Item - 2017.PG22.1

The Planning and Growth Management Committee recommends that: 

1. City Council direct that the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning use Attachment 1, "TOcore: Proposed Downtown Plan", to the report (August 18, 2017) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning as a basis for stakeholder and public consultation.

2. City Council direct City Planning Division staff, in association with staff from the appropriate City Divisions, to undertake stakeholder and public consultation, including public open houses, roundtable meetings, and other public meetings as necessary on the proposed Downtown Plan as attached in Attachment 1, "TOcore: Proposed Downtown Plan" to the report (August 18, 2017) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning. 

3. City Council direct the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning report back with a final Recommendations Report and an Official Plan Amendment on the Downtown Plan to a Spring 2018 meeting of the Planning and Growth Management Committee. 

4.  City Council request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to review and report back as part of the Final Report on the Official Plan Amendment on how to support the retention and expansion of the major health institutions located outside of the proposed Health Sciences District, including St. Michael's Hospital, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) lands on College Street and the University Health Network Hospitals.

5. City Council request that the City Planning Division, in coordination with staff from the following City Divisions and offices – Children's Services, Economic Development and Culture, Employment and Social Services, Parks, Forestry and Recreation, Shelter, Support and Housing, Social Development, Finance and Administration, Public Health, Paramedic Services, Affordable Housing Office, Toronto Water, Transportation Services, Toronto Fire, Major Capital Infrastructure Coordination Office, Corporate Finance, Financial Planning, Environment and Energy, Real Estate Services – undertake stakeholder and public consultation on the draft Infrastructure Strategies identified in Attachment 4 to the report (August 18, 2017) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning  starting in Fall 2017, and report back to City Council on the final infrastructure strategies with the final Downtown Plan in the second quarter of 2018 including any recommendations for future work to implement the strategies such as capital approvals, Environmental Assessments, and/or Master Plans.

6.  City Council request City Planning staff to consider the Proposed Downtown Plan policies, Attachment 1 to the report (August 18, 2017) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, during the evaluation of current and future development applications in the Downtown Plan area and continue to refine the policies in consultation with stakeholders and the community.

The Planning and Growth Management Committee:

1.  Requested the General Manager, Toronto Water, to report directly to the October 2, 2017 meeting of City Council with an update on current water studies being undertaken in the Downtown as well as the emerging TOcore Water Strategy.

The Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning gave a presentation on TOcore - Proposed Downtown Plan.

The proposed Downtown Plan will serve as a blueprint for future growth and infrastructure in the heart of Toronto over the next 25 years. This report seeks Council's input on the proposed Plan and requests direction to undertake public and stakeholder consultation, leading to an amendment to Toronto's Official Plan in the second quarter of 2018.

By initiating the TOcore study in 2014, Council recognized that growth was outpacing the City's ability to secure the necessary supporting infrastructure. In late 2016, the TOcore Proposals Report was adopted by Council. That report outlined the detailed policy directions for all aspects of the Downtown Plan and served as the basis for extensive public and stakeholder consultation earlier this year.

Toronto's high quality of life and economic opportunities have made it one of the fastest growing cities in North America, and nowhere is this more evident than in the rising Downtown skyline. Downtown accounts for only 3 percent of Toronto's land area, yet it makes up 40 percent of the non-residential gross floor area and 38 percent of the residential units proposed in the entire city. It is Canada's largest employment cluster with over 500,000 jobs, relying on Union Station and the subway system to provide access to a regional workforce. Close to 240,000 people live Downtown, with more than 7,500 residents added annually over the past 5 years. By 2041, Downtown has the potential to reach between 850,000 to 915,000 jobs, and as many as 475,000 residents.

Planning for Downtown's future must consider the unique and diverse roles it plays for the city as a whole. Downtown's cluster of world-renowned institutions – hospitals, medical research facilities and universities – thrive in its concentrated and highly connected environment. The Queen's Park Precinct and the civic buildings centred on Nathan Philips Square play a broad and far-reaching governance role. The Financial District acts as Canada's premier hub for capital markets and corporate head offices, while the adjacent King-Spadina and King-Parliament neighbourhoods have been central to the technology and creative industry boom in the city. Downtown is the region's largest retail concentration, with destination shopping such as the Toronto Eaton Centre and thriving main streets with a diversity of local shops, restaurants, bars and nightclubs. These draws, in combination with a flourishing culture, music, film and sport scene, make Downtown the primary destination for Toronto's 40 million annual tourists and day visitors.

