35-53, 101-113 Valley Woods Road and 1213-1229 York Mills Road Development
Last week, I attended a Community Consultation Meeting for a proposed development at 35-53 and 101-113 Valley Woods Road and 1213-1229 York Mills Road (Valley Woods Development). A Zoning By-law Amendment Application as specified by Section 34(10) of the Planning Act is required as the proposed development does not conform to the Zoning By-law. Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to hear the presentation and speakers from the first hour of the meeting, as my Committee of Adjustment meeting at North York Civic Centre ran until 7:30 pm.
Background:
This development proposal calls for the replacement of the existing 245 unit rental townhouse development with 2,375 new apartment and stacked townhouse units.
The 5.6 hectare property, located in the York Mills Road and Valley Woods Road area, is comprised of two parcels of land connected by a strip of land adjacent to Valley Woods Road. The parcel at 1213-1229 York Mills Road and 101-113 Valley Woods Road is proposed to be developed with stacked townhouses and four apartment buildings with heights of 20 to 29 storeys containing a total of 1,287 units. The parcel at 35-53 Valley Woods Road is proposed to be developed with stacked townhouses and three apartment buildings with heights of 24 to 32 storeys containing a total of 1,088 units.
The proposal
North portion of the site - 101-113 Valley Woods Road and 1213-1229 York Mills Road
South portion of the site - 35-53 Valley Woods Road
As expected, the community was rather opposed to the proposal in its current form. Concerns including but not limited to transportation, building massing, environmental impact, and community facilities were brought up by many residents and residents groups.
This development, combined with another application to the east at the Parkwoods Village Plaza site (1277 York Mills Road), will definitely have a profound change on the relatively stable residential communities of Fenside and Don Valley East.
Next steps:
In terms of the development approvals stage, here is a schematic diagram that generally demonstrates how a Zoning By-law Amendment application is processed by the City of Toronto.
We are currently at the Community Consultation Meeting stage, while at the same time, City of Toronto Planning staff are going through the required submissions from the developer's consultant team.
Working groups of interested residents will be invited to have discussions with the Ward Councillor and members of the developer's team of consultants. Hopefully through this process, the applicant will make revisions to the proposed development so that it is more compatible with the surrounding area and more in line with what residents of the community would be more accepting of.
At the same time, City of Toronto Planning staff will review all required studies that have been/will be submitted. These reports could include, but are not limited to, Planning Rationale Report, Traffic Impact Study, Community Services and Facilities Study, Environmental Impact Study, Stormwater Management Report, Servicing Report, Parking Study, etc. Staff will also collect comments from all other circulated agencies (other City Departments such as Transportation, Technical Services, Parks, Forestry and Recreation Department, TRCA, School Boards, etc) as well as all the comments that was submitted at the Community Consultation Meeting. Any concerns and/or outcomes of the Working Group meetings will also be considered by the Planning staff. All these comments will form part of a response to the applicant.
The applicant will then have the opportunity to revise their application, provide additional information or have further work prepared in support of the application. The revised application would be re-circulated and further consultation with the community and Ward Councillor would then take place. This iterative process is repeated until the application is deemed to be finalized by the applicant.
Once the application is finalized, a Final Staff Report will be written for the consideration of North York Community Council. The Community Council meeting is the official statutory Public Meeting for the Zoning By-law Amendment application as specified in Section 34(12) of the Planning Act. At this Public Meeting, there is an opportunity to provide a public forum for debate on the merits of the proposal. North York Community Council will make a recommendation on the application to City Council, who will then make a determination on the application.
If City Council approves the Zoning By-law Amendment, the decision of the City can be appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) under Section 34(19) of the Planning Act by the applicant, a person or public body who, before the by-law was passed, made oral submissions at a public meeting or written submissions to the council or the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. In an appeal under this section, the OMB can make any of the rulings listed in Section 34(26) of the Planning Act.
