Item - 2017.PG24.10

The Planning and Growth Management Committee recommends that:

1.  City Council direct the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to use Attachment 2: “Proposed Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan” to the report (October 25, 2017) from the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, as a basis for stakeholder and public consultation.

2.  City Council direct City Planning staff, in association with staff from the appropriate City Divisions, to undertake stakeholder and public consultation, including public open houses, Midtown Planning Group meetings and other public meetings as necessary on the "Proposed Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan".

3.  City Council determine that the comprehensive update to the Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan is necessary prior to rendering a decision on new development applications submitted in the Secondary Plan area after the November 15th, 2017 meeting of the Planning and Growth Management Committee until the adoption of the revised Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan.

4.  City Council direct City staff to continue to consider and review the balance of applications within the Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan area as follows:

a.  in the context of the City Council directed Midtown in Focus: Growth, Built Form and Infrastructure Review, including the proposed Secondary Plan included as Attachment 2 to the report (October 25, 2017) from the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning;

b.  assess the potential cumulative impact of all applications in the Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan area on the City’s ability to provide the necessary infrastructure to support development; and

c.  use planning mechanisms, including holding provisions, as necessary to ensure that growth and infrastructure needs are aligned.

5.  City Council direct the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to report back with a final report and a recommended Official Plan Amendment in the second quarter of 2018.

6.  City Council request the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning  to continue to coordinate with staff from applicable divisions and agencies to undertake stakeholder and public consultation on the infrastructure assessments and report back to City Council on the final infrastructure assessments in the second quarter of 2018 including any recommendations for future work to address the findings of the assessments, such as the development of financial strategies, capital approvals, Environmental Assessments and/or Master Plans.

7.  City Council request the Acting Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to report to the Planning and Growth Management Committee in the second quarter of 2018 on potential measures to help ensure that social services and physical infrastructure can accommodate existing and projected growth in the Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan area.

This report presents the proposed Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan for Council's consideration and requests direction for City staff to undertake additional public and stakeholder consultation to inform an amendment to the Official Plan in the second quarter of 2018. This report also provides updates on the infrastructure assessments (transportation, municipal servicing, parks and public realm and community infrastructure) underway as part of the Midtown in Focus study.

The City initiated the Midtown in Focus: Growth, Built Form and Infrastructure Review in 2015 to address the need for a new Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan and a strategic infrastructure review given the significant growth and intensification that this area continues to experience. Past and ongoing public investments in physical and social infrastructure have supported a vibrant Midtown community. To enable continued growth in Midtown, investment in new infrastructure is needed. Additionally, an updated planning framework is vital to ensuring all development advanced in the near, medium and longer terms will have lasting value, support city building objectives and enhance Midtown's health and liveability.

Building on the direction of the 2014 Midtown in Focus: Parks, Open Space and Streetscape Plan and the 2016 Council-adopted Midtown in Focus Status Report, the proposed Plan comprehensively updates the existing Yonge-Eglinton Secondary Plan with clear and detailed policy direction informed by two years of analysis and consultation. It also addresses key elements needed to sustain a liveable community, including built form, community infrastructure, housing, transportation and municipal servicing as well as additional direction on parks and public realm. 

Continued development in a complex and mature urban environment like Midtown requires careful attention. The cumulative development currently proposed in the area has the potential to adversely affect quality of life and sense of place in Midtown’s collection of neighbourhoods. Growth can be a positive force but it must be guided in a way that complements the area’s existing attributes and does not outpace the provision of infrastructure.

The proposed Plan sets out a 25-year vision for Midtown that emphasizes the importance of complete communities and the diversity of Midtown's character areas. It envisions Midtown as a green, resilient, connected, inclusive and prosperous place. The proposed Plan also provides detailed direction on the appropriate scale and location of future growth and links growth with the provision of infrastructure to ensure complete communities, addressing the requirements under the Provincial Policy Statement (2014) and the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (2017).

Staff request Council direction to complete additional consultation in preparation for a final recommended Official Plan Amendment to be brought forward in the second quarter of 2018.