Mayor John Tory has asked staff to draft a “housing action plan” that could lead to significant changes to existing zoning regulations, including the construction of multiplexes on all residential lots and the elimination of so-called exclusionary zoning policies that prohibit modest density in most residential neighbourhoods.
A motion that will be considered by city council next week asks that staff be directed to draft a plan that would allow the city to “achieve or exceed” a new provincial target calling for the construction of 285,000 new homes in Toronto over the next decade.
The motion stipulates that such a plan should focus in on 15 specific areas, including amending zoning laws to “increase density within neighbourhoods, creating “transition zones between commercial and residential areas” and “increasing zoning permissions on major streets.”
Tory is also asking staff to “revisit” the plans for the Port Lands and the waterfront to “ensure housing density is optimized” and to create a post-secondary housing strategy focused on “increasing the availability of student housing.”
Staff will also be urged to review the city’s “urban design guidelines, heritage standards and urban forestry policies” to ensure they align with the goal of expediting the delivery of new housing, according to the motion.
“These efforts are not intended to create towers on every corner, but to support new forms of housing that will support our diverse communities, create space in our city for both renters and owners, and foster the expansion of communities in a fashion that is both responsible and sustainable,” Tory said in a letter sent to members of city council. “We must move quickly to change city policies and advance new programs that will create new housing, be solutions-oriented, and demonstrate a strong commitment from council to deliver the reforms needed to increase new housing and prioritize the supply of affordable and market rental housing that our residents and newcomers desperately need.”
Tory’s motion includes a number of specific bylaw and zoning amendments that he wants to see as part of what he says will be a “more aggressive approach” to addressing the housing crisis during this term of council.
Included in that is a new bylaw which would create the regulatory framework to permit multi-tenant homes, or rooming houses, city-wide.
The bylaw, however, wouldn’t take effect until March, 2024.
Rooming houses are currently only permitted in the former cities of Toronto, Etobicoke and York.
More to come…
