December 17, 1998

To:Toronto Community Council

From:Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services, upon application by James W. Harbell, Stikeman, Elliot, Suite 5300, Commerce Court West, Toronto M5L 1B9, on behalf of O & Y Properties Inc., 40 King Street West, Suite 2700, Toronto M5H 3Y2

Subject:Preliminary Report, Official Plan and Rezoning Application No. 198018, 173-181 Yonge Street and 16 Queen Street East, to permit an 18-storey office building with retail uses at grade. (Ward 24: Downtown)

Purpose:

To introduce to Community Council the Official Plan and Zoning Amendment Application No. 198018 to permit an 18-storey office building at 173 to 181 Yonge Street and 16 Queen Street East (northeast corner of Queen and Yonge).

Financial Implications:

Not applicable.

Recommendations:

1. That I be requested to hold a public meeting in the community to discuss the application, and to notify owners and tenants within 300 metres of the site and the Ward Councillors.

2. That the owner be advised that, prior to final Council approval, the owner may be required to submit a Noise Impact Statement and a Transportation Demand Management Plan in accordance with Council's requirements. The owner will be further advised of any requirements by the Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services.

Background:

This site is the subject of applications for the same building for minor variances to the Committee of Adjustment (file no. A199801103) and for Site Plan Approval (Application no. 398092), submitted in September, 1998. Prior to such submission, City Planning staff had agreed in discussions with the applicant that the Committee of Adjustment process was appropriate, provided that a package of public benefits such as would otherwise have been negotiated pursuant to Section 37 of the Planning Act was agreed upon and appropriately secured in the planning approval process. In its decision dated October 28, 1998, the Committee of Adjustment granted the necessary minor variances subject to conditions implementing the public benefits package, including requiring the applicant to enter into a Heritage Easement Agreement and additional agreement(s) with the City of Toronto to secure:

a) moving the subway entrance into the building off Queen Street East at the owner's cost;

b) Contribution of $750,000.00 to the City for both the Yonge-Dundas public square development and, if authorized, a proposed Toronto Transit Commission building levy;

c) a letter of credit to secure heritage preservation matters; and

d) a contribution for public art equivalent to 1% of construction costs.

The owners of the abutting property to the east at 20 Queen Street East and 142 Victoria Street objected to the Committee of Adjustment application. A surface commercial parking lot currently exists on that site. Despite what appeared to be very promising discussions among the applicant, the objectors and City Planning staff regarding a sharing of the O & Y parking and loading facilities with a proposed office building on the objectors' site, the discussions foundered and the Committee of Adjustment decision was appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) by the abutting owners.

This application for Official Plan and Zoning amendments was made with the applicant's expectation that the applicant would also appeal this application to the OMB after the requisite 90 days, in order to ensure that the OMB has the jurisdiction to deal with the proposed development through either the minor variance application or this application. The current application does not seek Site Plan Approval, since such an application has been submitted previously, as noted above.

Comments:

Location and Context

The 3389.5 m2 site is located at the northeast corner of Queen and Yonge Street. The site currently contains a vacant, historically-designated, 2-storey former bank building right at the corner of Yonge and Queen, a vacant, 3-storey former commercial building abutting the north side of that building, a 6-storey commercial building at 16 Queen Street East, and a surface commercial parking lot.

To the north of the site is the historic Elgin and Wintergarden Theatre building, which has a maximum height of 30.4 m on the Yonge Street frontage and 35.6 m on the Victoria Street frontage. Proceeding north on the east side of Yonge Street, there exist an historic 8-storey office building (former Heintzman Building) at 193 Yonge, a vacant historic 4-storey bank building currently owned by the City at 197 Yonge, a City-owned public open space at 203 Yonge Street, the renovated City-owned bank building housing Heritage Toronto at 205 Yonge Street, a vacant site at 207 and 209 Yonge where a 13-storey mixed commercial and residential building has been approved, and two commercial buildings of 6 and 3 storeys, respectively, at the north end of the block. Historic Massey Hall exists on the northeast corner of the block. The City-owned sites at 197, 197R, and 203 Yonge Street are currently for sale as a development site.

The Eaton Centre, including the 29.6 m Tower Records building on the northwest corner of the intersection, exists on the west side of Yonge Street north of Queen Street. The southernmost office tower in the Eaton Centre, at the corner of Queen and James Streets, reaches a height of 140 m. The historic 9-storey (35 m) Hudson Bay department store building is situated at the southwest corner of the intersection, and directly to the south of the proposed project, on the opposite side of Queen Street, is a 28-storey (112 m) office building at 1 Queen Street East.

To the east of the proposed development on the same block is the surface commercial parking lot mentioned above at 20 Queen Street East and 142 Victoria Street. St. Michael's Hospital exists on the block to the east, with a current height of 47.1 m and a proposed height of 71.5 m on Victoria Street. Official Plan and Rezoning Application No. 198011 is currently under consideration for redevelopment and expansion of portions of St. Michael's Hospital.

