Latest news with #TorontoCity
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Toronto needs more housing. Are garden suites a potential solution?
The City of Toronto is hoping new measures to cut design costs and speed up permit approval times for laneway and garden suites may encourage homeowners to build more, but some advocates and experts say they're skeptical the structures could be a viable solution to the city's housing crunch. Mayor Olivia Chow announced on Friday that the city will provide free design plans for laneway and garden suites to cut costs and speed up permit approval times, in its latest bid to boost construction of new housing. The pre-approved plans are compliant with the Ontario Building Code and eliminate the need to hire an architect, she said. "It's simple: Toronto is growing and we must lower the cost of building homes and make it easier, and approve them faster," Chow said at a news conference Friday. But a limited number of properties in the city have backyards large enough to build these suites, said Stephanie Bertolo, board member of More Neighbours Toronto, a housing advocacy organization. "Anything that helps reduce the cost of development and gets things built faster is a win," Bertolo said. "Unfortunately I think that laneway housing and garden suites aren't going to be a big part of the solution to the housing affordability crisis." Bertolo said a better solution would be building more small apartment buildings or sixplexes to increase housing density across the city. The city first passed an as-of-right zoning bylaw for laneway suites in 2018, and for garden suites in 2022. But only 166 laneway suites and 114 garden suites have been completed since these bylaws were passed, Chow said on Friday. Bertolo said these numbers are a "drop in the bucket" compared to the housing needs across Toronto. WATCH | Laneway, garden suite designs among new city housing measures announced Friday: The city defines a laneway suite as a self-contained residential unit located on the same lot as a detached house, semi-detached house, townhouse or other low-rise house. It is typically located in the backyard next to a public laneway. A garden suite is similarly a self-contained living accommodation usually built in a backyard, but is not on a public lane. Garden and laneway suites typically range between 500 to 600 square feet, said Sarah Cipkar, founder and CEO of Resimate, a company that helps homeowners build in their backyard in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area and the Niagara region. Cipkar said her company is seeing demand from multigenerational families who want to build suites for aging parents or young adults who are struggling to enter the housing market. "It creates all these unique opportunities for families to be closer together," she said. Projects can cost between $200,000 to $350,000, she said. Cipkar said she would like the city make the free suite designs available to manufacturers, who can then build them off site. "Part of the issue with the pre-approved design catalogue is that they're not field-tested," she said. "Homeowners can't touch and feel them. They can just see them and they're like, 'maybe that's a good unit? I can't really tell." Susannah Bunce, an associate professor in the department of geography at the University of Toronto, said the intention behind the city's free designs are good as they provide a "guidebook" for homeowners and can streamline the approval process. But these suites are likely to be concentrated in wealthier neighbourhoods in Toronto that have wider and larger lots, rather than the downtown core, where more affordable housing is needed, she said. And without city programs in place to help out homeowners with expenses, such as a rebate or a forgivable loan program, she said these suites may not be rented out at affordable rates. "With the hidden costs that come with garden suite construction, then there is an incentive for homeowners to try and recoup the costs that they have put up front by renting out a unit at a higher rate," Bunce said. "It does then cut out a lot of people who are suffering from the affordable housing crisis in Toronto." Cipkar said St. Catherines is an example of a municipality that has successfully encouraged these backyard suites. She said the municipality has financial incentives to homeowners and also provides timelines for stages such as when homeowners can expect to receive a permit using pre-approved designs. The new measures come after city council voted last month to allow sixplexes in nine wards, with an option for the remaining 16 wards to opt-in at a later date. Staff had recommended sixplexes be permitted city-wide, but some councillors vehemently objected to the proposal. Other measures announced by Chow on Friday include expanded online applications for new housing units, which she said will reduce the time it takes for them to be processed.
