New rules could limit Building Heights

[MisterF]

This last one really gets me.
Imagine you get your project rejected because your facade wasn't "well articulated" "Oh, we felt there was a lack of interplay of rhythm between transparent glass and solid materials". That statement is ridiculous. That is a regulation?
I am sure there is a appeal process but these regulations take a lot power away from the property owner.

It's a guideline, not a regulation. It's applied within the context of the Official Plan. Here's how it works - a developer submits a proposal with a less than stellar streetscape. City staff send comments back saying as much. The developer changes their plan and resubmits. Staff only recommend approval when they're satisfied with the proposal. And yes, if the developer refuses to follow city policy the project could get turned down. How the podium, especially the first floor, interacts with the street is extremely important and is probably the biggest weakness of many recent condo towers.

One problem I have with these regulations is that they do not take into consideration whether there is any demand for these retail spaces.

I'd imagine that they took demand into account when they identified Priority Retail Streets, which is where retail is required.

 

[Mike in TO]

Actually, they are. The maximum heights mentioned in the report are just that. There would be NO allowable exceptions to the height limits -- which are so low that most of the tall projects currently planned or under construction would not be allowed. Toronto currently has the largest construction boom in North America. That would no longer be the case under the proposed plan.

Mongo and Peepers,

They are guidelines - any development proponent can submit an application that does not conform to all of the guidelines and the planning department will review the application based on the merits of the application with reference to the broader legislative framework governing planning on Ontario and the City of Toronto. The Tall Building Guidelines will certainly be referenced, will inform the decision making and negotiation process and they will certainly have an impact on recommendations to council. Planning is not about hard and fast rules - every site is different and presents both challenges and opportunities as well as a variety of interests that have to appropriately be balanced. Ultimately it becomes a political decision. Furthermore there absolutely will be exceptions and exemptions granted on a site-by-site basis - again these are "guidelines".

I would encourage both of you to consider submitting your concerns to the city for review under the consultation process as there will be plenty of comments from other residents and ratepayer groups requesting a more stingent application of the guidelines and even lower height limits.

Lastly there are a lot of positive elements within the report - but some people seem to be fixated on one aspect of the report - also I don't think Aura would have had too difficult a time being approved had these guidelines been in effect - it is a unique strategic site and would have conformed to a number of the guidelines and certainly reflects the goals and objectives of the PPS, Growth Plan and OP.

 

[4land]

See, and I just got through arguing about this. Toronto is falling behind.

Agreed if this keep going toronto will really fall behind.

 

[drunkmunky]

As a future architect, I want to voice that tall buildings can only be developed without sustainability in mind. Their impact on the greater environment is vast. The increased density, increased energy consumption and floor space redundancy due to structural requirements makes them energy hogs.

Some of the 17 regulations behind the tall buildings downtown project have very critical flaws. I don't want to break down the issues with each one as that would be a masters thesis but if anyone has questions or concerns, I'm willing to converse.

 

[dlam]

As a future architect, I want to voice that tall buildings can only be developed without sustainability in mind. Their impact on the greater environment is vast. The increased density, increased energy consumption and floor space redundancy due to structural requirements makes them energy hogs.

Some of the 17 regulations behind the tall buildings downtown project have very critical flaws. I don't want to break down the issues with each one as that would be a masters thesis but if anyone has questions or concerns, I'm willing to converse.

Very interesting point, I agree with you to some degree. Then, at what level is the optimum building height/level to promote sustainability? (Obvious answer is zero building height, but assuming that you have to build something for people to live/work/play.)

 

[drunkmunky]

I don't want to go off topic with a sustainability thread, so I'll try to keep on topic as best as I can.

Let's take a look at residential, multi-unit construction for the reason that it is the single most prevalent form of new construction within the downtown core.

An immediate effect of density is the impact on municipal infrastructure.

There are only 27 buildings taking part in the cities efforts to reduce potable water consumption via the low-flow retrofit program. Multi-unit construction within Toronto uses 60% greater potable water usage than typical residential construction.

That's just water. Let's not talk about thermal performance or building construction.

 

[buildup]

I am not convinced we are comparing apples-to-apples here. Apartments and condo towers tend to be occupied by renters as compared to houses. That explains the water consumption since renters just dont care.

