Mike Kanyo had high hopes to eventually build a garden suite on his property for his daughter — an ambition he says has been brought on by the exorbitant cost of rental and ownership housing in Toronto — but thanks to a prospective zoning change that will be considered by the Toronto and East York Community Council on October 24, he may no longer have that option.
In early September, Kanyo, whose home backs onto Craven Road North, and his neighbours received a notice informing them of a “city-initiated zoning by-law amendment in response to council direction to review the history and classification of Craven Road.” If approved, the amendment would remove garden suite permissions for homes on Parkmount Road that back onto Craven Road between Danforth Avenue and Hanson Street. A community consultation on the matter is scheduled for Thursday at 7:00 pm.
As far as Kanyo is concerned, this is an open-and-shut case of NIMBY-ism. “[Some] residents of Craven Road argue that Craven is a historical street, which isn't wide enough for garden suites, and that residents on Parkmount should not be allowed to have garden suites in their through-lots,” he tells STOREYS. “How is it possible that [a] few well-connected residents can convince a city councillor to trample peoples' property rights simply because they don't want to live across from a garden suite?”
In an emailed statement, the City’s media team explains that planning staff are acting in response to two motions: the first passed at a Planning & Housing Committee held on June 13 (Item PH13.4), and the second passed at a City Council meeting held on July 24 (Item PH14.13). The statement also confirms Kanyo’s assertion that both motions have been brought forward “in response to concerns raised by members of the Craven Road community.”
The notice received by residents of the Craven Road community informing them of the proposed by-law amendment/via Mike Kanyo
This is not the first time that residents of the Craven Road community have rallied against garden suites, mind you. Just to give one example: a garden suite slated for 169 Parkmount Road was shot down by the Committee of Adjustment at hearing held last October. A half dozen residents submitted their letters of opposition at that time, as did Councillor Paula Fletcher (Ward 14 Toronto-Danforth).
“I rarely write to the Committee but I wanted to express my concern on this application being considered a garden suite. The lot for 169 Parkmount backs onto Craven Road, rather than a laneway, and is not ‘landlocked’ in the way of a traditional garden suite,” Councillor Fletcher said in her letter. “With the proposed development fronting a street the extent of some of the variances raise additional questions about how the building will work. Given this unusual situation, with the proposed development abutting a city road, and the considerable concerns of the neighbours I am asking you to give consideration to all of those factors in your decision on the application.”
Coming back to the proposed by-law amendment, Kanyo says that he's concerned that Councillor Fletcher has directed staff to implement a zoning by-law amendment with little notice and on an expedited timeline. “This is being rammed through council in the minimum number of days required — 90 days — without any prior notice or discussion with affected homeowners, and no opportunity to provide meaningful input,” he explains. ”It's going to be voted on at the October 24 community council meeting, and this Thursday's [consultation] is the only opportunity for affected homeowners to ask questions. It's shocking.”
“Many of our neighbours, including myself, have written to Councillor Fletcher to express their opposition to the zoning bylaw amendment and we've coordinated a collective request to meet with her,” Kanyo adds. “No one has received a response.”
STOREYS reached out to Councillor Fletcher for comment on this matter, but her office did not respond by the time of publication on Wednesday afternoon.
This all comes more than two years after garden suites became legalized across the city, as-of-right, as part of the Expanding Housing Options in Neighbourhoods initiative under former Mayor John Tory.
It wasn’t an easy feat to get the zoning changes for garden suites in place, mind you; despite being approved by City Council in February 2022, the matter ended up before the Ontario Land Tribunal after an alliance of Toronto residents’ associations slammed the move, calling it hasty and a "one-size-fits-all approach.” That appeal was dismissed by the Tribunal later that year, in July. The rocky path to getting the zoning changes off the ground makes it all the more unsettling for Toronto residents that these hard-earned permissions, in some part, could be undone.
For his part, Kanyo says he’s “angry and disappointed,” and fearful of the ripple effects. “If the amendment passes, individuals and neighbourhood groups all over the city could start lobbying for their own exclusion from the city-wide garden suite and laneway suite by-laws, pitting neighbour against neighbour and reducing housing options for everyone in the process.”
