Scarborough: variances for six-storey building rejected
Legal under EHON, needed minor variances from Committee of Adjustment
Romit Malhotra on LinkedIn:
We say we need more housing. But approvals tell the real story.
This is a rendering of our most modest 6-storey purpose-built rental building on a Major Street, in an EHON-designated Toronto neighbourhood.
The Planning staff at the City of Toronto reviewed the application, found it consistent with policy, and recommended approval.
The Committee of Adjustments refused it.
This isn’t about one file. It’s about whether policy-aligned projects can move through the system with outcomes that are predictable and grounded in planning rationale.
In May 2024, the city of Toronto approved projects up to six storeys on major roads, as part of its Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods (EHON) initiative.
Pharmacy Avenue is a major street in Scarborough. 397 Pharmacy Avenue is a six-storey, 10-unit purpose-built rental apartment project on a mid-block lot. It required a number of minor variances from the Scarborough Committee of Adjustment (the equivalent of Vancouver’s Board of Variance).
On January 14, the Scarborough Committee of Adjustment rejected this request at a public hearing, after six opponents spoke against it. (One committee member said that if you added the opponents who wrote letters, there were 12 people opposed, which was less than he might have expected. He also noted that there were apartment buildings 400 metres away. But he still thought 12 opponents was significant enough to reject it.)
The applicant has filed an appeal with the Toronto Local Appeal Body.
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Timid policy undermines Toronto’s efforts for new housing. Alex Bozikovic, Globe and Mail, May 2024.