Get involved
Specific, well-sourced written comments carry the most weight with planning staff. Here are four ways to take part.
1. Follow the file
The City's application page for 888 Dupont Street shows the status of this file. The Application Information Centre covers every application in the city, and lets you sign up for email alerts when new development applications are submitted in a ward. The site is in Ward 11. Shaw Gardens is in Ward 12.
2. Send comments to the City
Find the file planner's contact details on the City's application page for 888 Dupont Street and send your written comments, quoting file number 21 206371 STE 11 SA. Copy your ward councillor.
A checklist for comments that land
- Cite it. Name the document or policy you are responding to, such as the Sun and Shadow Study or By-law 841-2022.
- Ask for something. Say what you want changed, such as an added stepback, a lower height or a new study.
- Make it concrete. Describe how it affects you, such as a park you use or a street you walk.
- Keep it short and factual. Comments about the applicant or staff do not help.
If you live at The Dupont, south of Dupont, or anywhere nearby
- The Dupont, 840 Dupont Street. Tell the City which rooms your windows are in and what they would face, because the applicant calls the windows facing the new wall "secondary windows." Say how the new east wall, the smaller setback, the lack of privacy screening and the shadow on your rooftop pool and terrace would affect you.
- Homes south of Dupont. Tell the City how new shadow, traffic on your street and construction would affect you. Ask for the shadow results for your property.
- Anyone nearby. If you live, work or spend time near Dupont and Ossington, tell the City how the building affects you. Point to the proposal page for the numbers, and send your own comment even if it repeats ours. Each one counts.
3. Join the residents' list
Email info@888dupont.ca with your name and street. We will send updates when the file moves and when comment windows open.
4. Understand the process
Site plan control
Staff review layout, access, landscaping and building design. Decisions are made by City staff under delegated authority, and the Planning Act does not require a public meeting. The current resubmission is at this stage.
Official Plan and zoning amendments
Changes to what the Official Plan or a by-law allows go through public notice, a public meeting and a Council decision. The Planning Act sets out who may appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal.
Minor variances
The Committee of Adjustment decides small departures from a zoning by-law. Appeals go to the Toronto Local Appeal Body. The 2024 variance for this site went through this route.
Ontario Land Tribunal
The Tribunal hears appeals of planning decisions and of failures to decide within the time the Planning Act sets. Who may appeal depends on the type of application, and the rules change, so check the current Planning Act or ask the Tribunal.
Terms used on this site
A short plain-language glossary
- Zoning by-law. The rules for what can be built on a lot, including height and floor area.
- Site plan control. The City's review of a building's layout, access and design. It does not change what the zoning allows.
- Minor variance. A small exception to a zoning by-law, decided by the Committee of Adjustment.
- Section 37. A Planning Act provision that let the City allow extra height and density in return for community benefits, such as affordable housing.
- Gross floor area. The total floor area of a building, as the zoning by-law measures it.
- Employment Areas. The Official Plan designation that protects land for jobs and businesses.
- Site and area specific policy (SASP). An Official Plan policy written for one site or area.
- Mezzanine. An intermediate floor between two main floors. The applicant does not count the one here as a storey.
- Crash wall. A reinforced wall built to stop a derailed train from reaching a building.
- Dewatering. Pumping groundwater out of an excavation so construction can proceed.
Meetings
No community meeting is scheduled yet. Dates will be posted here and sent to the residents' list.