Councillor Adam Vaughan and the City of Toronto Planning Division invite you to a Community Consultation Meeting
 
The King/Spadina area, east of Spadina Avenue has recently received two applications for zoning amendments that exceed the area height permissions.  Two additional proposed developments have recently been revised from the originally presented concepts.   
 
In order to give community members the opportunity to voice their views, a Community Consultation meeting has been scheduled in consultation with Councillor Adam Vaughan to:
 
- provide information regarding the two new proposed developments; and
- review recently revised applications.  
 
Upcoming Meeting Date, Location and Time:  
 
January 20, 2009
Metro Hall, 55 John Street
Room 310
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.     
 
Purpose of the Meeting:
 
The meeting will provide an opportunity for the community to have input on the proposed developments listed below, view the plans and ask questions.  
 
Proposed developments:
 
- 21-23 Widmer Street
Proposal:  44 storey mixed-use building with 445 dwelling units & 4 levels of underground parking, a portion of which would be used as commercial parking garage.
 
- 181, 199, 203 Richmond St. W., 10 Nelson Street and a portion of a public lane
Proposal:  47-storey mixed use building comprised of two point towers, having 791 residential dwelling units with non-residential floor area at grade.
 
- 352 Front Street West
Proposal: 24 storey mixed use building, comprised of 396 dwelling units and retail uses at grade.
 
- 56 Blue Jays Way
Proposal: 41 storey building (the recently approved By-law 1067-2007 permits an 18 storey building on the lands), comprised of 264 residential dwelling units, 127 hotel suites and restaurant and café uses at grade.
 
If you cannot attend these meetings, you can still make your views known by sending a fax to (416) 392-1330 - or by writing to Raymond David, Director, Community Planning, Toronto and East York District, City Planning Division, 100 Queen St W Floor 18 E Toronto On, M5H  2N.
 
If you would like further information about these proposals, please contact Philip Carvalino, Senior Planner, at 416-392-7574.
 
You may also contact Councillor Adam Vaughan, Ward 20, at (416) 392-4044 or Councillor_Vaughan@toronto.ca.
 
Attendant Care Services can be made available with some advance notice.
 
 
Councillor Adam Vaughan
Ward 20, Trinity-Spadina
416-392-4044
www.adamvaughan.ca <http://www.adamvaughan.ca/>

Urban sprawl is a euphemism commonly used to describe the paving of the earth.

It is characterized by a situation whereby a muncipality's jurisdiction perpetually expands outward from the civic core, in a seemingly unbound fashion.

In the Greater Toronto Area, the direction of urban sprawl is largely dictated by a local geography that forces growth north from Lake Ontario towards Lake Huron, and east and west towards Peterborough and Hamilton respectively.

Because urban sprawl is associated with increased automobile use, it is seen as one of the main causes of air pollution and fossil fuel dependency. Consequently, there is a growing public debate and awareness of the problem.

By 2004, Toronto Public Health was already producing estimates to show that poor air quality was affecting the health of thousands of people in the GTA, some to the point of premature death.

But urban sprawl does not only affect human health.

To the north of Toronto lies a sprawling watershed known as the Oak Ridges Moraine. This health and preservation of the ecosystem surrounding the Oak Ridges Moraine has become one of the most contentious environmental issues in southern Ontario civic life at the dawn of the 21st century.

Urban development on the watershed has pitted a diverse group of stakeholders against each other, as Non Governmental Organizations, governmental and citizen's groups battle for control of the agenda with respect to the moraine.

In recognition of the public concern over the Oak Ridges Moraine, the Government of Ontario has acted to limit development in the area, and there is a lively public debate about the best way to manage the health of this sprawling ecosystem.

Because urban sprawl and commuter transportation are tightly linked, new funds have been allocated to public transit as a way to mitigate automobile use in the Greater Toronto Area, and the Official Plan has been drafted to mandate that new development will be linked to the expanded transit system.

Although the nearby Oak Ridges Moraine dominates the environmentalist debate in the GTA, there are other areas of concern.

Because urban areas consume enormous quantities of electricity, sustainable power generation policies are also prominent in the public consciousness. The GTA derives it's electricity needs from coal, gas and nuclear power generation. 

Through a mix of conservation initiatives and propaganda, residents of the GTA are encouraged by local government to take an active role in reducing electrical consumption. But until sustainable energy production is deployed on a wide scale, unfortunately this issue remains mired in interim solution seeking, and maintenance of the status quo.