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Last month, UrbanToronto released its first annual UrbanToronto Pro Annual Report on development applications in the City of Toronto. From that report, many seemed to be very interested in the evolution of parking proposals for projects to come. This is not surprising, since there has been large shifts in both popular and planning perceptions of parking requirements in recent years. As a result, this article delves into the data and examines how these changes have impacted the city's parking landscape.
A Brief History of Parking and Planning in Toronto
The quantity of parking spots developers are required to provide is regulated by the city's Zoning By-Law (ZBL). While the ZBL discusses parking in a variety of places, the most important regulations are in Chapter 200. Prior to 2022, this chapter set out both parking minimums and parking maximums. These minimums and maximums were calculated based on a formulaic approach. Typically, this was done by reference to the total number of dwelling units being built, and furthermore by the type of building. For example, a detached house was simply required to provide a minimum of 1 parking space per dwelling. Some calculations were more complicated: for example, an Apartment building was to provide;
(i) at a minimum rate of :(a) 0.3 for each bachelor dwelling unit up to 45 square metres and 1.0 for each bachelor dwelling unit greater than 45 square metres;(b) 0.5 for each one bedroom dwelling unit;(c) 0.8 for each two bedroom dwelling unit; and(d) 1.0 for each three or more bedroom dwelling unit; and(ii) at a maximum rate of:(a) 0.4 for each bachelor dwelling unit up to 45 square metres and 1.2 for each bachelor dwelling unit greater than 45 square metres;(b) 0.7 for each one bedroom dwelling unit;(c) 1.2 for each two bedroom dwelling unit; and(d) 1.5 for each three or more bedroom dwelling unit
…and that's only if the building was located in "Policy Area 1." Different Policy Areas would then have different requirements.
Over the last few years, in response to the nascent YIMBY movement, there has been a push to eliminate minimum parking requirements. The arguments in favor invoked the rising tide of cycling as a mode of transit, the increased use of transit-oriented communities, the increase in density and mixed-uses that decreased the need for cars, and the major costs of building parking spots. These arguments were not purely ideological; several developers noted rising difficulties in selling underground parking spaces in new buildings, especially in dense urban areas.
The main argument against these removals was also pragmatic: centred on the fact that the removal of parking minimums would make it more difficult to park close to where one lived, thereby pushing traffic (and parking) elsewhere in the city. Ultimately, the City sided with the YIMBYs in the December 2021 Council Meeting. In addition to other changes to parking requirements, the City completely rewrote the table in Chapter 200, eliminating almost every mention of the word "minimum". (Some other simplification was also implemented.) The only exception was to provide visitor parking spots for Apartments and Mixed-Use buildings.
However, just because there is no minimum, does not mean that developers will provide zero parking. Instead, developers will only provide as much parking as they believe will be necessary to sell profitably. However, since we noted how expensive it is build underground parking, we should still expect much fewer parking spots built.
At UrbanToronto, we track bike and vehicular parking proposals for every new project, and even track the different types of vehicular parking types (including visitor spots). This change in policy allows us to analyze the impact on parking spaces after a year.
Parking Statistics
To briefly recap the year-end report: in 2022, Toronto developers proposed a total of 51,518 vehicular parking units, and an additional 60,502 bike parking units. In 2021, 73,189 vehicular parking units were proposed, plus 35,419 bike parking units. However, there were many more dwelling units proposed in 2021 than in 2022. Therefore, adjusting for this fact, we see that the vehicular parking per dwelling unit ratio decreased from 59% in 2021 to 51% in 2022, while the bike parking per dwelling unit ratio increased from 35% in 2021 to 59% in 2022.This indicates a shift towards prioritizing bike parking and promoting a greener, more sustainable mode of transportation.
Therefore, unambiguously we can claim that eliminating minimum parking requirements led to less parking spots per dwelling. A closer look, however, reveals some surprises.
Specifically, while 16 out of the 25 Wards in the City saw a decline in parking per dwelling, the biggest downtown Wards (10 and 13) actually saw an increase in the amount of parking proposed per dwelling. This simply goes to show that minimums are only binding if it is unprofitable to build.
Comparing parking proposals for different types of developments between 2021 and 2022, the most significant changes occurred in the Mixed-Use + Rental category. For Mixed-Use and Rental-only developments (roughly corresponding with how the City defines an Apartment), the total parking per unit decreased from 56.4% in 2021 to 40.6% in 2022, while visitor parking per unit increased from 2.8% to 4.4%. Similarly, the Low-Rise Residential category saw a decrease in total parking per unit and an increase in visitor parking per unit. The Seniors Home category experienced a decrease in total parking per unit, but the Other category saw an increase in both total and visitor parking per unit.
Conclusion
The changes to parking proposals in Toronto from 2021 to 2022 reflect the City's efforts to promote sustainable transportation and reevaluate its parking policies. While abandoning minimum parking requirements is in a way abandoning pavement, will this shift in policy support Toronto's goal of becoming a greener city by paving the way for more efficient and effective urban planning? Time will tell, but for now, it's already having its intended effect.
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UrbanToronto's research service, UrbanToronto Pro, provides comprehensive data on construction projects in the Greater Toronto Area — from proposal through to completion. We also offer Instant Reports, downloadable snapshots based on location, and a daily subscription newsletter, New Development Insider, that tracks projects from initial application.
