Item - 2018.PG30.2

The Planning and Growth Management Committee:

1. Directed that the draft Official Plan Amendment containing dwelling room policies, appended as Attachment 1 to the report (May 9, 2018) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, be endorsed as the basis for public consultation.

2. Directed City Planning staff to conduct open houses and meet with key stakeholders including the development community to obtain comments and feedback regarding the draft policies for dwelling rooms contained in Attachment 1 to the report (May 9, 2018) from the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning.

3. Requested the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning Division to prepare a Final Recommendation Report with a recommended Official Plan Amendment to address the loss of dwelling rooms for consideration at a statutory public meeting held by the Planning and Growth Management Committee by the first quarter of 2019.

This report presents draft policy changes to Section 3.2.1 Housing of the Official Plan for the purpose of public consultation.  The draft policies respond to a motion from the October 12, 2017 meeting of Planning and Growth Management Committee to report back in the second quarter of 2018 on a policy framework that protects dwelling rooms similar to policies in the Official Plan that provide for the protection of rental units. The draft policies also respond to a motion from the Affordable Housing Committee to examine policy options to provide protection for, or replacement of, the kind of affordable rental housing provided by commercially-operated rooming houses and provisions for tenant relocation assistance.

The draft Official Plan amendment proposes two new policies that would address the requirement to replace dwelling rooms that would be lost as a result of development. Specifically, the draft policies would:

- apply to development that would result in the loss of ten or more dwelling rooms;
- require the same amount of residential gross floor area to be replaced and maintained as either rental units or dwelling rooms;
- require that rents for the replacement housing have rents similar to those in effect at the time of the development application for a period of at least 25 years with a five year phase-out;
- require an acceptable tenant relocation and assistance plan, including addressing the right to return to replacement housing; and
- require assistance for displaced tenants to lessen hardship for tenants when development would result in the loss of one or more dwelling rooms.
 

The draft policies reinforce the City’s policy objectives for providing a full range of housing across the City, including affordable housing.  Dwelling rooms are typically the most affordable option available in the private rental market and are an important part of the affordable housing stock.  Many tenants in dwelling rooms do not have other private market affordable housing options.

This draft policy framework for the protection of dwelling rooms is also contained within the TOcore: Downtown Plan Official Plan Amendment which was adopted with amendments by Planning and Growth Management Committee at their meeting of May 1, 2018 and will be considered by City Council at its meeting of May 22, 23, 24 and 25, 2018.  This policy framework is one of a number of initiatives underway in the City to address the need for more affordable housing.  Other initiatives include the Open Door for Affordable Housing Program lead by the Affordable Housing Office that provides financial incentives for the creation of new affordable housing, as well as the Tenant Relocation Support Services program lead by the Shelter Support and Housing Administration Division (SSHA) that helps maintain affordable rents for vulnerable tenants through support to find and maintain affordable housing.