On November 12, 2021, City Council adopted an Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) policy and by-law. IZ requires certain new developments around transit stations to include affordable housing units, creating mixed-income communities across Toronto.
City staff continue to undertake stakeholder consultations on draft IZ Implementation Guidelines and will report back to Committee/Council with recommended guidelines in 2023. City staff engaged a consultant to undertake additional area-based IZ analysis in Mount Dennis, Little Jamaica, Marlee Ville, North York, and the Sheppard Subway corridor. City staff will report back on this analysis and any recommendations on the application of IZ to these areas in early 2023.
While Toronto’s Official Plan policies and Zoning By-law for IZ are in effect, the Planning Act restricts the implementation of IZ to areas within Minister-approved Protected Major Transit Station Areas (PMTSAs). These are areas generally within 500-800m of a transit station that have planned minimum densities. City Council has adopted 98 PMTSAs in IZ Market Areas across Toronto, which are currently before the Minister for a decision.
Upon implementation, the Council-approved IZ Official Plan policies and Zoning Bylaw amendment will secure five to ten per cent of certain condominium developments as affordable housing. The affordable rental and affordable ownership units created through IZ will be centred on new income-based definitions of affordable housing and will be required to stay affordable for 99 years. Purpose-built rental housing developments will be exempt from IZ requirements until 2026. Development projects with IZ affordable units will benefit from development charge rates that are frozen at the 2022 current levels.
The IZ requirements were informed by a thorough analysis of potential impacts to the Toronto housing market as well as extensive public and stakeholder consultations. City staff will undertake a review of the IZ policy one year after its implementation to assess any adjustments that may be required to support market stability and the production of affordable housing units.
IZ will create new affordable housing units across the city, which are planned to be filled in a fair, equitable and transparent way using the City’s new Centralized Affordable Rental Housing Access System and a third-party administrator.
Any questions related to Provincial announcements of arbitrary changes to City Planning policies should be directed to the City Planning division (CityPlanning@toronto.ca).