Question to the knowledgeable folks here. Does something like as-of-right zoning limit or prevent nimby power? If not, I fear those wishing to live a cottage country lifestyle in the middle of a 6M+ metropolis will continue to wield outsized power.
@allengeorge is quite correct.
There are many different barriers to ease of development.
As-of-right zoning certainly reduces the barriers to certain development, but it doesn't eliminate them.
That said, lets remember this City is subject to tons of development.
That includes yellow-belt type intensification, albeit at a smaller scale than most here would prefer.
Take a look at the Talara Drive application where a 27 storey tower is proposed to replace a 3-storey building next to single family homes.
To a near certainty, barring a calamitous change in Toronto's fortunes, that entire SFH neighbourhood (Sheppard to 401, Bayview to Bessarion) will disappear over the next decade and a half.
Nimbys don't hold the power you imagine here.
Ask those North Toronto ratepayers who fought tooth and nail to keep the Minto Towers from happening..........and have seen a dozen more proposals since (if not more).
To be sure, Nimbys can delay development and increase its price by extracting concessions; but LPAT's tendency to side with developers means relatively little gets outright stifled, if it gets proposed.
The bigger issue is all the proposals that never happen.
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As-of-zoning, in combination w/some relaxed planning requirements will allow more development to go ahead in areas that need it, particularly smaller proposals where the economics of a long drawn out planning process don't work.
- As of right permission for 4-plexes
- As of right permission for 5 stories on main streets
- As of right permission for purpose-built rental
- No minimum parking requirements
(while not lowering any existing permissions, would do wonders)
).