In addition to the many broader roles of Downtown, approximately 1 in 10 Torontonians call it home. This resident population is socio-economically diverse, meaning that community services and facilities need to be planned to support all income levels, ages, ethnicities and abilities. Downtown's current and future residents must also be able to access and maintain adequate, affordable and appropriate housing.

Downtown is well served by transit with two subway lines and several streetcar routes running through the study area, along with the expanded passenger handling capacity of an upgraded Union Station. The capacity constraints of Line 1 Yonge-University and the 504 King Streetcar are widely recognized as challenges for the transit system and constraints to growth. The proposed Relief Line and the King Street Transit Pilot will add much needed transit capacity while providing important city-building opportunities along their routes.

Downtown is an area that has been inhabited for nearly 12,000 years, with different settlements in the area by various Indigenous people over time. Built and cultural heritage of this history can be seen in Downtown's significant buildings, districts, landmarks, landscapes and archaeological sites. The influence of this heritage, including that of Toronto's Indigenous peoples and settlers, is an important consideration that should guide future planning and investment Downtown.

The proposed Downtown Plan represents the first comprehensive update since the mid- 1970's. The 1976 Central Area Plan introduced mixed-use policies that encouraged residential growth Downtown and helped Toronto avoid the inner city deterioration experienced in many other urban centres across the continent. Since then, updates to the planning framework have shaped Toronto's Downtown into one of the most successful in North America.

The new Downtown Plan is a 25-year vision that sets the direction for the city centre as the cultural, civic, retail and economic heart of Toronto and as a great place to live. The Plan seizes the opportunities that come with intensification, while addressing the challenges often associated with growth. A series of goals – grouped around the themes of complete communities, connectivity, prosperity, resiliency and responsibility – establish outcomes the Downtown Plan intends to achieve as growth continues.

The proposed Downtown Plan provides detailed direction on the appropriate scale and location of future growth. It also links this growth with infrastructure provision to ensure the creation of 'Complete Communities', addressing the requirements under the Provincial Policy Statement (2014) and the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (2017). 

Other significant policy directions in the Downtown Plan include: 

-   Expansion of the Financial District and establishment of a Health Sciences District where non-residential uses will be prioritized; 

-   Refinement of the current single Mixed Use Areas designation into 4 Mixed Use Areas designations to provide clear guidance on the appropriate scale of development based on existing and planned context; 

-   Requirement for the submission of a Complete Community Assessment to ensure all developments contribute to the creation of liveable and complete communities; 

-   Requirement for all developments to address the priorities contained within the Downtown Community Services and Facilities Strategy; 

-   Protection of Downtown parks and open spaces by ensuring no net-new shadow; 

-   Increased building setbacks to expand the public realm in areas of growth; 

-   Prioritization of a "Land First" approach to maximize opportunities for new parkland through the development process, along with incentives for developers to work together to consolidate the provision of parkland; 

-   Creation of a Parks and Public Realm Plan to improve the quality and connectivity of public spaces, and to identify parkland improvement and acquisition priorities; 

-   Prioritization of walking, cycling and transit use on Downtown's streets; 

-   Requirements for 2- and 3-bedroom units and affordable housing in most developments, along with protection of dwelling rooms; 

-   Retention of cultural spaces and support for live music and filming; 

-   Encouragement of low-carbon and resilient infrastructure and buildings; and 

-   Partnerships with Indigenous communities, stakeholder groups and community groups as part of implementation. 

This report also provides Council with: an update on the existing and projected Downtown populations; a summary of stakeholder and public consultation on the TOcore Proposals Report; the status of the five infrastructure strategies – community services and facilities, parks and public realm, mobility, energy, water – that will be released in draft for public and stakeholder consultation later in 2017; a description of the financial strategy currently under development; and an overview of the process for determining amendments to the existing in-force planning framework.

The recommended Official Plan Amendment for the Downtown Plan will be brought forward in the second quarter of 2018.