Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: March 30, 2023
CASE NO(S).: OLT-22-002812 (Formerly PL180688)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended.
Appellant
Tilzen Holdings Limited
Subject:
Request to amend the Official Plan – Refusal of request
Description:
To permit the construction of an 11-storey mixed use building with retail on the ground floor
Reference Number:
17 264567 NNY 23 OZ
Property Address:
145 Sheppard Avenue East
Municipality/UT:
Toronto/Toronto
OLT Case No:
OLT-22-002812
Legacy Case No:
PL180688
OLT Lead Case No:
OLT-22-002812
Legacy Lead Case No:
PL180688
OLT Case Name:
Tilzen Holdings Limited v. Toronto (City)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended.
Appellant
Tilzen Holdings Limited
Subject:
Application to amend the Zoning By-law – Refusal or neglect to make a decision
Description:
To permit the construction of an 11-storey mixed use building with retail on the ground floor
Reference Number:
17 264567 NNY 23 OZ
Property Address:
145 Sheppard Avenue East
Municipality/UT:
Toronto/Toronto
OLT Case No:
OLT-22-003741
Legacy Case No:
PL180307
OLT Lead Case No:
OLT-22-002812
Legacy Lead Case No:
PL180688
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 114(15) of the City of Toronto Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 11, Sched. A.
Appellant
Tilzen Holdings Limited
Subject:
Site Plan
Description:
To permit the construction of an 11-storey mixed use building with retail on the ground floor
Reference Number:
17 264570 NNY 23 SA
Property Address:
145 Sheppard Avenue East
Municipality/UT:
Toronto/Toronto
OLT Case No:
OLT-22-003739
Legacy Case No:
MM180036
OLT Lead Case No:
OLT-22-002812
Legacy Lead Case No:
PL180688
Heard:
March 20, 2023, by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
Parties
Counsel/Representative*
Tilzen Holdings Limited
Daniel Artenosi
City of Toronto
Mark Crawford
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY GREGORY J. INGRAM AND T.F. NG AND ON MARCH 20, 2023
INTRODUCTION
1This is the first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) for an appeal of the refusal of an Official Plan Amendment (“OPA”). A previous prehearing conference had been held for the Site Plan (“SP”) and the Zoning By-law Amendment appeal (“ZBA”). Tilzen Holdings Limited (“Applicant/Appellant”) has filed these appeals against the City of Toronto (“City”) pursuant to s. 22 (7), s.34(11) of the Planning Act, and s.114(15) of the City of Toronto Act. The Subject Property is known municipally as 145 Sheppard Ave. E., Toronto. The OPA appeal is currently separate and not consolidated with the SP and ZBA appeals.
2The purpose of this CMC is to determine if there are additional persons or organizations who seek Participant or Party status, review overall progress, investigate opportunities for mediation or settlement and establish a plan for next steps.
3The application(s) under appeal is for a development that would include 55 residential units, 6,305 square metres (sq m) of residential gross floor area and 205 sq m of retail gross floor area. The underground parking garage would have 47 vehicle parking spaces and 38 long-term bicycle parking spaces. The Subject Property is designated as Mixed Use Areas by the City of Toronto Official Plan, and is located immediately north of an area with a Neighbourhoods land use designation. The City of Toronto refused the plan and the applicant appealed the refusal under s. 22(7) of the Planning Act. to the Ontario Land Tribunal on October 14, 2022.
4The Affidavit of Service for notice of the OPA appeal sworn March 2, 2023, in the City of Toronto, was entered as Exhibit 1A.
PARTY STATUS REQUEST
5There was one request for Party Status received by the Tribunal on March 20, 2023, at 9:17 a.m. from A. Platt, counsel representing Jiljan Inc. and Romby Investments Limited of 143 Sheppard Ave. East. This property is adjacent to the subject lands. It was suggested by the Appellant, with the consent of the City, that they be given time to consult with Jiljan Inc. and Romby Investments Limited to understand and hopefully resolve their issues before the next hearing. Mr. Platt was also supportive of this suggestion and offered that, while they may be able to resolve their issues, he expects that his client may still want to be considered for Party Status.
