4K 
On 2 August, 2020 Trulife Developments Inc. submitted Official Plan Amendment (OPA) and Zoning By-law Amendment (OPA) applications to the City of Toronto for an 8-storey, 64-unit residential building at 105 Sheppard Avenue East.
The proposed building, designed by ZO1 Architects, features a unit mix of 39 one-bedrooms, 14 two-bedrooms, and 2 units with three or more bedrooms. Its gross floor area of 4,364 m² results in a floor space index of 3.0 on the site. The building includes 4.0 m² of amenity space per unit, most of which is concentrated in a rooftop terrace on the 7th floor.
Architectural plans in the submission to the City specify a mix of precast concrete, window wall, and metal panels styled to appear as wood for the exterior. The plan calls for a total of 51 parking spots; 41 for residents and 10 for visitors.
The area centred around Yonge and Sheppard has seen dramatic growth over the past decade, with development concentrated mostly along the Yonge Street corridor. This proposal and others like it are seeing that expansion shift eastward along Sheppard. Although the areas to the south and east remain dominated by low-rise residential uses, there are already a mix of mid-rise office and residential buildings to the north, and similar buildings are proposed immediately to the west.
Both the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto have encouraged the intensification of major transit hubs across the city, and the site’s close proximity to the subway, as well as the multiple bus routes on Sheppard Avenue, place it squarely within that planning context.
Nevertheless, there remain several planning barriers along the proposal’s path to approval. Situated within the Sheppard Avenue Commercial Areas Secondary Plan, potential development is currently limited to a maximum height of 3 storeys, or 12 metres, and a maximum FSI of 1.0. Zoning bylaws impose the same limits on the site. The proposed 8 storey building, with a height of 25.95 metres, therefore requires both OPA and ZBA approvals to proceed as planned.
In the planning rationale, Trulife argues that the current limits reflect an outdated planning framework, and that their proposal does not violate the spirit of more recent policy statements from the Provincial Government. They cite the recent 2020 Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) as well as the 2019 Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe as evidence of this. Both call for intensification around major transit hubs, and the preservation of neighbourhoods.
The 0.36 acre site is currently occupied by three single family homes.
Additional information and images can be found in our Database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
* * *
UrbanToronto has a new way you can track projects through the planning process on a daily basis. Sign up for a free trial of our New Development Insider here.
| Related Companies: | Jablonsky, Ast and Partners, Land Art Design Landscape Architects Inc |
