Please stand with residents in opposing the 11-storey luxury condo at 847-855 Kingston Rd! The Friends of Glen Stewart Ravine urge residents to sign our petition, asking for the City to uphold its Zoning and Environmental policies! 

The proposed development has now been appealed by the developer to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT). If approved, it will have permanent adverse impacts on the Glen Stewart Ravine and the qualities that make it an environmentally significant area (ESA) in the City of Toronto. 

1. The application is not consistent with the Official Plan for growth and not compliant with the recent 2024 Mid-Rise Avenues study. It would be the tallest building in the entire Beach Neighbourhood!
2. The application will have permanent negative impacts on the Glen Stewart Ravine ESA, it does not provide an adequate setback or buffer, it encroaches into the dripline, and it calls for 13 trees to be destroyed, 5 of which are on the City’s right-of-way and 7 within the Ravine itself!
3. The application will create a precedent for 11-storey or even taller buildings all along Kingston Rd and other Avenues like Queen and the further destruction of other Ravines.

Development can be done in a responsible way. We urge the City to fight for its own Zoning and Environmental policies at the OLT. Please take a moment to sign our petition!

The Long Story

The bungalows at 847 - 853 Kingston Road have been assembled by a developer, Gabriele Homes. In 2015, they proposed as 7-storey "boutique" condo which backs on to Glen Stewart Ravine. After sitting on the properties for nearly a decade, they acquired the next lot at 855 Kingston Road, immediately adjacent to Beech Ave. More recently, in 2022, the developer re-submitted their application, increasing the scope to an 11-storey luxury condo.

While the City did raise concerns with the development for the reasons outlined, City Planning failed to bring this forward as a motion to make a formal decision. The developer has now appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) on the premise that the City failed to make a decision in a timely manner. Meanwhile, the Ford Government has made party status more difficult to obtain for citizens and grassroots organizations like us. The City has party status, and therefore, its imperative that they put forward an honest opposition to this development and not make concessions to the developer during the trial.

Zoning

This area of Kingston Rd which spans over the Beach neighbourhood is no stranger to development. Over the past decade, six developments have been completed, with another three sites which are already re-zoned and approved. Some sections are zoned “neighbourhoods” and are limited to 4-stories (such as this property) others are zoned “mixed use.” Some segments of Kingston Rd are deemed an “Avenue” in which the Avenues and Midrise Guidelines stipulate a building height should be equal to the width of the street right-of-way. Kingston Rd is 20 meters wide which gives a height of 20 m or 6-stories. This was the findings of the recently adopted Avenues and Mid-Rise study adopted in 2024. 

11-stories would set an entirely new precedent, it would make it the tallest building in the Beach! It would conflict with even the latest up-zoning studies conducted by the City. This proposal is not aligned with the Official Plan for growth and does not follow the “context” and “precedent” for the area. The application will create a precedent for 11-storey or even taller buildings all along Kingston Rd and other streets deemed “Avenues” like Queen St.

Permanent Adverse Impacts on the Glen Stewart Ravine

This development is also a major risk for the Ravine. The Official Plan policy 3.4.8 requires that development be set back by ‘at least 10 meters” from the top of bank of valleys and ravines.’ The proposal does not provide an adequate setback or buffer to the ESA and encroaches into this area. As a result, the current proposal does not fulfill two of the criteria for redesignation: 

g) continuation of special landscape or built-form features that contribute to the unique physical character of a neighbourhood; and h) conservation of heritage buildings, structures and landscapes.

The proposed development will require alteration of the existing slope of the ravine (shoring and tiebacks/braces) to accommodate the proposed development which is not permitted under Official Plan policy 3.4.9. The proposal calls for 13 trees to be destroyed, 5 of which are on the City’s right-of-way and 7 within the Ravine itself! 

The Ravine has been identified as an ESA for qualities that include significant stopover area for migrant songbirds (1% of the Toronto migrant songbird records are from Glen Stewart Ravine) and seepage areas which support wetland vegetation and contribute to water quality and diversity. The subject site includes and abuts steep Ravine slopes on the south and west sides which contain large mature trees that help stabilize the slope and provide other important ecological functions. Buffers are typically the most effective mitigation measure for addressing potential impacts of development adjacent to natural features.

How else can you help?

We’ve launched a letter-writing ahead of a critical Ontario Land Tribunal hearing that will determine whether a proposed 11-storey development encroaching on protected ravine lands will proceed.

Please visit our website to find more resources, draft letters to officials, and how you can help spread the word on social media.

Let’s show them that this space is too valuable to compromise. Thank you for helping spread the word!