Chris Denich

The court considered a dispute between neighbouring commercial property owners after repeated basement flooding at 1330 Gerrard Inc., attributed to a rain garden installed by Riverdale Immigrant Women Enterprises.

The court found that the rain garden, as constructed and maintained, was the proximate cause of the flooding and ordered its removal and replacement with a conventional drainpipe.

The court also addressed the application of the rule in Rylands v. Fletcher, finding strict liability appropriate due to the non-natural use of land.

The court declined to order further invasive remedies, adopting a "wait and see" approach regarding potential structural damage.

The Applicant appealed the City's failure to make a decision on a draft Plan of Subdivision for 186 residential units.

The central issues were whether the proposed Low-Impact Development (LID) stormwater treatment train was appropriate instead of a traditional stormwater management pond, and whether the proposed density and mix of dwellings conformed to the Secondary Plan.

The Tribunal found that the LID approach was appropriate, cost-effective, and aligned with provincial and municipal policies encouraging innovative stormwater solutions.

However, the Tribunal found that the proposed townhouses for certain blocks exceeded density caps and required back-to-back or rear lane typologies to conform.

The appeal was allowed in part on an interim basis, with the final order withheld pending the submission of revised plans and joint conditions of approval.