If City Council refuses to approve the Zoning By-law Amendment, or if the City does not make a decision within 120 days of the submission of the application, the applicant or the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing also has the right to appeal to the OMB under Section 34(11) of the Planning Act. In an appeal under this section, the OMB can make any of the rulings listed in Section 34(11.0.2) of the Planning Act.
Note that there are other potential scenerios that could play out if an application goes to the OMB, for more details, see the Section 34 of the Planning Act for more information.
My Opinion:
- The current density as proposed is much too high especially in light of the fact that York Mills Road is not an Avenue as designated in the Toronto Official Plan Urban Structure Map. To put things in perspective, the Floor Space Index (FSI) of 3.6 approaches densities more commonly found on Sheppard Avenue, along areas served by the Sheppard subway line;
- Due to the proximity of highway access, and relatively frequent bus service (the York Mills 95 route is one of the top ten most serviced bus routes in Toronto), it is only natural that developers would target this area for (re)development; however, analysis needs to be done to determine if there is sufficient vehicular capacity along York Mills Road, especially between the Don Valley Parkway and Fenside Dr, as well as trip distribution of newly generated trips going in a southerly direction, into the Don Valley East/RACA community;
- The building heights are significantly higher than what is currently in the area (the proposal calls for buildings up to 32 storeys in height, the highest existing building in nearby vicinity is only 22 storeys). I believe there is room for compromise here, similar to the height reductions that were successfully agreed upon for the Don Mills Centre residential development. Similarly, larger unit sizes would also reduce the impact in terms of number of new residents generated by the development;
- Potential issues of availability of schools and community facilities in the area, especially since Brookbanks Public School was closed and sold a few years ago; and,
- Potential effects on natural heritage features and wildlife in Brookbanks Park/Don River Branch.
Action Items:
- Given the potential of this application going to the OMB, I believe the best chance for all parties involved is to work out some compromise before it gets to a point where the applicants would consider an appeal to the OMB. This would likely result in less costs incurred by the developers/residents groups/etc compared to an OMB battle where the outcome becomes less than certain for all parties involved;
- To those opposed to the development, rather than outright opposing any new development, which is a rather unrealistic outcome, give the developers alternative options that might work for them. This would likely yield a better outcome than leaving things up to the OMB;
- To the developers, work with the members of the community and the professionals on your consulting team to come up with a design that works well for current and future residents. By avoiding a costly OMB process, those resources could be redirected to provide better amenities for both current and future residents; and,
- To the developers of 1277 York Mills Rd (the Parkwoods Village development proposal), I hope that they also send representatives to the working group meetings for the Valley Woods Development. There is opportunity to ensure both developments are planned in a comprehensive manner, rather than in a piecemeal manner.
I'll end this blog posting with a quote by Charles F. Kettering that I think is apt for most developments proposals...
"The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress."
For more information:
- Preliminary Report - Rezoning Application - 35-53 and 101-113 Valley Woods Road and 1213-1229 York Mills Road
- Zoning - Ontario Planning Act
- Toronto Development Guide: Section A - Official Plan and Zoning Amendment Applications
- Section 37: A Quick Review
- Consolidated Section 37 Implementation Guidelines and Protocol (and Official Plan S.37 Policies)
- Demolition and conversion of residential rental properties - City of Toronto Act, 2006
- Residential Rental Property Demolition and Conversion Control - City of Toronto By-law No. 885-2007
- Toronto Development Guide: Reports/Study Terms of Reference
- Ontario Municipal Board
Contact Information:
- Ward Councillor
Councillor Minnan-Wong (Ward 34)
P: 416-397-9256
E: councillor_minnan-wong@toronto.ca - Municipal Planner assigned to this file
Nimrod Salamon
P: 416-395-7095
E: nsalamon@toronto.ca - Agent for the Applicant
Adam J. Brown - Sherman Brown Dryer Karol Barristers & Solicitors
P: 416-222-0344
E: adam@shermanbrown.com - Residents Group
Don Valley East Residents & Ratepayers Inc. (RACA)
raca.info@gmail.com - Neighbouring Residents Group
Don Mills Residents Inc. (DMRI)
dmriPresident@dmri.ca
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