Item - 2026.PH28.14

Over the past few years, the City of Toronto has dramatically expanded where and how we allow more housing to be built. In the face of a housing crisis and with a growing population, we have been transforming zoning rules to help build more and bring down the cost of housing. 

Until recently, around 70% of residential zones only allowed single-detached homes. Today, nearly all residential lands in the city have been rezoned or redesignated to allow more housing to be built. This includes multiplexes, garden suites, laneway suites, six-storey apartment buildings on Major Streets, and 282 km of Avenues identified as areas for future growth such as midrise buildings. And more work is to come.

Residents, builders and developers are now starting to use these new permissions to build more Missing Middle housing. Complex and expensive planning approvals such as Official Plan Amendments or rezonings are no longer required. More projects are permitted as-of-right or with minor variances to the zoning bylaw.

In this new framework, the Committee of Adjustment (CoA) will play an increasingly important role as we collectively work to translate new permissions into new housing.

Some recent CoA hearings and decisions have raised questions from stakeholders on how the CoA applies Council-approved policies and CoA members’ approaches to evaluating variances.

Administrative management of the CoA moved from City Planning to the Development Review division last month, which gives us an opportunity to make sure it is best equipped to perform all of the important roles it must serve.

In this context, I am requesting City staff to review and report on how the CoA can be most effective, including opportunities to streamline and bring greater consistency to decision-making, improve timelines, and support faster delivery of housing.