Bill 17 Proposed Regulation–…

Bill 17 Proposed Regulation–
As-of-right Variations from Setback Requirements
Federation of Urban Neighbourhoods (Ontario) Comments

ERO number 025-0463
https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/025-0463

Summary of Proposed Regulation
The proposed regulation would allow variations to be permitted “as-of-right” if a proposal is within 10% of setback requirements applicable to specified lands. For example, if the zoning by-law requires a 5 metre front yard setback from the property line, this would effectively reduce the setback to 4.5 metres and would allowed building 0.5 metres into that 5 metre setback as-of-right, without a minor variance or zoning by-law amendment.
The Ontario government claims that this would mean that there would be fewer applications submitted and fewer hearings for minor variances before a municipal committee of adjustment for these proposals.

The government is requesting comments on the contents of the proposed regulation and/or further opportunities to allow variations “as-of-right” for additional performance standards (e.g. height, lot coverage).

Comments
• The establishment and amendment of zoning bylaws is a municipal planning function, subject to due process requirements of public consultation and statutory hearings. This provincial regulation making authority established by Bill 17, albeit limited to “setback distance” is an overreach and unwelcome intrusion into municipal planning authority.

• This proposal undermines the integrity of zoning by-laws if they can be varied to a specified limited extent (depending on the flexibility (amount or percentage chosen by the province) without any consideration of the planning merits of the situation, which has been the mandate of the Committee of Adjustment, with the four tests to be applied to determine the merits of an application.

• The request for comments on “further opportunities” implies that the authority may be extended to other zoning measures such as height, lot coverage, density (FSI), leading to a situation where “flexibility” becomes the “new normal”

• While the Committee of Adjustment is not a perfect mechanism, it does mandate consideration of the planning implications of proposed variances, and also provides an opportunity for residents affected to “have their say” at a hearing. This is part of due process and of democracy, which this proposal would potentially remove, at least for the applications affected by the regulation.

• Finally we note for the record our disappointment that for Bill 17, unlike most Bills, the provincial government did not hold any Standing Committee meetings — which is where experts and stakeholders (such as the Federation of Urban Neighbourhoods) would have had an opportunity to make deputations.

June 26, 2025