What is proposed at 888 Dupont Street, set against the by-law and the 2024 variance.
The short version. Against what the Committee of Adjustment approved in 2024, the proposal adds two storeys, 572 m2 of floor area and cuts non-residential space by about 1,500 m2, or 93 percent. On the applicant's reported height, it is also about 25 m taller than the tallest of its three mid-rise neighbours.
The site
888 Dupont Street is the northeast corner of Dupont Street and Ossington Avenue. The lot is 2,417 m2, with 30.5 m of frontage on Dupont and a depth of 77.4 m. The CP rail corridor runs along its north edge. To the east are the Dupont-Shaw Parkette and then 840 Dupont Street, which the applicant describes as nine storeys.
Sources: Project Data Sheet. Planning Rationale letter, Sept 28, 2026.
Three sets of numbers: the by-law, the 2024 variance and the proposal
On June 11, 2024, the Committee of Adjustment approved minor variance A0346/24TEY, on condition. It raised the by-law's limits on height and floor area. The table sets today's proposal against both.
By-law 841-2022, the 2024 variance as approved, and the September 2026 resubmission (File 21 206371 STE 11 SA)
Item
By-law 841-2022
2024 variance (approved)
Current resubmission
Storeys
14
17
19
Height (variance excludes mechanical penthouse)
50 m
56 m
62.6 m (basis not stated)
Total gross floor area
14,850 m2
17,918 m2
18,490 m2
Residential floor area
12,850 m2
16,301 m2
18,374 m2
Non-residential floor area
Up to 2,000 m2
About 1,617 m2 (derived)
116 m2
Dwelling units
155 (2022 approval)
Not stated
255
Dwelling units near the rail line
Set back at least 20.0 m from the north lot line
Not varied
Applicant states no residential floor space remains in the employment-zoned lands
Affordable rental units
20, secured in 2022
20, with the average unit-size minimums relaxed
20, with changes to location and grouping requested
Vehicle parking
Visitor spaces at 0.05 per unit, 3 car-share spaces
No visitor spaces, 2 car-share spaces
52 spaces, including 2 visitor and 2 car-share
Sources: By-law 841-2022. City Planning staff report, May 17, 2024, which describes the 2022 approval (read the report). Committee of Adjustment Notice of Decision A0346/24TEY, June 11, 2024 (read the decision). Project Data Sheet and Planning Rationale letter, September 2026. The 2024 non-residential figure is derived by subtracting the residential figure from the total.
The Committee attached three conditions: a final Section 37 agreement entered into and registered on title, a revised pedestrian wind study before the Notice of Approval Conditions for the site plan application, and an updated transportation impact study justifying the reduced parking supply.
Where the proposal goes beyond 2024
Floor area: 572 m2 more in total, 2,073 m2 more residential. Total floor area is 18,490 m2 against 17,918 m2 approved. Residential floor area is 18,374 m2 against 16,301 m2 approved.
Storeys: 19 against 17 approved. The Committee approved an increase from 14 to 17 storeys. The applicant says the number of floors has not increased since the 2024 massing, because the 18th and 19th floors were already partial floors, and that the 18th is now a full floor. We ask how storeys were counted in the 2024 approval.
Height: at least 0.9 m taller than the 2024 massing. The variance approved 56 m excluding the mechanical penthouse. The Project Data Sheet reports 62.6 m and does not say whether the penthouse is included. The 0.9 m increase is the applicant's own figure.
Non-residential space: about 1,500 m2 less. By the figures the Committee approved, the 2024 variance left about 1,617 m2 of non-residential space. The current proposal has 116 m2.
East setback: 0.38 m less on part of the east wall. A portion of the east wall is set back 4.92 m where the applicant describes 5.30 m as required.
Why this matters. Site plan control cannot grant relief from zoning. Our understanding is that where plans exceed the by-law as varied in 2024, the applicant needs further relief, either from the Committee of Adjustment or through a zoning by-law amendment, and both carry public notice. We ask the City to confirm which standards are exceeded, and to require that process before it approves the site plan or issues a building permit.
