Toronto’s chief planner says hundreds of surprise changes by the province to the city’s plans to manage growth in midtown and downtown has scrubbed requirements for developers to provide new office space, reduces protections for sunlight on public parks, and strips the need to build community services.In memos sent to all council members Thursday evening, Gregg Lintern outlined key changes to the city’s Midtown in Focus and TOcore plans delivered by the province a day earlier — these are plans that set out the rules and requirements for development in those fast-growing areas — saying there is more review still to be done and that a report to council was being prepared for the July meeting.In total, the province made 194 modifications to the midtown plan and 224 changes to the downtown plan, Lintern said. Broadly, the changes highlighted in Lintern’s memos confirm the provincial changes loosen the city-proposed rules to allow taller, denser residential development, while removing requirements for developers to provide more space for new jobs, thereby ensuring mixed, not bedroom, communities in close proximity to transit. It also deletes measures the city introduced to “to ensure development does not outpace infrastructure.”The province’s revisions were provided to the city late Wednesday without consultation and little explanation beyond the need, Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark said, to provide more housing. The changes also reduce sunlight protection for public spaces, including both sidewalks and parks, Lintern’s memos say.Instead of the city’s version, which required that no net new shadow be cast by the proposed building, the province’s changes say that only “adequate” sunlight is now required.Details in the plans both on how far back buildings must be set from public streets to ensure neighbourhoods are more walkable and on other minimum design requirements were repl ...
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