Item - 2022.EY29.2

The Etobicoke York Community Council:

1. Directed staff to continue consultation with the Local Advisory Committee and to engage with the public and key stakeholders including equity-deserving groups within the local community, Indigenous partners, landowners, businesses and agencies, as necessary on the draft Official Plan Amendment, including the draft Secondary Plan, draft Zoning By-law Amendment and draft Urban Design Guidelines for the lands included in the Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework Study, together with the Ward Councillor.

2. Directed that the draft Official Plan Amendments appended to Attachments 1 and 2 to the report (December 8, 2021) from the Director, Community Planning, Etobicoke York District related to the Protected Major Transit Station Area be endorsed as a basis for further public consultation.

3. Directed staff to bring forward a draft Official Plan Amendment, including a draft Secondary Plan, a draft Zoning By-law Amendment and draft Urban Design Guidelines for the Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework Study area in the first quarter of 2023 after giving consideration to and refining the findings and recommendations contained in the Final Report on the Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework Study prepared by Perkins&Will and after undertaking a fiscal impact analysis and further consulting with the Local Advisory Committee and any other public consultations that may support this work.

4. Directed staff to provide a Directions Report to provide a status update on the progress of the draft Official Plan Amendment, including the draft Secondary Plan, draft Zoning By-law Amendment and draft Urban Design guidelines including any consultation at its meeting in June 2022.

5. Directed City Planning staff, further to Recommendations 3 and 4 above, to make best efforts to advance their final recommendations and complete the planning work, in particular, the draft Official Plan Amendment, for a report to a meeting of the Etobicoke York Community Council in June 2022.

The consultant from Perkins & Will gave a presentation on Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework.

This report provides an overview of the study process to date and the next steps required to implement the Picture Mount Dennis Study. The report provides the retained consultant, Perkins&Will's, findings and recommendations for the Picture Mount Dennis Study.

On March 10, 2016, City Council adopted a motion (EY12.30) to request the Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning to undertake a review of the current planning framework for the Mount Dennis area, including: built form, density, height, and public realm, of the properties on Weston Road between Ray Avenue and Humber Boulevard; consult with the community, including landowners and other stakeholder groups, together with the Ward Councillor, to understand the community's concerns and to develop a vision for future development in the study area; and to report back on the findings of the review and to provide recommendations for changes, if necessary, to the planning framework for the study area.

Mount Dennis is set to become one of the most transit connected neighbourhoods in Toronto. When the Eglinton Crosstown LRT opens in 2022, Mount Dennis will be the western terminus station and a key interconnection point between the subway and commuter rail systems, providing access to the Kitchener GO Line and UP Express. In anticipation of this connectivity and resultant transit oriented development interest, the Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework creates a comprehensive vision for the future based on the input of area residents, businesses, local services and non-profit organizations and Indigenous partners. It also builds upon significant work that has been completed in the study area over the last 10 years. 

The study area includes lands designated Mixed Use Areas, Neighbourhoods and Apartment Neighbourhoods in the Official Plan. Although the study area includes lands designated Employment Areas and Institutional Areas, it does not contemplate or propose changes to those land uses.

The study was a collaborative effort from various City Divisions including: City Planning, Transportation Services, Toronto Water and Public Health. City Planning retained Perkins&Will as the planning consultant to undertake the Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework Study. The study was awarded through a competitive Request for Proposal process to a multidisciplinary consulting team led by Perkins&Will that includes sub-consultants Nelson Nygaard, Canadian Urban Institute, Cambium Indigenous Professional Services, Centre for Connected Communities, GM Blue Plan Engineering, LGL Limited Environmental Research Associates, Common Bond Collective, and Timmins Martelle Heritage Consultants Inc. The consultant's report contains study findings and recommendations for an updated planning framework to accommodate and manage growth in the area.

Perkins&Will's Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework report recommends that the City should consider a set of Frameworks and Healthy and Inclusive Community Strategies which outline several actions to implement the study recommendations, such as:

- Amend the Official Plan to: implement the recommended changes to the Official Plan land use map specifically for properties along Weston Road and the rail corridor in close proximity to the new higher-order transit stations; implement the land use policies resulting from the study; include maximum building heights expressed in number of storeys for each character area based on the recommendations of the study and delineate Mount Dennis as a Protected Major Transit Station Area (PMTSA).

- Draft a Secondary Plan for Mount Dennis to establish a comprehensive planning framework for the area and provide a new policy direction for Mount Dennis to support a transit oriented, complete community, including direction to:

- Provide for diverse housing types;

- Encourage active uses at grade and fine grain retail along Weston Road;

- Provide provisions for future parkland dedication and Privately Owned Publicly Accessible Spaces;

- Provide connected cycling network strategy;

- Use the Black Creek Triangle as a demonstration project for the implementation of the Green  Streets Technical Guidelines in the development of a new street network;

- Consider heritage potential properties identified in the study for inclusion on the City's Heritage Register;

- Initiate a Historic Context Statement about workers' housing and public housing as part of the Toronto Heritage Survey or commemoration and interpretation strategies should they be demolished;

- Identify opportunities for public art and community event spaces, implement low impact development/green streets infrastructure;

- Explore opportunities to improve older apartment towers through the City's Tower Renewal program and continue monitoring; and

- Maintain and enhance existing community facilities and explore options for additional community services and facilities needs as develop. 

- Amend the Zoning By-law based on the recommendations of the report to: amend the zoning for lands within the PMTSA with a Neighbourhoods designation, establish maximum retail unit frontage length for new development on Weston Road; include maximum building heights, expressed in metres and number of storeys, for each character area; establish maximum retail sizes and amend zoning boundaries to resolve zoning inconsistencies.

- Supplement applicable city-wide urban design guidelines, including updating and replacing sections of the 2010 Mid-Rise Performance Standards and the 2016 Addendum to the Mid-Rise Performance Standards with area specific urban design guidelines for the study area to reflect the recommendations of the study.

- Continue to work with the community to address concerns raised throughout the Planning Framework process and consult on the recommendations with the Local Advisory Committee and with specific groups in Mount Dennis as necessary to provide input during the implementation process of the study.

It is recommended that City staff be directed to bring forward a draft Official Plan Amendment, including a draft Secondary Plan, a draft Zoning By-law Amendment and draft Urban Design Guidelines for the Picture Mount Dennis Study area in the first quarter of 2023, giving consideration to the findings and recommendations contained in the Final Report on the Picture Mount Dennis Planning Framework Study prepared by Perkins&Will after consulting with the Local Advisory Committee and through other public consultations that may support this work. It is also recommended staff provide a Directions Report to Etobicoke York Community Council in June 2022 to provide an update on the progress of this work.