Height in context
Heights in metres
Dupont Street Regeneration Study, staff recommendation (2014), outside the 30 m rail setback25 m
840 Dupont Street (The Dupont), next door36.55 m
740 Dupont Street (Litho)36.88 m
500 Dupont Street (Oscar), including its mechanical penthouse38 m
888 Dupont, 2024 minor variance, excluding mechanical penthouse56 m
888 Dupont, current resubmission (basis not stated)62.6 m
The dashed line marks 38 m, the tallest of the three recent mid-rise buildings. Grey bars show the corridor context, gold bars show the heights approved for 888 Dupont, and the rust bar shows the current proposal.
Three recent mid-rise buildings on the corridor stand between 36.55 m and 38 m, and the 38 m at 500 Dupont includes its mechanical penthouse. At 62.6 m, the proposal is about 25 m taller than the tallest of them, roughly 65 percent, though the figures may be measured on different bases. In March 2026, commenting on the earlier submission, the City said the height is not reflective of the existing and planned context of the area.
How to read the chart. The 50 m and 56 m figures exclude the mechanical penthouse. By-law 841-2022 lets mechanical equipment project up to 6 m above the height limit, and the 2024 variance added the same allowance for indoor amenity space. The by-law height applies to the tallest section of the building only and is measured from a fixed elevation of 121.49 m, not from grade. The Project Data Sheet does not say whether 62.6 m includes the penthouse, so the chart is not a like-for-like comparison. The applicant's own figure is that the building is 0.9 m taller than the 2024 massing.
The policy history. Before 2022, the corridor's Official Plan policy (SASP 212) limited mixed-use portions of properties to nine storeys, without stating a height in metres. The 2022 amendment removed 888 Dupont from that policy, so it and the 2014 recommendation show the context and the history. They are not a limit that applies to this site today.
The starting point. The 2022 by-law already allowed 14 storeys and 50 m, about 12 m above the tallest neighbouring building. By its own wording, that extra height and density was permitted in return for the community benefits secured under section 37, which include the affordable housing. The 2024 variance and today's proposal both build on a starting point that was already well above the corridor.
The nearby sites did not start at nine storeys. Each owner asked for more, and was settled down after appealing the 2014 corridor policy to the Ontario Municipal Board.
840 Dupont. The City's 2014 draft plans show the site at up to 13 storeys and 46 m, and a 2016 submission proposed 11 storeys. The Board's 2017 decision approved a settlement at nine storeys.
500 Dupont. The first plans were as high as 12 storeys. They were cut by three storeys, to nine.
740 Dupont. The 2014 draft plans show up to 12 storeys and 46 m. The building went up at nine.
These were negotiated settlements, not rulings that nine storeys is a fixed cap, and the 2022 approval for 888 Dupont came in different circumstances. The point is context. Every comparable site on this stretch ended up at about 36 to 38 m. This proposal sits about 25 m above that.
2,000 m2maximum non-residential floor area in By-law 841-2022
116 m2proposed, about 0.6 percent of the building and about 6 percent of the by-law maximum
20 mrear strip of the lot reserved for employment and ancillary uses
The by-law permits employment uses in the rear 20 m of the lot and keeps dwelling units at least 20.0 m from the north lot line. The applicant says grade, rail adjacency, loading and vehicle circulation leave too little useful area for a stand-alone employment space there.
The by-law sets no minimum non-residential floor area and permits, but does not require, live-work units. The applicant notes that under the current definition of "area of employment," live-work units would not count as employment.
City Planning's March 2026 comments on the earlier submission called the elimination of non-residential uses and live-work units, and the introduction of residential uses in an employment area, a significant departure from what Council approved in 2022 and the Committee of Adjustment considered in 2024. The City also asked for an analysis against the Provincial Policy Statement, 2024, the Official Plan's Employment Areas and Avenues policies, and the site and area specific policy.
City Planning staff described the 2022 approval as including 2,028 m2 of non-residential uses, including retail, commercial and light industrial (the by-law caps non-residential floor area at 2,000 m2). Site and area specific policy 805, adopted in 2022, allows no residential uses on the portion of the site designated Employment Areas except accessory or ancillary uses such as parking, loading, service, access and mechanical facilities.