National Post
26-06-2025
- Automotive
- National Post
Randall Denley: A gorgeous, revamped Ontario Place is another provincial gift for Torontonians to hate
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is probably the best political friend the city of Toronto has ever had. But no matter how many billions of provincial tax dollars Ford spends to help his hometown, some Torontonians remain ungrateful. Article content Rather than settle for looking a gift horse in the mouth, they rush to the other end of the horse and pronounce themselves very unhappy with what they see. The latest example is the final design for a dramatically revamped Ontario Place, announced by Ford this week. Article content Article content Drawings show a spectacular-looking future for the decrepit, provincially owned waterfront park. As the government puts it, 'The reimagined Ontario Place will offer more than 50 acres of free public trails, expanded green space, playgrounds, interactive fountains, new beaches, event spaces and an updated marina, all designed to create a world-class waterfront destination that will attract up to six million visitors every year.' Article content Nevertheless, some Torontonians are upset because the site will include a parking garage for the convenience of wrongheaded people who insist on using cars. This follows the scandal of a waterpark and spa that will be owned by a private company, even though the land it sits on is public. Then there is the plan to build a new Ontario Science Centre at Ontario Place. How many more of these horrible blows will Torontonians have to endure? Article content Article content Despite the new Ontario Place's obvious attractions, the parking garage was the main item in media coverage. It's glass-sided and not bad looking, for a parking garage. The government says the 3,500-space garage will cost $400 million to build and generate $60 million in gross revenue annually. If so, it's not a bad investment for taxpayers. Article content Article content And yet, Toronto NDP MPP Chris Glover said the government shouldn't try 'to make money off the backs of the people of Ontario to access their own parkland.' Toronto city councillor Ausma Malik complained because the garage blocks the view of the waterfront. Local news site BlogTO called the garage 'obnoxiously huge.' Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said the reimagined Ontario Place 'is not revitalization. It is a reckless misuse of public land and a waste of money.' Article content
CTV News
26-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Toronto City Council votes to permit sixplexes in nine wards
Toronto City Council has approved a motion that will allow low-rise sixplexes in a nine wards. Staff initially recommended that councillors permit sixplexes in detached residential buildings in low-rise residential neighbourhoods city-wide. 'Expanding multiplex permissions will increase new low-rise housing options for Torontonians. New residents in low-rise neighbourhoods can help stabilize declining populations, optimize the use of existing infrastructure, and support local retail establishments and services,' staff said in its report last month. However, during Wednesday's city council meeting, not all councillors supported the recommendation. Coun. Gord Perks, who is the chair of the housing committee, then put forward a motion that would permit sixplexes in the downtown Toronto and East York wards and in Scarborough North. The remaining wards have the option to join later. 'I'm moving this very reluctantly,' Perks said while presenting his motion. 'I've spent a considerable amount of time and effort working with my colleagues on council trying to find a majority support for doing what this council already committed to in 2023, which is citywide sixplexes, but I've been unable to find that.' Permitting sixplexes is included in one of the eight initiatives the city must deliver over three years under the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) agreement with the federal government in exchange for $471 million. In a letter in March, the federal government gave Mayor Olivia Chow a June 30 deadline to report to council with opportunities and bylaws to allow more low-rise, multi-unit housing development across Toronto, which includes sixplexes. The letter also provided extended timelines for several other housing initiatives. 'As we work to ensure compliance with over 200 HAF agreements across Canada, we are establishing consequences for non-compliance. In this case, if Toronto does not fully implement the above initiatives and milestones by the newly extended timeline, the federal government will cut funding equivalent to 25 per cent of the annual payment,' the letter read. So far, the city has received $235.56 million of the $471 million. Perks said his motion would create some risk with its relationship with the federal government. 'There is a potential that funds that have already been dispersed in the City of Toronto could be clawed back, meaning that affordable housing projects that we already have plans for in the City of Toronto could fall by the wayside,' Perks said. He shared that some councillors spoke to their Liberal MPs, who told them that the city didn't need sixplexes. 'So, I say to the federal government, if you want, if you want to achieve this citywide, tell the members of your Toronto caucus to stop giving Toronto city councillors mixed messages,' Perks said. His motion passed. 'I am confident that, as more people see the benefits of missing middle housing, where average rent is $830 cheaper than condos and 65% of units are family-sized, more councillors will also opt in,' Mayor Chow said in a statement following the vote.
