Item - 2026.IE27.8

The Infrastructure and Environment Committee recommends that:

1. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, in consultation with the relevant divisions, to report back to the first regular meeting of the Infrastructure and Environment Committee in 2027 with an analysis on reducing the minimum diameter at breast height (DBH) of trees protected on private property from 30 centimetres to 20 centimetres diameter at breast height, and an implementation strategy including any potential amendments to City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 813, Trees, and an assessment of any potential impact on housing delivery, and to include budgetary impacts of these potential amendments in preparing the division’s 2027 budget submission.

2. City Council authorize the implementation of a Distinctive Tree Maintenance Incentive Program - Pilot by Environment, Climate and Forestry Division, substantially in accordance with Table 2: Framework for the Distinctive Tree Maintenance Incentive Program - Pilot outlined in the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, and report back to the Infrastructure and Environment Committee on the results of the Distinctive Tree Maintenance Incentive Program – Pilot in 2027, including findings and any recommendations.

3. City Council authorize the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, or their designate, until December 31, 2026, to execute and enter into agreements with successful recipients to receive funds distributed under the Distinctive Tree Maintenance Incentive Program - Pilot outlined in the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, each with terms and conditions acceptable to the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry and each in a form acceptable to the City Solicitor.

4. City Council amend the City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 813, Trees, substantially in accordance with Attachment 2 to the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry.

5. City Council amend the City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 658, Ravine and Natural Feature Protection, substantially in accordance with Attachment 2 to the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry.

6. City Council amend the City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 441, Fees and Charges, substantially in accordance with Attachment 2 to the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry.

7. City Council amend the City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapters 632, Property, Vacant or Hazardous, 743, Streets and Sidewalks, Use of, and 918, Parking on Residential Front Yards and Boulevards to grant only the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry the authority to implement and enforce the relevant bylaw provisions, instead of equal authority between the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry and the General Manager, Parks and Recreation. 

8. City Council amend City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 608, Parks, as follows:

a. Add the following definition to §608-1.:

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR – The Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry or their successor or designate.

b. Delete all references to "General Manager" under Article VII – Trees and replace them with "Executive Director". 

9. City Council direct that the amendments to the City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 813, Trees, City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 658, Ravine and Natural Feature Protection, City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 441, Fees and Charges, City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapters 632, Property, Vacant or Hazardous, City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 743, Streets and Sidewalks, Use of, City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 918, Parking on Residential Front Yards and Boulevards, and City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 608, Parks described in Parts 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 respectively, come into force on September 1, 2026.

10. City Council authorize the City Solicitor, in consultation with the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, to prepare the necessary bill required to give effect to City Council’s decision and to make such clarification, minor modifications, technical or stylistic refinements as may be identified by the City Solicitor.

11. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, to report back to the Infrastructure and Environment Committee in 2027 on:

a. the status of all initiatives identified in Table 5: Key Implementation Actions, Descriptions, and Target Timelines outlined in the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry;

b. improve tracking of replacement tree survival rates through permitting and contravention scenarios; and

c. expand the enhanced public access to tree bylaw contravention data to include tree permit outcomes.

12. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry to refuse, at the Executive Director’s discretion, a permit to injure or destroy a tree protected under City of Toronto Municipal Code Chapters 658, Ravine and Natural Feature Protection or 813, Trees that is a Distinctive Tree, as defined in the report (February 11, 2026) from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, and advise the applicant to meet with Urban Forestry staff, as appropriate, to consider how the application can be amended to protect the tree in question.

13. City Council endorse in principle the recommendation to reduce the minimum diameter at breast height of trees protected on private property from 30 centimetres to 20 centimetres diameter in 2027.

14. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, to work with the General Manager, Parks and Recreation, and other divisions as appropriate, to provide stronger protection for Distinctive Trees in parks and on other public property, in addition to ravines.

15. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, to develop a pilot program in neighbourhoods with community partners, University of Toronto, and the local Councillors, to build tree inventories, to develop local-based protection and planting plans on public and private property, and to enhance monitoring of replacement trees, and use this information to inform the 2028 Tree Canopy Study.

16. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, in consultation with the Chief Communications Officer, to promote enhancements to the Tree By-law achieved through this report, as well as the ecological value and condition of Toronto's old growth canopy, through the City's various communications channels.

The Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, and the Director, Urban Forestry, Environment, Climate and Forestry, gave a presentation on Tree By-law Review Report.

Trees and urban forests are recognized globally as essential natural infrastructure, providing nature-based solutions for climate resilience and enhancing quality of life.

Toronto has earned consistent global recognition by the United Nations as a Tree City of the World and is a Generation Restoration Role Model City for its leadership in urban forest management, biodiversity promotion and framework for tree protection. Notably, 98 per cent of respondents to the Tree By-law Review survey said trees are important to their quality of life, underscoring strong public support for urban forests, natural green space and tree protection.

Trees are referenced in the following Toronto Municipal Code chapters, which are collectively referred to as the "Tree By-laws" throughout this report:

-  Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 813, Trees, provides for the protection of City-owned street trees of all diameters and trees on private property with a diameter of 30 centimetres or greater at breast height (1.4 metres). In this report Municipal Code Chapter 813, Trees, Article II - Street Trees and Article III - Private Tree Protection are referred to as the "Street Tree By-law" and "Private Tree By-law" respectively.

-  Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 658, Ravine and Natural Feature Protection, provides for the protection of all trees and natural features in designated ravine protected areas. Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 658, Ravine and Natural Feature Protection is referred to as the "Ravine By-law".

This report recommends a comprehensive set of by-law amendments, operational updates, future studies and an incentive to strengthen protections for trees, improve compliance and enforcement, support climate resilience and housing objectives, promote equity, and enhance cost recovery and service delivery. This includes:

-  Introducing a Distinctive Tree Category to strengthen protections for Toronto’s largest healthy trees through amendments to the Private Tree and Ravine By-laws, and establishing a complementary Distinctive Tree Maintenance Incentive Program – Pilot to support the care and long‑term retention of mature healthy private trees;

-  Improving the effectiveness of the City’s Tree By-law compliance and enforcement through by-law amendments and operational updates, including enhanced public access to tree permit and contravention outcomes; introducing stump diameter as a secondary measurement tool for enforcement purposes under the Private Tree By-law; extending permit requirements to trees planted through enforcement actions and development approvals regardless of size under the Private Tree By-law; updating evidentiary guidelines used to support fine recommendations; revising tree replacement planting ratios for contraventions under the Street Tree By-law and the Private Tree By-law; and reviewing Contravention Inspection Fees to ensure alignment with cost recovery principles;

-  Introducing permit application fees under the Ravine By-law for regulated activities, including tree injury and destruction, to align with the City’s User Fee Policy and existing tree protection permit practices, support sustainable service delivery and cost recovery, and maintain exemptions for voluntary stewardship projects, low‑income homeowners, and not‑for‑profit portions of eligible housing projects;

-  Implementing administrative amendments to the Tree By-laws and related Municipal Code chapters to modernize technical language, reflect current organizational roles, harmonize definitions, remove outdated references, clarify exemptions, and improve clarity, consistency, and enforceability across the City’s tree protection framework;

-  Advancing work to refine operational practices informed by community and Indigenous engagement, including biodiversity and native species considerations, ongoing engagement with Indigenous communities, improvements to user experience and permit navigation, and education and outreach related to the Tree By-laws; and,

-  Undertaking further analysis to inform potential refinements to the Tree By-laws and their administration, including assessing whether the minimum diameter size threshold for Private Tree By-law protection should be reduced from 30 centimetres diameter at breast height (DBH) to 20 centimetres diameter at breast height; examining options to address non‑compliance following a contravention where required replacement planting does not occur, including a Tree Replacement Fee; evaluating the feasibility of additional enforcement tools such as set fines under the Provincial Offences Act and an Administrative Penalty System; and exploring opportunities to improve coordination between Municipal Code Chapter 813,Trees and Municipal Code Chapter 629, Property Standards as they relate to private tree maintenance.

