Development Committee Report - August 2015

1. Cityscape application: Comment from Tom Davidson: City Planning and the applicants have met and discussed the issues raised during the public consultation. No firm recommendations have come out of that work, but there are more perspectives on how to proceed. We (ie councillor's office) are recommending that we reconvene a working group format session with the GWNA and building representatives to discuss the issue. We'll consult with GWNA on how to organize that later in the summer.
   In conversation on August 19, Tom confirmed that working group meetings would be open to community members. He will discuss possibility of larger information session with Henry Tang; perhaps best not to get people out to a meeting unless there is something concrete to discuss
   
   
2. Lower Yonge Precinct Plan: Julie Beddoes is GWNA rep on SAC. Ahead of completion of plan, Pinnacle developments are going to OMB to ask for much taller buildings than plan would allow. Julie will talk to Willie Macrae about this site and report later in month. Otherwise much to like about the plan.
   Willie Macrae says Pinnacle is not pressing its OMB case for the Star site, ie 1 Yonge St. and block north of it up to the expressway and railway; have agreed to major section 37 contributions: fully paid for rec centre with pool, good-sized park, public space incorporated into grade level of development.
   
   
3. Mill St. refurbishing: City staff have been working on technicalities, budget, etc. Working group will meet soon. Jane Robinson and Phylis Coles are on list to be invited. Gobnait McAnoy, who lives in 70 Mill St., will also attend.
   Tom says people working on the technicalities have been seconded to other jobs. He is pushing to get the working group together ASAP. 
   
   
4. Lower Don River and the Port Lands Jane Robinson will continue as GWNA rep onPort Lands issues with Julie Beddoes as alternate. SAC meeting on Villiers Island is imminent. See article in Globe and Mail later this week.
   Globe story didn't say much about Toronto. Still waiting for further SAC for Villiers Island.
   
   
5. Future of the Gardiner East EA: Report of Council decisions is athttp://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2015.PW4.1The EA stakeholder advisory committee will meet on July 21. The EA is a statutory process under provincial law. It seems unlikely that the options city staff have been asked to study and report on in September will conform to the Terms of Reference of the EA nor will they have been subject to the lengthy process of public consultation required. It is hoped that SAC members will be updated on the relationship of the city studies and the EA process. See this article by John Lorinc, Spacing magazine: 
   http://spacing.ca/toronto/2015/06/08/gardiner-east-terms-references-matters-lot/ 
   July 21 SAC meeting looked at numerous tentative plans for "hybrid" option; none of them improved conditions west of Cherry. SAC will be presented with further work on options on September 1. PWIC later in month, public meeting in November. Development committee proposes that board approve inviting the EA team to present options to a GWNA meeting before they go to a public meeting later in the year. If the timing works out it could be at the November meeting; if not, we could hold a special meeting.
   
   
6. Island Airport Runway Extension EA: Terms of reference stage of study is complete. Draft report on work to that date will go to Council in the fall. It is expected that the final report will go to Council in spring 2016.
   
   
7. First Parliament Working Group: Lester Brown and Gobnait McAnoy are GWNA reps. Tom Davidson explains: The Environmental Assessment work by the consultants has been completed. Our office is organizing a working group meeting to review the results of this work and update on the timelines for a workplan, and beginning a Master Plan process. We are prepared to hold a meeting in Mid August, otherwise it would have to be in mid September. We'll advise you shortly on this after we talk a bit more. 
   No working group meeting called so far.
   
   
8. Relief Line: TTC has presented on this to the GWNA May meeting and covered technical and route issues. Keith twice forwarded link to consultation site to GWNA listserv so that members may express their opinion. Report should go to Council in December 2015 or early 2016. 
   Staff are working on reviewing results of consultations so far. Will soon ask for input on potential alignments.
   
   
9. Aitken Place Park: George Hume is GWNA representative on the stakeholder committee and will post final design when available
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