CTV News
19-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Torontonians ‘mad as hell', Bradford says, pushing to temporarily reopen King Street amid traffic gridlock
Toronto city councillor Brad Bradford has laid out a plan to help relieve gridlock by reopening a portion of King Street. Natalie Johnson reports. Toronto city councillor Brad Bradford says the city must act on what he calls a 'common-sense' solution to worsening downtown gridlock: reopen a key stretch of King Street to vehicles until major construction wraps later this summer. Standing near the closed King and Church streets on Thursday, Bradford said downtown congestion has surged since the intersection was shut earlier this month to replace a 142-year-old watermain. With no streetcars currently using King Street between Spadina Avenue and Church Street, Bradford says he plans to introduce a motion at next week's council meeting to temporarily allow cars back onto the corridor. It's a move he says is already backed by businesses and residents in the area. 'What I'm hearing from Torontonians is that they are mad as hell with the congestion in the downtown core,' Bradford told reporters. 'They want the city to take it seriously. They want the mayor to step up and do something. If she's not prepared to do that, I will.' Construction closures bringing traffic to a crawl In addition to replacing the watermain, the work along the King-Church includes rebuilding TTC streetcar tracks. Watermain construction at King and Church intersection causing traffic, commute chaos Watermain construction at King and Church intersection causing traffic, commute chaos However, Bradford argues that no streetcars have been running through the corridor, with several routes instead using Richmond and Adelaide streets. 'These streets are already under pressure from the Ontario Line construction, lane closures and everyday commuting,' Bradford said. 'Now there are four busy streetcar lines moving more than street 30 streetcars per hour that have been diverted onto Richmond and Adelaide.' Bradford emphasized that due to this overflow, it makes little sense to restrict King Street when streetcars don't use it. Rethinking a traffic strategy Bradford's motion, seconded by Coun. Stephen Holyday, also calls on the city's Deputy City Manager of Infrastructure Services to develop better strategies for managing congestion ahead of major downtown infrastructure work — something he explains is even more urgent because the city's planned 'congestion czar' has yet to be appointed. That czar role was approved by council in April, part of Mayor Olivia Chow's wider congestion strategy. But a report on what the role will entail isn't due until July 10. In a response sent to CTV News Toronto, Chow's office released a statement suggesting they have sped up construction in the area by 'one full month' and that 'Bradford has not yet shared his motion with our office.' Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow speaks to reporters on Saturday, March 8, 2025. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press) Instead, Chow plans to bring her own motion forward at council next week in collaboration with Coun. Chris Moise and Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik. Chow's office says this motion aims to 'ease congestion' by working with the TTC, transportation services and the Financial District BIA to 'manage temporary loading zones in specific areas.' 'This has been considered at city council repeatedly,' the email reads. 'We are always open to exploring new solutions to speed up traffic.' Meanwhile, another staff report suggested that Toronto's 5,600-kilometre road network has not expanded in decades, despite massive growth in construction activity and traffic volume. Last summer, up to 24 per cent of city roads were closed at one time, more than doubling travel times. The report also highlighted the city plans to have 67 traffic agents in place by summer — but enforcement alone may not be enough, Bradford suggests. 'This is about using common sense and looking for creative solutions to our problems,' Bradford said. 'We should be making better use of all the corridors that are available at our disposal when we can, particularly one that is significantly underutilized right now.' A 'segregated' east end feeling left out, Bradford says While the King–Church intersection isn't in Bradford's Beaches–East York ward, he says the consequences of downtown congestion are city-wide — particularly for residents east of Yonge Street. 'Respectfully, a lot of people from the east end of the city feel entirely cut off from the downtown core,' Bradford said. 'When they took that ramp down on the Gardiner, they segregated the east end of Toronto and made it very difficult and painful to get into the core, and we're still dealing with the impacts of that.' Gardiner Expressway Westbound traffic is seen on the Gardiner Expressway in Toronto, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press) 'I'm standing up for everybody east of Yonge that's having a hard time getting into the core, and folks from out in Etobicoke, North York, trying to get downtown.' Developers and business leaders have also lined up behind the motion, warning that gridlock is hurting the city's economic engine. 'Fixing Toronto's mobility crisis requires action, not just talk,' said Jon Love, executive chair of KingSett Capital. 'There's no reason for King Street to be reserved for streetcar priority when there are no streetcars running on it.' Leona Savoie, co-chair of NAIOP Greater Toronto's government relations committee, called the motion 'a common-sense solution to alleviate congestion and get Toronto moving again.' A bid for mayor? Notably, Bradford was asked several times during Thursday's news conference about whether he was trying to lay the groundwork for a future mayoral run, to which he said: 'I have not made any decision on that... As a member of the 25 councillors and 26 including the mayor, it is becoming on all of us to stand up and fight on the issues that are important for people that are trying to call the city home.'
