Please support the Yonge…

Please support the Yonge-Eglinton Official Plan Amendment No. 405 (“OPA 405”) as adopted by the City of Toronto. I am writing this email to express my absolute support for OPA 405 - the only plan that addresses the overwhelming development burden being imposed on our neighbourhood. I grew up in the Yonge and Eglinton area - I went to Eglinton Public School and North Toronto Collegiate Institute. I had a fantastic childhood in a place that was a community in every sense of the word. It's where I want to live and start a family. Unfortunately, I have since moved away due to the rapid over-development of the neighbourhood. The area has become unliveable as the never-ending construction goes on 12 hours a day, 6 days a week. The noise, dust, and overcrowding make it difficult to spend a single day in the area, let alone live there full-time. I fear the future is not much brighter for this community. If OPA 405 is not approved, this neighbourhood will be inundated with rows of massive condos. In ten years, what will be left of the streetscape? What will be left of the greater sense of community? The soon-to-be completed LRT is a necessary and long over-due addition to Toronto's transit network. However, it will compound the challenges this neighbourhood is facing. Yonge and Eglinton is already on the brink - and the LRT will drop tens of thousands additional people into it every day. This, coupled with the explosion in population, will push infrastructure far past its breaking point and further affect the liveability of this community. Thousands of new residential units are being built, and we have not come close to addressing the infrastructure deficit. We are playing catch up. OPA 405 is a critical first step and will help alleviate some of the pressures I have detailed. On the municipal level we have a lot more work ahead of us. We must address the lack of green space in the plan and the diminishing liveability of this neighbourhood. It is important to note that the Yonge-Eglinton Urban Growth Centre (UCG) has already significantly exceeded Provincial growth targets. As stated on pages 13-16 of City staff's Supplementary Report, OPA 405 is consistent with the Growth Plan (2017) and the Provincial Policy Statement (2014). This plan will not only support a livable community but will ease the stress on our infrastructure and reduce requirements for additional child care and pupil spaces in the area (11). The sun and shadow impacts would be significantly reduced on important public open spaces (10).