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Random question for everyone here. Why do we even have "transition zones"? Is there a specific reason we don't allow the aforementioned 7-8 story minimum as of right on all streets, including those off of the main street? Why do we keep limiting ourselves to a sliver of land on arterial roads?
I would say there is no reason I can think of that 6s midrise should be disallowed anywhere in the city.
 
There would be no need to put 40 storey towers on-top of stations in the Danforth if we allowed a consistent 6-storey built form as-of-right on all streets in a 1km radius of Danforth.

But since touching the Neighbourhoods designation is not feasible in our political/planning regime, I think we are failing as a city if we disallow high-rises along Danforth.
 
For those of you interested in the City’s parking standards, we will be reporting to the November 25 Planning and Housing Committee meeting with recommended amendments to the parking standards in the city-wide Zoning By-law (569-2013). Recommendations will include:
- removing most minimum parking standards city-wide;
- introducing maximum parking standards where they do not already exist, for most uses;
- maintaining accessible parking requirements; and
- introducing requirements for electric vehicle infrastructure.

Updating the City's parking standards to better manage auto dependency and achieve a better balance between building too much or too little parking ultimately contributes to building more sustainable and healthy communities. Using more strategic, thoughtful management of the parking supply will contribute to addressing major challenges the City is currently facing, including: a climate emergency, decreasing housing affordability and increasing demands for mobility.

The recommended Zoning By-law Amendments will be available on the project website on November 10. The report will be available in full on the City Clerk's website November 18.

If you would like make your views known to the Committee, you can do so by sending written comments to the City Clerk or by addressing the Committee directly. If you have strong feelings about the City's parking regulations, I encourage you to make them known to the Committee.
 

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Deputy Mayor Denzil Minnan-Wong is simply saying out loud what the progressive councilors in Toronto think privately.
 
For those of you interested in the City’s parking standards, we will be reporting to the November 25 Planning and Housing Committee meeting with recommended amendments to the parking standards in the city-wide Zoning By-law (569-2013). Recommendations will include:
- removing most minimum parking standards city-wide;
- introducing maximum parking standards where they do not already exist, for most uses;
- maintaining accessible parking requirements; and
- introducing requirements for electric vehicle infrastructure.

Updating the City's parking standards to better manage auto dependency and achieve a better balance between building too much or too little parking ultimately contributes to building more sustainable and healthy communities. Using more strategic, thoughtful management of the parking supply will contribute to addressing major challenges the City is currently facing, including: a climate emergency, decreasing housing affordability and increasing demands for mobility.

The recommended Zoning By-law Amendments will be available on the project website on November 10. The report will be available in full on the City Clerk's website November 18.

If you would like make your views known to the Committee, you can do so by sending written comments to the City Clerk or by addressing the Committee directly. If you have strong feelings about the City's parking regulations, I encourage you to make them known to the Committee.

I wish to add my thanks to those of @allengeorge above for your work, and that of your colleagues on this file; both in substance and communication.
 
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I want to take a moment to remind my fellow UT'ers when looking at the above posts by @michael.hain that as much as we righteously complain about the need for change; there really are
City staff who feel exactly the same way and are working to make it happen.

Each and every one of us owes it to them and ourselves to support this change when it comes to committee, both directly through deputation/submission, and/or by contacting our councillors and the mayor.
 
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For well situated main streets just outside of traditional downtown core borders like Christie, projects like [287 Christie] should be a no-brainer. Especially with it being served by a bus route, and within reasonable distance to its own subway station along the Bloor line. If anything, streets like Christie, Bathurst and Ossington have been under-intensified and utilized in terms of potential for large parts of them through the years.
 
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For well situated main streets just outside of traditional downtown core borders like Christie, projects like these should be a no-brainer. Especially with it being served by a bus route, and within reasonable distance to its own subway station along the Bloor line. If anything, streets like Christie, Bathurst and Ossington have been under-intensified and utilized in terms of potential for large parts of them through the years.
Understatement of the century! None of those streets should have a single family home on them.
 
I was thinking of the popular part of Ossington when I wrote that, which is mostly businesses, but of course Ossington north and south of Bloor is just single family homes as well.
 
I think our Victorian and Edwardian stock outside of larger streets should be off limits. There's a balance between increasing density and heritage preservation to be found, which could include laneway housing for instance. Toronto has the largest collection of intact Victorian housing in North America and our leafy residential streetscapes are a big part of what makes Toronto interesting; while I get we need more housing, there are plenty of under-utilized properties to target.

Perhaps a future compromise could be keeping the heritage houses while building behind them in what used to be the backyards or garages, etc. I suppose the pressure for housing might eventually outweigh the heritage arguments but I still feel there's something to be said for maintaining the general look and feel of the older residential streets.
 
Call me a radical but no street east of Roncesvalles should have a house on it (side streets included and historical considerations aside).

That would destroy one of Toronto's best traits.

I would certainly call it radical to call for tearing down most of the mature trees in the City and the majority of its heritage housing stock.......sigh.

That to me is not only an undesirable outcome, I would call it an abomination.
 
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