CBC
14-06-2025
- General
- CBC
Toronto should allow sixplexes to bring 'gentle density' to city, council committee says
Toronto has moved one step closer to allowing fiveplexes and sixplexes in neighbourhoods across the city. At its meeting on Thursday, the city's planning and housing committee approved recommendations from city staff to allow multiplexes with five and six dwelling units in detached residential buildings in low-rise neighbourhoods city-wide. A report to the committee said the move would help to bring "gentle density" to residential neighbourhoods in Toronto. Coun. Gord Perks, who represents Parkdale High Park and is committee chair, said the city is trying to add different housing types to neighbourhoods. He said most of the housing stock in Toronto is either single-family dwellings or apartment and condo units. "We're trying to build more of this sort of intermediate type housing," he said. "I think it's very important that we arrange to have a whole array of different housing types in our neighbourhoods. We need places for young families. We need places for people who are getting their first apartment. We need places for seniors who maybe can't maintain a big place all by themselves and want to stay in the same neighbourhood in a smaller unit. It's very important for the health of our neighbourhoods that we have a variety of housing types." The sixplexes would not be allowed in semi-detached houses or townhouses. A large group of Torontonians turned up to express their views at the committee meeting. Many said they were in favour of the changes, but some said the changes would be too much too fast. Last September, council decided to permit multiplex housing across the city. In February in Ward 23 as part of a pilot project, staff studied the potential of permitting low-rise multiplexes with up to six dwelling units and with heights of up to four storeys. As part of the sixplex item, the committee approved a recommendation on the height permissions of multiplex buildings. The committee will recommend to council that the city amend its zoning rules to increase the maximum height of buildings containing multiplexes from 10 metres to 10.5 metres. Such a move would allow an increase in basement ceiling heights "to improve liveability and access to daylight" for basement units that will be part of the fiveplexes and sixplexes, city staff said. "Expanding multiplex permissions will increase new low-rise housing options for Torontonians. New residents in low-rise neighbourhoods can help stabilize declining populations, optimize the use of existing infrastructure, and support local retail establishments and services," a report by the chief planner Jason Thorne says. Adopting the recommendations would mark a "significant milestone" in meeting Toronto's commitments under the federal Housing Accelerator Fund to allow more low-rise, multi-unit housing development through as-of-right zoning bylaws in its neighbourhoods, according to the report. As-of-right means developers do not need obtain individual zoning approvals in these areas. 'This is about housing equity and liveability' Residents came to the committee meeting with prepared statements. Blair Scorgie, a registered professional planner, urban designer and managing principal of Scourgie Planning, told the committee he supports the recommendations from city staff. "These reforms are a natural and necessary evolution of the city's existing multiplex framework," he said. The recommendations respond "to what residents, planners and housing providers across the city have all recognized — that our low-rise neighbourhoods must evolve if we are to remain equitable, liveable and resilient," he said. "This is about housing equity and liveability. Allowing up to six units in detached buildings will unlock ground-related homes for families, seniors, newcomers and multigenerational households — people who are too often excluded from neighbourhoods built around a single housing type." 'Sixplex in a sea of bungalows sticks out like a sore thumb' Natalie Pihura, a Toronto resident, told the committee that approving sixplexes is not a good idea because residents already have many issues with multiplexes, including parking, privacy, flooding, "neighbourhood fabric deterioration" and school enrolment problems. Residents of Martin Grove Gardens in Etobicoke have gathered 500 signatures on a petition opposed to multiplexes and sixplexes, which Pihura said she will resubmit the petition to council. "A sixplex in a sea of bungalows sticks out like a sore thumb," she said. "Using the as-of-right paintbrush rams the wants of developers who only care about making money over the actual residents who have already invested in their community," she continued. "Right sized housing in the right areas is the right decision." Carolyn Whitzman, a senior housing researcher at the University of Toronto's school of cities, said in an interview after the meeting that the changes being proposed to council are in step with the moves made by city councils across Ontario and Canada. "I think that it's becoming increasingly obvious to city councils across Canada, including Toronto, that there's no way that they are going to be able to meet their housing targets without making fairly radical changes to zoning," Whitzman said. Council will consider the sixplex item at its meeting that begins on June 25.