The applicant's September 2026 response adds 116 m2 of corner commercial space with a 6.6 m ceiling, and removes residential floor space from the employment-zoned lands.
Sources: By-law 841-2022 (provisions H and P). Committee of Adjustment Notice of Decision A0346/24TEY and City Planning staff report, 2024. Batory Planning + Management letter, Sept 28, 2026, which reproduces the City's comments. Project Data Sheet.
What the applicant says has changed
Compared with the 2024 massing
The partial 18th floor is now a full floor, and the 19th floor remains partial.
Building height is 0.9 m greater, which the applicant attributes to structural elements and the green roof.
Added massing at the front and sides to address wind, and larger units on floors 7 through 18.
Compared with the December 2025 submission
Units rise from 251 to 255.
About 116 m2 (1,253 square feet) of ground-floor commercial space is added at the corner of Dupont and Ossington.
Residential floor space is removed from the employment-zoned rear lands.
A portion of the east wall is set back 4.92 m, down from the 5.30 m the applicant describes as required, leaving 14.7 m to the nearest windows at 840 Dupont. The applicant notes that 11.0 m is typical.
Sources: Batory Planning + Management letter to the City, Sept 28, 2026. GHD letter, Sept 28, 2026.
Next door: overlook, privacy and the east wall
The east wall of the proposed building faces the Dupont-Shaw Parkette and 840 Dupont Street, which is nine storeys. The applicant's letter says windows from units at 840 Dupont on floors 3 through 9 sit 14.7 to 15.5 m from the new east wall, and that 11.0 m is typical for buildings of this scale.
Privacy planters were asked for and declined. City urban design recommended planters along the east-facing terraces to reduce overlook. The applicant replied that, given the separation distance and the adjacent parkland, screening would not prevent privacy issues and would shrink the balconies.
The applicant calls them secondary windows. It describes the 840 Dupont windows that face the new wall as "secondary windows," which suggests they are not the main windows of those units. If you live at 840 Dupont and one of those windows is in a bedroom, living room or another room you use, tell the City. That is evidence the City does not have.
A smaller setback on part of the wall. A portion of the east wall is set back 4.92 m where the applicant describes 5.30 m as required.
Source: Batory Planning + Management letter to the City, Sept 28, 2026, which reproduces the City's overlook comment.
Construction: tiebacks and dewatering
Site work is already permitted. The City issued a standalone shoring and excavation permit on June 2, 2026, and revised it on October 8, 2026 to add tiebacks into the Ossington and Dupont right of way.
The owner also registered construction dewatering with the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks on January 22, 2026. The registration estimates water taking from March 1, 2026 to December 31, 2029, at up to 369,000 litres a day, around the clock, discharged to the City sanitary sewer. It requires the owner to carry out monitoring and contingency plans. We ask the City to put those plans on the public file and to confirm that the monitoring covers neighbouring buildings and streets.
Sources: City Building Application Status pages for 26 110316 BLD 00 BA and 26 110316 BLD 01 BA. Ministry registration confirmation R-009-7398841836.
A driveway that only turns right
The September 2026 site plan shows a single driveway into the underground parking, with a note that left turns are prohibited: right in, right out only. The 2019 transportation study placed the driveway on the east side of the site, under stop control, and explained the ban on outbound left turns by insufficient sight distance.
A right-turn-only driveway changes how drivers reach it. As we read the plan, drivers coming from the north, south or west who cannot turn left into the driveway must pass through the residential streets north of the site, crossing Acores Avenue and Shaw Street, before turning west on Dupont to enter. We are concerned that this adds traffic to quiet residential streets.
The September 2026 transportation letter forecasts about 43 morning and 49 afternoon peak-hour two-way vehicle trips. It does not name Acores Avenue or Shaw Street, and it does not discuss how drivers will reach a driveway that allows only right turns. See Our position for what we are asking the City to require.
Sources: Architectural Plans, September 2026 (site plan notes). Transportation Impact Study, 2019. GHD transportation update letter, Sept 28, 2026.