Secondly these building do put more stress on infrastructure, but new sub-divisions require brand new infrastructure. No-one in Forest Hill or Etobicoke walks to work, whereas I use my car 2-3 times per month.

Finally, are you saying towers use more material than houses? That's hard to believe since my walls, ceilings, floors are shared with adjacent units.

 

[Ramako]

This is coming before Toronto and East York Community Council on February 14.

Dear Sir/Madame:

Further to your request for notification of further meetings and related activities with regard to the Downtown Tall Buildings Project, the Project co-ordinators would like to notify you and/or your organization that the Downtown Tall Buildings Report and Downtown Tall Buildings Vision and Performance Standards Guidelines (Attachments 1 through 7 of the Report) have been posted on the City of Toronto website.

The Report is scheduled to be before Toronto and East York Community Council on February 14, 2012, at noon, in Committee Room 1, City Hall.

The following links have been provided for your convenience:

Agenda: http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/decisio...on=doPrepare&meetingId=5594#Meeting-2012.TE13

February 27, 2012 Report from the Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District and the Director, Urban Design - Downtown Tall Buildings Project - Consultant's Study, Public Consultation and Implementation: http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2012/te/bgrd/backgroundfile-44938.pdf

Attachments to the Report - Downtown Tall Buildings Project - Consultant's Study, Public Consultation and Implementation: http://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2012/te/bgrd/backgroundfile-44939.pdf

Making a deputation:

Secretariat Contact: Ros Dyers
2nd Floor, West Tower, City Hall
100 Queen St. W.
Toronto, ON M5H 2N2

email: teycc@toronto.ca
phone: 416-392-7033
fax: 416-397-0111

Notice to people writing or making presentations to the Toronto and East York Community Council:

The City of Toronto Act, 2006 and the City of Toronto Municipal Code authorize the City of Toronto to collect any personal information in your communication or presentation to City Council or its committees. The City collects this information to enable it to make informed decisions on the relevant issue(s). If you are submitting letters, faxes, e-mails, presentations or other communications to the City, you should be aware that your name and the fact that you communicated with the City will become part of the public record and will appear on the City's website. The City will also make your communication and any personal information in it - such as your postal address, telephone number or e-mail address - available to the public, unless you expressly request the City to remove it. The City makes a video record of committee and community council meetings. If you make a presentation to a committee or community council, the City will be video-recording you and City staff may make the video record available to the public.

Further Questions with regard to this Report: Contact us at tallbuildings@toronto.ca

Report Summary

The purpose of this report is to inform City Council of the "Tall Buildings, Inviting Change in Downtown Toronto" Consultant's Study, including public consultation outcomes, and to seek City Council adoption of a set of Vision, Height and Typology Criteria and Performance Standards to guide Downtown Tall Buildings development. The report also identifies further implementation options for the vision statement and performance standards.

City Planning Division commissioned Urban Strategies Incorporated to complete a study within Downtown Toronto that identifies where tall buildings should be located, how high they should be and how they should behave towards each other and the public streets and spaces around them.

The "Tall Buildings, Inviting Change in Downtown Toronto" Consultant's Study follows previously completed planning studies which looked at the behaviour of tall buildings, but not their appropriate location, building upon pre-existing citywide tall building design guidelines known as the "Design Criteria for Review of Tall Building Proposals". In addition to addressing the issue of appropriate site location for Downtown tall buildings, the Consultant's Study also provides performance standards to be applied in the assessment and approval of Downtown tall building development. These performance standards relate to the design, spacing, placement and orientation of tall buildings. They have been derived from a detailed on-the-ground assessment of local conditions within Downtown Toronto, through selective testing of chosen sites and through an assessment of best practices relating to tall building development in cities from across North America.

The Consultant's Study area is bounded by Bathurst Street on the west, the rail corridor north of Dupont Street on the north, the Don Valley Parkway on the east and the Toronto Harbour on the south. Secondary Planning Areas falling within this Study area boundary do not form part of the Consultant's Study recommendations.

The Consultant's Study recommendations with regard to Downtown tall building locations, heights, typologies and performance standards have been revised by staff following public consultation and further staff assessment, as detailed in the report. It is City Planning staff's intention to consolidate the citywide tall building design guidelines with the Downtown tall building design guidelines into one comprehensive document which is able to accommodate locational criteria and performance standards relating to unique challenges faced by tall building development in the Downtown, in the Second Quarter of 2012.