March 17, 1999
To:Chairman and Members, Etobicoke Community Council
From:Karen V. Bricker, MCIP, Director, Community Planning, West District
Subject:Committee of Adjustment, West District (Etobicoke)
January 19, 1999, Public Information Workshop - Service Improvements
Purpose
This report has been prepared for the information of the members of Community Council.
Funding sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement
City funding is not required. There are no impacts on capital or operating budgets, at this time.
Recommendation
It is recommended that this report be received for information.
Background
At its meeting on November 12, 1998, Community Council received a communication from the Humber Valley Village
Residents' Association concerning the current decision-making practices of the Committee of Adjustment. As a result,
Community Council requested that:
(1)the Director of Community Planning, West District and the Committee of Adjustment conduct a public
information/education workshop, to which ratepayer associations and the general public would be invited to participate in
discussions on Committee of Adjustment service improvements;
(2)the Director of Community Planning, West District and the Committee of Adjustment provide a recommendation as to
whether there should be any restrictions on Committee of Adjustment membership based on family ties to members of
Council which may result in a conflict of interest; and
(3)the communication from the Humber Valley Village Residents' Association be referred to the Commissioner of Urban
Planning and Development Services, together with the recommendations from the Chair of the Committee of Adjustment,
West District, Etobicoke, with a request that the Department convene a focus group comprised of Chairs of Committees of
Adjustment throughout the City, with participation by ratepayer group representatives, to discuss important issues.
Comment
Workshop
On January 6, 1999, invitations to the Committee of Adjustment Public Information Workshop were forwarded to the
members of the Committee of Adjustment, West District, Etobicoke Division, all members of Community Council, the
Presidents and/or representatives of the 27 Etobicoke Ratepayers' and one Community Association, and the
Managers/Deputy Secretary-Treasurers for the north, south and east Districts. In addition, the invitation was posted on the
Information Board located in the main hallway of the Etobicoke Civic Centre.
The workshop was held on January 19, 1999, in the Board Room at the Etobicoke Civic Centre from 9:00 a.m. and 12:00
p.m. and was hosted by the Manager/Deputy Secretary-Treasurer, Committee of Adjustment, West District. Total
attendance at the workshop consisted of 14 people, as follows: two members of Etobicoke Community Council,
representatives on behalf of three other members of Community Council, representatives from four Residents' Associations
and one Community Association, the Chair and two members of the Committee of Adjustment (Etobicoke) and the
Manager/ Deputy Secretary-Treasurer, Committee of Adjustment, East District.
The workshop opened with a brief overview of the Committee of Adjustment function, as defined by the Planning Act, and
an amalgamation status report, which identified the current City of Toronto Committee of Adjustment structure and the
1999 goals and objectives of the four District Managers. While open discussion was encouraged throughout the session, the
main exchange of information and ideas for service improvements occurred during a step by step review of the West
District Committee of Adjustment process.
Suggestions for service improvements were later organized into two main categories. The first category related to
administrative policies and procedures for immediate action by the Manager, Committee of Adjustment, West District,
while the second category focused on broader policy and procedural issues for review and action by all four Committee of
Adjustment District Managers.
1.Administrative Policies and Procedures for Immediate Action in the West District:
1.1Improve Public Information on the Committee of Adjustment and the Process by: improving the Notice of Public
Hearing format through the elimination of technical terminology, attaching to the Notice of Public hearing, a copy of the
relevant proposed site plan, including additional information on what the Committee of Adjustment is and how it makes its
decisions, and including the Committee of Adjustment e-mail address and the City of Toronto Internet web site address;
and continuing to raise public awareness through staff participation in community events: ie: on February 15, 1999, at the
Humber Valley Village Ratepayers' Association Town Hall meeting, the Manager, Committee of Adjustment participated
in round table discussions on municipal planning and development practices in the West District.
1.2Improve Access to the Committee of Adjustment Process by: providing staff training in customer service and
alternative dispute resolution techniques to ensure that all interested parties receive equal information and leave the process
feeling that their concerns were listened to and that they were treated fairly.
1.3Improve the Public's Perception of the Committee of Adjustment by: continuing to educate the Committee members
on matters concerning the conduct of public officials and public hearing procedures; and providing additional background
information to the Committee members on preservative by-laws, site specific by-laws and city planning policies.
1.4Continue to Standardize Documentation Format and Harmonize Committee of Adjustment Policies and Procedures in
the two West District Service Areas.
This service improvement action plan has been incorporated into the daily work program for the West District Committee
of Adjustment.
2.Items for Action by the four District Managers, Committee of Adjustment:
2.1The four District Managers will be working in conjunction with representatives of the Communications Division of
the Urban Planning and Development Services Department to prepare a Committee of Adjustment information pamphlet
for city wide distribution, in addition to designing a Committee of Adjustment information link on the City of Toronto
Internet web site.
2.2Establish the New City of Toronto Committee of Adjustment through the preparation of a joint report to the District
Directors of Community Planning, Urban Planning and Development Services Department, and subsequently to City
Council, recommending, the following:
(i)The New Committee of Adjustment membership structure;
(ii)Qualifications for appointment (eligibility);
(iii)Job Description and responsibilities (remuneration, night hearings vs day hearings, group site inspections vs
individual inspections);
(iv)Performance standards for the Committee members; and
(v)The nomination and selection process.
2.3Continue to work together in an effort to standardize documentation formats and harmonize Committee of Adjustment
policies and procedures across the city.
The four District Committee of Adjustment Managers are moving forward to completing the above-noted action plan by
the fall of 1999.
Restrictions on Committee of Adjustment Membership
The joint Committee of Adjustment Managers' report on Establishing the New Committee of Adjustment, will address
issues, such as membership qualifications and eligibility of applicants for appointment to the Committee of Adjustment. It
is anticipated that the draft report will be forwarded for review and comment to the four District Directors of Community
Planning, Urban Planning and Development Services Department, no later than October 1999.
City Wide Committee of Adjustment Focus Group
Based on the past experience of the four District Managers, it has been proven that public interests in the Committee of
Adjustment process is very subjective, in that, public involvement and urgency for knowledge about the process is almost
always related to a specific minor variance and/or consent application. This phenomena has been confirmed by the four
District Managers through reports of low public attendance levels at Committee of Adjustment public information sessions
and workshops that have been conducted across the City. As a result, each of the District Managers will continue to
conduct public information sessions on the Committee of Adjustment at the District level, as required, or until such time
when the new City of Toronto Committee of Adjustment is established. In addition, the Managers will continue to support
each other through their participation in residents' information sessions that are specific to each District, as well as being
involved in city-wide efforts such as the Home Renovation Forum to be held in the spring of this year.
Conclusion
This report has been prepared to update the members of the Community Council on the results of the Committee of
Adjustment Public Information Workshop and to review the action plans that have been put in place to improve Committee
of Adjustment service levels in the West District and city-wide.
Contact Name
Anita M. MacLeod, Manager/Deputy Secretary-Treasurer,Tel: (416) 394-8064
Committee of Adjustment, West DistrictFax: (416) 394-6042
Karen V. Bricker, MCIP
Director of Community Planning
West District
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