What the applicant's studies say
Five studies support the resubmission. Each card shows what the study says and what we are asking the City to require.
Traffic and access
Routing not studied
GHD, Sept 28, 2026, updating a December 2025 assessment
What the study says
Forecasts about 43 morning and 49 afternoon peak-hour two-way vehicle trips, including a conservative retail estimate.
The December 2025 assessment found a negligible effect on the road network, and the update treats the changes as nominal.
It does not name Acores Avenue or Shaw Street, and does not discuss how drivers reach a right-turn-only driveway.
What we are asking
A routing analysis showing which streets the forecast trips would use, including Acores Avenue and Shaw Street.
Noise and vibration
Exceeds vibration criterion
RWDI, Oct 9, 2026
What the study says
Train vibration measured over 24 hours on August 26-27, 2026 reached 0.18 mm/s, above the 0.14 mm/s guideline. The fix is left to detailed design.
Recommends central air-conditioning so windows stay closed, glazing rated up to STC 42, and railway warning clauses.
Rail volumes come from a 2019 request, grown 2.5 percent a year to 2036, at 24 daytime and 12 nighttime freight trains.
The building's own noise effects could not be assessed numerically at this stage.
What we are asking
Current rail volumes, and the vibration mitigation design, on the public file before approval.
Rail safety
Reduced setback
Entuitive, Sept 28, 2026, with a crash wall letter dated Sept 25, 2026
What the study says
The site backs onto a CPKC main line used by freight, including dangerous commodities. Two tracks run beside the site, and a third plus a turnout starts at its east edge.
Industry guidelines call for a 30 m setback and a berm. The applicant proposes a 25 m setback to sensitive uses behind a crash wall, and its engineer says that gives equivalent protection.
The crash wall is designed on a freight speed of 35 mph. The report lists freight speeds up to 50 mph on the line.
What we are asking
How the 35 mph design basis relates to the line's 50 mph freight limit, and CPKC's view on the public file.
Shadow
New shadow only
Sun and shadow study by the applicant, 12 pages
What the study says
Drawings for March, June, September and December.
Existing shadows are left out because the site is vacant, so the drawings show new shadow only.
What we are asking
Hours of new shadow, by date, on every property the building affects: Garrison Creek Park, the Dupont-Shaw Parkette and Shaw Gardens to the north, 840 Dupont Street (The Dupont), including its rooftop pool and terrace, to the east, and properties south of Dupont.
Wind
Safety criterion met
RWDI, Sept 22, 2026
What the study says
Wind safety criteria are met at all assessed locations, with and without the building.
Tested in a wind tunnel with existing surroundings, and conditions are generally suitable through the year.
What we are asking
An updated study if the massing changes again. A revised wind study was a condition of the 2024 variance.
Why shadow on The Dupont matters
It has a rooftop pool. The roof terrace at The Dupont includes an outdoor pool, a poolside lounge and a sun terrace, according to the developer's marketing and UrbanToronto.
The new building would stand next door. It would rise to the west of The Dupont, separated from it only by the Dupont-Shaw Parkette. A taller building to the west can shade a rooftop deck in the afternoon and evening, when residents are most likely to use it.
The question is how much sun is lost. The City should require the hours of new shadow on the pool deck and terrace, by date, and say what mitigation is possible.
It is part of the Green Line. The Green Line is the City's proposed five-kilometre linear park system in a hydro corridor, and Garrison Creek Park is one of its parcels.
It is part of the PollinateTO pollinator corridor. Pollinator plantings depend on direct sun.
The community garden grows food crops. Food crops need direct sun, so new shadow affects what the garden can grow and how well, not only how pleasant the park is to sit in.
Official Plan policy points the same way. The built form policies direct new development to minimize additional shadowing on neighbouring parks as necessary to preserve their utility. For a park that grows food and supports pollinators, that utility depends on sunlight.
These are the applicant's consultants. The City reviews them, and residents can ask whether they cover the right locations, the right dates and the cumulative effect of nearby development. See Our position.