6The Tribunal will defer the Party Status request of Jiljan Inc. and Romby Investments until the next CMC or Hearing regarding this application.
7No requests for Participant Status were received.
OVERVIEW AND UPDATE
8D. Artenosi, counsel for the Applicant, provided the Tribunal with an overview of the subject lands, surrounding area and the various land uses in proximity. He noted that previous planning priorities related to this property have not proceeded for a variety of reasons and it is his intention for this process to solely focus on the removal of the subject property from the secondary plan. It is his goal to see the property governed by the ‘general mixed use’ designation in the Official Plan.
9Mr. Artenosi indicated that discussions with the City are progressing and he is confident that a proposal coming to the City’s council in July 2023 will have a positive impact on the parties being able to reach a settlement. Given the progress being made with the City, counsel requested that a future CMC be scheduled in early September 2023. He indicated that this additional time would be used to continue the progress with the City and allow time to resolve issues raised by Jiljan Inc. and Romby Investments. In addition, he expects that a commitment to a Settlement Hearing or a Merit Hearing could be made to the Tribunal two weeks prior to an established CMC date in September 2023. In the case of a Merit Hearing, it is his expectation that a Procedural Order and Issues List would be provided at that time.
10Mr. Crawford, counsel for the City of Toronto, agreed with the overview and supported the plan proposed by Mr. Artenosi.
MEDIATION
11The Tribunal inquired about Tribunal led mediation. Both Parties indicated that they believe they can continue to have successful mediation through their own process and Ontario Land Tribunal provided mediation is not necessary at this time.
DISPOSITION
12The Tribunal will schedule a CMC pursuant to the parties’ request. Parties will update the Tribunal on the status of discussions by August 23, 2023, and indicate if they are prepared to move to a Settlement Hearing, in which event the CMC will be converted to a Settlement Hearing. If the matter is contested then it is expected that a Draft Procedural Order and Issues list will be provided to the case coordinator by August 23, 2023, and parties are to finalize the Procedural Order at the CMC .
13The second CMC is scheduled to proceed by video on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, at 10:00 a.m.
14Parties and participants are asked to log into the video hearing at least 15 minutes before the start of the event to test their video and audio connections.
GoTo Meeting: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/979388733
Access code: 979-388-733
15Parties and participants are asked to access and set up the application well in advance of the event to avoid unnecessary delay. The desktop application can be downloaded at GoToMeeting or a web application is available: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html
16Persons who experience technical difficulties accessing the GoToMeeting application or who only wish to listen to the event can connect to the event by calling into an audio-only telephone line: +1 (647) 497-9373 or (Toll-Free) 1-(888) 299-1889. The access code is 979-388-733.
17Individuals are directed to connect to the event on the assigned date at the correct time. It is the responsibility of the persons participating in the hearing by video to ensure that they are properly connected to the event at the correct time. Questions prior to the hearing event may be directed to the Tribunal’s Case Coordinator having carriage of this case.
18No further notice will be given.
19The Panel Members are not seized.
ORDER
THE TRIBUNAL ORDERS:
a. That the Party request of Jiljan Inc. and Romby Investments Limited be deferred until the next CMC.
b. That a Case Management Conference (CMC) commence by video hearing on September 6, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. The CMC may be converted to a Settlement Hearing.
c. That in the event the matter is not resolved, the parties are to provide a Procedural Order and Issues List on or before August 23, 2023. The Parties shall be ready to finalize the Procedural Order at the CMC.
“Gregory J. Ingram”
GREGORY J. INGRAM MEMBER
“T.F. Ng”
T.F. NG
MEMBER
Website: olt.gov.on.ca Telephone: 416-212-6349 Toll Free: 1-866-448-2248
The Conservation Review Board, the Environmental Review Tribunal, the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal and the Mining and Lands Tribunal are amalgamated and continued as the Ontario Land Tribunal (“Tribunal”). Any reference to the preceding tribunals or the former Ontario Municipal Board is deemed to be a reference to the Tribunal.