Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: August 18, 2023
CASE NO(S).: OLT-23-000200
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant: NHD Developments Limited
Subject: Zoning Bylaw Amendment
Description: To permit two 45-storey residential towers connected by 8-storey podium & one 35-storey residential tower
Property Address: 4001 Steeles Avenue West, 5000 Jane Street, and 360 Hullmar Drive
Municipality/UT: Toronto
Municipal File No.: 22 140023 WET 07 OZ
OLT Case No.: OLT-23-000200
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-23-000200
OLT Case Name: NHD Developments Limited v. Toronto (City)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 114(15) of the City of Toronto Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 11, as amended
Applicant and Appellant: NHD Developments Limited
Subject: Site Plan Approval
Description: To permit two 45-storey residential towers connected by 8-storey podium & one 35-storey residential tower
Property Address: 4001 Steeles Avenue West, 5000 Jane Street, and 360 Hullmar Drive
Municipality/UT: Toronto
Municipal File No.: 22 140023 WET 07 OZ
OLT Case No.: OLT-23-000201
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-23-000200
OLT Case Name:
Heard: July 31, 2023 by video hearing
APPEARANCES:
| Parties | Counsel |
|---|---|
| NHD Developments Limited | Christopher Tanzola Justine Reyes |
| City of Toronto | Sarah O’Connor |
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY C. HARDY ON JULY 31, 2023 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
1This Decision relates to appeals brought pursuant to s. 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended and s. 114(15) of the City of Toronto Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 11 as amended from the failure of the City of Toronto (“City”) to make a decision within the statutory timeframes of the Act with respect to applications for a Zoning By-law Amendment (“ZBA”) and Site Plan Approval (“SPA”). The appeals have been filed by NHD Developments Limited (“Appellant”) regarding properties known municipally as 4001 Steeles Avenue West, 5000 Jane Street and 360 Hullmar Drive, Toronto (together referred to as the “Subject Property”).
2The Subject Property is approximately 4.16 hectares (“ha”) with frontages of approximately 245 metres (“m”) along Steeles Avenue West, 195 m along Jane Street and 262 m along Hullmar Drive. The Subject Property currently contains one 14-storey rental apartment building, one 17-storey residential apartment building, surface parking, underground parking and a two-storey commercial plaza building.
3The Appellant intends to redevelop the Subject Property with two residential buildings consisting of two 45-storey residential towers connected by an eight-storey podium and a 35-storey residential tower together with a three-level underground parking garage (“Proposed Development”). The Proposed Development would contain a total of 1,621 residential units and 722 parking spaces with a total of 109,193 square metres (“m2”) of total gross floor area and a proposed density of 2.64 times the area of the Subject Property. The Proposed Development will retain the existing apartment buildings (containing 647 residential rental units) and the existing commercial plaza building.
4On July 31, 2023, the Tribunal held its first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) at which it addressed procedural issues, the identification of Parties and Participants, and the scheduling of upcoming hearing events.
Procedural Matters
5The Tribunal confirmed with the Parties that there were no issues with service of Notice for the CMC and as such, no further notice is required. The Tribunal was in receipt of the Affidavit of Service of Justine Reyes sworn July 12, 2023, which was marked as Exhibit 1.
6The Appellant submitted that the ZBA and the SPA appeals progress together but noted that there was uncertainty whether the SPA appeal would be fully addressed at the merit hearing. The City agreed and added that the SPA appeal could be held in abeyance pending the outcome of the ZBA appeal.
7The Tribunal directed the Parties to engage in further discussions regarding how to progress the ZBA and SPA appeals and provide the Tribunal with a status update as set out in paragraph [17] below.
Requests for Status
8Prior to the CMC, the Tribunal was not in receipt of any requests for Party or Participant status. In response to the Tribunal’s inquiry, there were no persons or entities present at the CMC requesting Party or Participant status.
Opportunities for Settlement
9The Parties agreed that it is premature to assess settlement opportunities and jointly advised the Tribunal that the City anticipates receiving instructions on how to proceed with the appeals following the City Council meeting scheduled for December 13-15, 2023.
10The Tribunal reminded the Parties of the availability of Tribunal-led mediation in the event it is determined that this would be beneficial to progress the appeals.
Next Steps
11The Parties advised that the City required additional time to allow City Council to provide directions and confirm proposed issues. As such, the Parties jointly requested that the Tribunal schedule a second CMC following the City Council meeting scheduled for December 13-15, 2023. The Parties agreed to work together prior to the second CMC to prepare a draft Procedural Order including Issues Lists to submit to the Tribunal prior to the second CMC.
12Upon hearing the submissions of the Parties, the Tribunal agreed that a second CMC is appropriate to efficiently progress the appeals. The Tribunal scheduled a second CMC by video hearing on Friday January 12, 2024 commencing at 10 am.
13Parties 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 Conference Link: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/687587165
Access code: 687-587-165
14Parties 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
15Persons 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: (Toll Free): 1-888-299-1889 or +1 (647) 497-9373. The access code is same as mentioned above.
16Individuals 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.
17On or before January 10, 2024, the Parties will submit a draft Procedural Order and Issues Lists for the Tribunal’s review and approval at the second CMC. In addition, as set out in paragraph [7] above, on or before January 10, 2024, the Parties will provide the Tribunal with a status update regarding their discussions on how the ZBA and SPA appeals will proceed.
18The Appellant requested that the Tribunal schedule a ten-day hearing for the appeals. The Appellant submitted that it is in an onerous position if it cannot schedule a hearing of its appeals as a result of the City requiring a further four months to obtain direction from City Council on an Issues List and instructions on how to proceed. The Appellant was concerned that waiting until the second CMC to set hearing dates would significantly delay the appeals.
19The City agreed that a ten-day hearing would be appropriate and requested that the hearing be scheduled in the fall, 2024 to allow the Parties time to attempt to resolve any technical issues and allow the City to seek direction, if required, in the event the Appellant submits a revised proposal.
20The Tribunal noted that in the absence of a draft Procedural Order and Issues List it is challenging to estimate the number of hearing days required. However, upon hearing the submissions of the Parties, the Tribunal found that waiting until the second CMC to schedule the hearing would unfairly delay the Appellant from having the appeals progress efficiently. The Tribunal scheduled a 10-day video hearing commencing Tuesday November 12, 2024. The Tribunal will not sit on Monday November 18, 2024 and Tuesday November 19, 2024.
21Parties 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 Conference Link: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/914098901
Access code: 914-098-901
22Parties 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
23Persons 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: (Toll Free): 1-888-299-1889 or +1 (647) 497-9373. The access code is same as mentioned above.
24Individuals 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.
ORDER
25The Tribunal directs the Parties to submit to the Case Management Coordinator a draft Procedural Order and Issues Lists together with a status update on the ZBA and SPA appeals on or before January 10, 2024.
26The Tribunal orders that a second CMC in this matter will be held by video hearing on January 12, 2024 at 10 a.m.
27The Tribunal orders that the hearing in this matter will be held by video hearing commencing on November 12, 2024 at 10 a.m. Ten days have been set aside. The Tribunal will not sit on November 18, 2024 and November 19, 2024.
28The Member is not seized, however, will remain available for case management subject to the Tribunal’s calendar.
“C. Hardy”
c. hardy
MEMBER
Ontario Land Tribunal
Website: www.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.