Proposed Development

The proposed development is an 18-storey non-residential building containing primarily office uses with retail uses at grade, and a 2-level below-grade parking garage containing 142 parking spaces. Portions, including the facade, of the historic bank building at the corner of the Yonge-Queen intersection will be incorporated in the building. The other two existing buildings will be demolished. The existing subway entrance on Queen Street will be eliminated and a new entrance with escalators and an elevator for mobility impaired persons will be constructed within the building. The office entrance will be on Queen Street, while the main retail entrance will be on Yonge Street. The vehicular entrance will be from Victoria Street.

The building, excluding the mechanical enclosure, is 76 m high, with an additional 15 m for the mechanical room and a flag mast which reaches 104 m. The proposed total gross floor area is 33,897 m2 (10 times lot area).

Planning Controls

The Part I Official Plan designation is Financial District, which permits mixed commercial and residential uses at a maximum density of 12 times lot area, of which a maximum of 8 times may be used for non-residential uses. The Part II Official Plan for the Theatre Block is also applicable, but has little relevance to this proposal.

The general Zoning By-law designates the site as CR T12.0 C8.0 R11.7, which permits a maximum mixed use density of 12 times lot area, and a maximum non-residential density of 8 times lot area. The height limit is 76 m. Retail and service uses are required for 60% of both the Queen and Yonge Street frontages.

Amendments to Planning Controls

Amendments are required to both the Official Plan and Zoning By-law to permit non-residential uses at a density of 10 times lot area instead of the maximum 8 times lot area. Amendments to the Zoning By-law are also required to permit the height of the mechanical penthouse and flag mast as discussed above, to permit a mechanical penthouse covering more than 30% of the roof, to reduce the common outdoor space requirements, to reduce the requirement that 60% of the Queen Street frontage be street related retail and service uses, and to delete the requirement for shower change facilities related to bicycle commuting.

Site Plan Approval

As previously mentioned, this application does not include Site Plan Approval. A previous application for Site Plan Approval has been submitted, but must await the outcome of the minor variance appeal or the anticipated Official Plan and Zoning amendment appeal before such approval could be considered.

Planning Issues

The following planning issues will require review and resolution prior to final reporting:

1. An agreement pursuant to Section 37 of the Planning Act to secure public benefits, addressing the same benefits as were granted as conditions of approval by the Committee of Adjustment and briefly outlined above, will be required as a condition in the Final Report. The applicants have stated their willingness to enter into such an agreement;

2. The extent of heritage preservation of the historic Bank of Montreal building at the corner of Yonge and Queen, and its future relationship to the proposed development, are the subject of ongoing discussions between the applicant and staff of Heritage Toronto. The proposal is to retain the facade, with modifications, and reconstruct/reproduce portions of the interior. A Heritage Easement Agreement will be required;

3. The shower change facilities related to bicycle commuting as required by the Zoning By-law are not proposed to be included. Opportunities for a compromise, such as a shower stall included in each washroom, will be explored; and

4. The design of the subway entrance must be to the satisfaction of the Toronto Transit Commission and City staff.

Conclusions:

The application should proceed to a community public meeting, after which, subject to resolution of the relevant concerns outlined above and any other planning concerns which may arise in response to circulation of plans or in public comments, a final report will be prepared.

Contact Name:

Peter Langdon

Toronto City Hall

Telephone: (416) 392-7617

Fax: (416) 392-1330

E-mail: plangdon@toronto.ca

Beate Bowron

Director of Community Planning, South District

(p:\1998\ug\uds\pln\ud981792.pln)-tm

APPLICATION DATA SHEET

Confirmed Municipal Address:173, 177, 181 Yonge Street, and 16 Queen Street East

PLANNING CONTROLS (For verification refer to Chief Building Official)

Official Plan Designation:	Financial District	Site Specific Provision:
Zoning District:	CR T12.0 C8.0 R11.7	Historical Status:	Designated
Height Limit (m):	76.0	Site Plan Control:	Yes

PROJECT INFORMATION

Site Area:	3389.5 m2		Height:	Storeys:		18
Frontage:				Metres:		75.40
Depth:
				Indoor		Outdoor
Ground Floor:	1493.0 m2		Parking Spaces:	143
Residential GFA:			Loading Docks:	2	B
Non-Residential GFA:	33896.0 m2		(number, type)	2	C
Total GFA:	33896.0 m2			1	G

DWELLING UNITS					FLOOR AREA BREAKDOWN
Tenure:	Office				Land Use	Above Grade	Below Grade
					Office	32776.0 m2
					Retail	1120.0 m2

PROPOSED DENSITY
Residential Density:	Non-Residential Density: 10.00	Total Density: 10.00