Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: October 08, 2024
CASE NO(S).: OLT-24-000656
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(19) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Appellant: Jane Bloor LP
Subject: By-law No. 569-2013
Description: To permit a 12-storey mixed-use building
Reference Number: 23 181154 STE 04 OZ
Property Address: 2453-2469 Bloor Street West
Municipality/UT: Toronto
OLT Case No.: OLT-24-000656
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-24-000656
OLT Case Name: Jane Bloor LP v. Toronto (City)
Heard: September 17, 2024 by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
| Parties | Counsel / Representative* |
|---|---|
| Jane Bloor LP | Matthew Helfand (Aird & Berlis LLP) |
| City of Toronto | Matthew Longo & Jyoti Zuidema |
| Swansea Area Ratepayers’ Group | Veronica Wynne* |
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY M. QUESNEL ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2024 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1This first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) was held in respect of an appeal filed pursuant to subsections 34(19) of the Planning Act concerning the refusal by the City of Toronto (“City”) of applications to amend the City’s Zoning By-Law (“Application”) in respect of the property known as 2453-2469 Bloor Street West, Toronto (“Subject Property”).
2The Application was filed by Jane Bloor LP (“Applicant/Appellant”) to appeal the City Council decision accepting to amend its zoning by-law with a modified version of the Applicant’s proposed by-law which included a reduction in height to 10 storeys. The initial application submitted to the City was to permit the redevelopment of land in order to build a 12-storey mixed-use building on the property municipally known as 2453-5469 Bloor Street West, Toronto.
NOTICE
3An Affidavit of Service sworn on July 29, 2024, attesting to the giving of notice for this proceeding, was marked as Exhibit 1.
REQUESTS FOR STATUS
4In advance of this CMC, the Tribunal received a request for Party status from the Swansea Area Ratepayers’ Group (“SARG”). SARG President Veronica Wynne appeared on their behalf, indicating that it is the wishes of SARG through this appeal to protect the interests of the neighbourhood. Having reviewed the request, the Tribunal finds that SARG’s participation in the hearing of this appeal is reasonable and necessary to enable the Tribunal to effectively and completely adjudicate the proceedings. No objections were raised by the Applicant/Appellant nor by the City to the request, but the Applicant did raise the issue that SARG will need to make sure to respect rule 8.3 of the OLT Rules of Practice and Procedure regarding the role and obligations of a Party and that a non-Appellant party may participate in a proceeding but may not raise nor introduce a new issue. SARG did acknowledge that they are aware of the rules. The Tribunal granted SARG Party status.
PROCEDURAL ORDER AND ISSUES LIST
5The Tribunal was provided with a draft Procedural Order (“PO”) without an Issues List (“IL”) in advance of the CMC. At the CMC, the Parties asked for additional time to refine and streamline a final PO and IL, as a modified application will be newly filed with the Applicant and the Issues List might change. The Parties agreed that a longer period of time than usual is necessary and has requested that the PO and IL be filed by the end of October of 2024. The Parties were directed to submit a final PO and IL to the Tribunal by October 31, 2024.
MEDIATION
6The Parties will continue discussions with a view to scoping or resolving various issues. The Parties are aware of Tribunal-led mediation and will request same if desired.
HEARING DATES
7At the request of the Parties, the Tribunal scheduled a five-day hearing event to be held by video, commencing on Monday, March 24th, 2025 at 10 a.m.
8The Merit Hearing is scheduled to proceed by video from Monday, March 24, 2025 at 10 a.m. to Friday, March 28, 2025 from 10 a.m. to 5:00 pm each day for five (5) days.
9Parties and/or Participants and/or Observers are asked to log in to the event at least 15 minutes before it begins to test their video and audio connections:
GoTo Meeting: https://meet.goto.com/680885805
Access code: 680-885-805
10Parties and/or 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 GoTo Meeting or a web application is available: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html
11Persons who experience technical difficulties accessing the GoTo Meeting application or who only wish to listen to the event can connect to it by calling in to an audio-only telephone line: +1 (647) 497-9373 or Toll-Free 1-888-299-1889. The access code is: 680-885-805.
12Individuals 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 event to ensure that they are properly connected at the correct time. Questions prior to the event may be directed to the Tribunal’s Case Coordinator.
ORDER
13The Tribunal confers Party status to Swansea Area Ratepayers’ Group.
14The Tribunal orders that the Procedural Order and Issues List be submitted to the Tribunal on or before October 31, 2024.
15The Tribunal orders that a five-day (5-day) Merit Hearing shall commence at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 24, 2025 and is scheduled to conclude at 5 p.m. on Friday, March 28, 2025.
16The directions set out above are so ordered by the Tribunal.
17No further notice is required.
18The Member is not seized of this matter.
“Mathieu Quesnel”
Mathieu Quesnel
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.