The proposed recommendations respond to direction received from Committee and City Council and reflect operational experience, public feedback, and best practices, and are intended to provide a balanced approach to strengthening the City’s tree protection framework while advancing long-term city-building and urban forest goals. The recommendations recognize the need to ensure that any changes to the City's Tree By-laws are considered in the context of any potential impacts on housing delivery, that tree protection and development are not competing objectives, and that development can proceed in accordance with planning and building permissions alongside appropriate tree protection and / or replacement measures.

The recommendations outlined in this report have financial implications.

Currently, there are no fees associated with permit applications under Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 658, Ravine and Natural Feature Protection. The implementation of permit application fees will establish a new dedicated cost recovery stream for City services that are currently funded through the tax base. The full cost of providing these permit services is estimated at approximately $0.51 million including direct, indirect and capital costs.

The proposed fee structure is designed to recover approximately 90 per cent of permit service costs as it primarily provides a direct and substantial benefit to the applicant. It is recommended that the remaining 10 per cent of the permit service costs be subsidized through the tax base due to the public benefits resulting from maintaining ravine protected areas.

To maintain support for ecological restoration and ensure that stewardship efforts are not discouraged, the Environment, Climate and Forestry Division recommends permit application fee exemptions for the approximately 5 per cent of applications that are voluntary stewardship and eligible projects including those undertaken by the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority and City divisions.

Eligible exemptions proposed are consistent with existing provisions under Municipal Code Chapter 813, Trees, including:

- Exemptions for the not-for-profit portion of housing projects undertaken by Toronto Community Housing Corporation, Habitat for Humanity, and other recognized not-for-profit housing providers referenced in subsection 7(1), paragraphs 1–4 of the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006.

- Fee exemptions for owners living below the low-income cut-off before tax, as determined by Statistics Canada.

Based on a projected 2026 volume of 1,645 individual tree permit applications related to ravine protection that would be subject to fees, approximately $0.43 million in annual revenue could have been generated, net of exemptions. If approved, the associated incremental revenue will be included in the future Operating Budget Submission for Environment, Climate and Forestry.

The proposed fee structure shown in Attachment 2, has rates differentiated by tree type and application context. This is consistent with the approach for permit application fees used to recover costs under the Street Tree and Private Tree Bylaws, with per-tree rates applied based on application complexity to ensure fairness and transparency. Proposed rates are based on 2026 cost estimates.

Public consultation on the proposed fees was undertaken through community and key constituency group meetings held September 15 to 19, 2025 with approximately 150 attendees and an online survey available September 1 to 24, 2025 that received 6,430 responses. 67 per cent of survey respondents supported permit application fees for designated ravine areas and 55 per cent of survey respondents supported fee exemptions for voluntary stewardship activities.

Service levels will continue to be maintained through rigorous standards. Staff are trained on over 20 administrative policies and procedures, supported by regular internal audits and system-based performance measures to ensure accountability and high-quality service delivery. Oversight is maintained through regular internal data audits and system-based performance measures, including development, permit, and financial tracking.

While this report does not propose lowering the minimum diameter threshold for tree protection under the Private Tree Bylaw at this time, staff recommend that Council direct further analysis to develop an implementation plan for this potential change, including analysis of budget, staffing, and service level impacts. If the minimum diameter of private trees which are protected under the Private Tree Bylaw is reduced in the future, this reduction in diameter size would result in a significant increase in the number of trees that are regulated and therefore associated permit application volumes. This would require additional staffing resources to sustain current service levels. These costs would be partially offset by a corresponding increase in the number of application fees collected under the Private Tree Bylaw and Ravine Bylaw.

The proposed Distinctive Tree Maintenance Incentive Program - Pilot is intended to support the long-term health and retention of privately owned Distinctive Trees by offsetting eligible maintenance costs. The pilot is currently under development by Environment, Climate and Forestry with a preliminary estimated budget of up to $50,000 subject to refinement as program details are finalized. The pilot can be implemented for a limited-term with the staff and budget resources available in the 2026 Council Adopted Operating Budget.

The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer has reviewed this report and agree with the financial implications as identified in the Financial Impact section.