on safety that need to be considered in developing Ontario Building Code changes in this area which are complex and significant. Any code changes to allow a single exit in a building need to be based on current research and take into consideration the impacts for both building occupants and first responders. Any potential changes must also provide an equivalent level of protection to that of a building having at least two means of egress, while also ensuring timely access to responding Firefighters and the deployment of the associated firefighting equipment into the building when a fire occurs.

This report provides an overview of a technical study undertaken for the City of Toronto by a third-party Building Code Consultant with expertise in fire protection engineering, to consider the feasibility of an alternative solution to the single egress issue.

As the Province of Ontario and the Canadian Board for Harmonized Construction Codes continue to consider potential changes to the provincial and national codes, the study will help provide certainty to designers and others preparing submissions to the city where a single exit is being considered and to expedite and facilitate the approval of missing middle projects in the City of Toronto. The report also contains recommendations to provide a copy of the report to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Canadian Board for Harmonized Construction Codes to support research and code development in this area.

This report has been written in consultation with Toronto Fire Services and City Planning.