The Ontario Association of…

The Ontario Association of Landscape Architects (OALA) appreciates the opportunity to provide comments on Bill 98, the Building Homes and Improving Transportation Infrastructure Act, 2026, with specific reference to proposed changes to the Planning Act, Building Code Act, City of Toronto Act, and Municipal Act (ERO 026-0300) to prohibit mandatory Municipal Enhanced Development Standards and Green Building Standards at the lot level, to remove references to “sustainable design” from site plan control, and further to prohibit mandatory Enhanced Development Standards as a condition of land division approvals (ERO 026-0309).

We recognize and share the Government of Ontario's goals to accelerate housing delivery and reduce unnecessary approval delays. Our members are directly engaged in delivering these goals daily, working at the intersection of natural systems, built infrastructure, and community design to create places that are not only efficient to build, but safe and healthy to live in. Landscape architects are the professionals most directly responsible for the site-level work affected by EROs 026-0300 and 026-0309: stormwater management, urban forestry, green roofs, permeable surfaces, mobility corridors, and climate-resilient public realm design. These are not peripheral or cosmetic considerations; they are core professional services that determine whether new communities and developments function safely and are cost-effective over time.

Above all, our professional mandate is to serve and protect the public interest. It is on this basis that we write to express serious concerns about the proposed removal of mandatory Enhanced Development Standards (EDS).

Please see attached letter for further comments.