project background - 721 eastern721eastern.ca/.../uploads/...snhia_721_eastern_ave.pdf · paul...

REPORT PREPARED FOR GENERAL MOTORS OF CANADA COMPANY BY CH2M HILL CANADA LIMITED, 2018

CH2M (Kitchener) 72 Victoria Street Suite 300 Kitchener, ON N2G 4Y9 O +519 579 3500 F +519 579 8986 www.ch2m.com

Paul Mulé, Planner City of Toronto Community Planning Toronto City Hall, 18th floor 100 Queen Street West Toronto, ON M5H 2N2

March 5, 2018

Subject: Second Addendum to the Scoped Natural Heritage Impact Assessment for 721 Eastern Avenue, Site Plan Approval Application – Site 1 and Innovation Plaza; Files 17 137240 STE 30 OZ and 17 137249 STE 30 SB

Dear Mr. Mulé,

CH2M HILL Canada Limited (CH2M) is pleased to present this Second Addendum to the Scoped Natural Heritage Impact Assessment (SNHIA Report, CH2M, 2017a) for the property located at 721 Eastern Avenue (Subject Property), located north of Lake Shore Boulevard East and west of Leslie Street, in the City of Toronto, Ontario (City).

Project Background On March 31, 2017, General Motors of Canada Company (GM Canada) submitted an application for a Zoning By-law Amendment along with a Plan of Subdivision (files 17 137240 STE 30 OZ and 17 137249 STE 30 SB respectively) to permit the development of office space, research and development facilities, ancillary retail, and an auto dealership on the Subject Property. As part of the above-noted applications, a SNHIA Report (dated March 27, 2017) was submitted to the City. A Notice of Complete Application and Assignment of Application under the City's STAR Process was received on May 18, 2017.

An Official Plan Amendment (OPA) application was submitted on October 30, 2017. A Notice of Complete Application for the OPA was received dated November 6, 2017.

On November 30, 2017, an application for Site Plan Approval (SPA) was filed for the development of Site 1 and the new Public Right-of-Way (17 269708 STE 30 SA). An Addendum to the SNHIA Report, dated November 28, 2017 (CH2M, 2017b), was submitted as part of that application to present the updated site layout and review the conclusions of the SNHIA Report in light of the change to the Site layout.

Purpose of the Second Addendum to the SNHIA Report As in the original March 2017 submission, the proposed development will support employment space across 3 development blocks (referred to as Sites 1, 2 and 3). This Second Addendum letter, which supplements the March 29, 2017 Planning Rationale and the November 28, 2017 Addendum letter, provides a planning rationale for the revised development proposal prepared in response to comments from City staff to date, as supported by revised applications for Zoning By-law Amendment, Plan of Subdivision, Official Plan Amendment for the entire Subject Property, including the new Public Right-of-way, and Site Plan Approval Application for Phase 1 - Site 1 along with Innovation Plaza (Site 4). This Second Addendum also provides a response to comments to date and summarizes the key changes to the proposed development.

Paul Mulé, Planner March 5, 2018


The comments and input received to date include City staff’s comments in the Preliminary Staff Report (dated August 23, 2017), corresponding discussions with City staff, comments from the community (in particular from the community meeting on November 2, 2017), comments from the Design Review Panel (November 2, 2017), and other City comments received February 2, 2018.

This Addendum letter should be reviewed in conjunction with the original SNHIA Report (CH2M, 2017a). The proposed Site Layout is shown in Addendum 2 Figure 1.

Overview of the Proposed Development – Updated March 2018 GM Canada envisions a master planned employment campus that secures the Subject Property as an employment generator for the long term while integrating a range of employment uses in well designed and attractive urban buildings. As in the March 2017 and November 2017 submissions, at full build-out, the proposed development will support employment space across 3 development blocks (referred to as Site 1, 2 and 3) and a publicly accessible private open space (referred to as Innovation Plaza or Site 4). The development proposal for the Subject Property provides for 74,500 m2 of employment uses, creating an opportunity for up to 2,550 new high-order jobs.

The development will occur in phases. The first phase prioritizes the development of the Toronto GM Mobility Campus, Innovation Plaza and the new public ROW and associated infrastructure and grading. Phase 2 includes the development of Sites 2 and 3 and additional site works.

Phase 1: the GM Campus Site 1. The Toronto GM Mobility Campus will be located on the south portion of the Subject Property (Site 1). The Toronto GM Mobility Campus will be housed in a multi-functional 5-storey 26,266 m2 building, comprised entirely of employment uses. The building has been carefully designed in order to ensure prominence, visibility, access and an active frontage on Lake Shore Boulevard, Eastern Avenue and the new public ROW.

New Public Right-of-Way. The proposed development will be serviced by a new public ROW that will connect Eastern Avenue to Lake Shore Boulevard and the Lower Don Trail through the Subject Property. The new Rushbrooke Avenue Public Right-of-Way (or new public ROW) is designed as a local road with a 20.0 m wide ROW aligning with the eastern property line of the Subject Property.

Innovation Plaza. Innovation Plaza, the new privately owned but publicly accessible open space, will form the main pedestrian link south from Eastern Avenue to the GM Mobility Campus. This enhancement will be provided in the first phase of development with Site 1 in an interim condition and will be enhanced through subsequent development approvals associated with Site 2 and Site 3.

Phase 2: Sites 2 and 3. The northern portion of the Subject Property is composed of Sites 2 and 3 and an enhanced Innovation Plaza. Sites 2 and 3 are proposed to be developed for over 48,000 m2 (~518,000 ft2) of combined non-residential uses including office and ancillary employee-serving retail uses. When combined with the employment space proposed in the GM Campus, the entire Subject Property will be a long-term employment generator for the immediate South of Eastern community and the broader City.

The OPA, ZBA and Plan of Subdivision applications address Sites 2 and 3 to provide for and secure a general framework for the entirety of the Subject Property. No site plan application has yet been submitted for Sites 2 and 3 as a detailed design exercise will only occur when a development partner is brought on or the lands are sold.



Identification of Natural Heritage Features and Functions An SNHIA was required to be completed based on the information provided to CH2M during a telephone conversation with Ms. Jane Weninger, Senior Planner from the City of Toronto, on October 25, 2016. GM Canada’s proposal involves the removal of a number of trees from the City-owned property along the southern edge of the Subject Property adjacent to Lake Shore Boulevard (the City Property, previously referred to as Right-of-Way in the SNHIA Report). The City Property area has been identified as a Natural Heritage Feature as shown on Map 9 of the City’s Official Plan. Ms. Weninger indicated that a SNHIA would need to be completed to address concerns associated with the loss of trees within the City Property and potential resulting impacts to birds. A site visit was conducted by CH2M on March 11, 2017. The various areas of the Subject Property and the City Property are presented in Addendum 2 Figure 2.

Vegetation The Tree Inventory and Preservation Plan was prepared by Kuntz Forestry Consulting Inc. in early 2017, updated in November 2017 and has again been updated for this submission (Kuntz, 2018) based on additional changes to the Site Plan layout and comments received from the City. Their work plan included the following work on the Subject Property and in the adjacent City Property:

• Inventory of the tree resources greater than 15 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) on private lands and trees of all sizes within the City Property, on and within six metres of the Subject Property

• Evaluate potential tree saving opportunities based on proposed development plans

Subject Property (Including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza). No naturalized areas or features exist on the Subject Property. A few landscape planted trees and a small area of manicured grass exists between the existing building and the sidewalk along Eastern Avenue (Kuntz, 2018).

City Property. The City Property is located between the Subject Property and Lake Shore Boulevard East. The trees along the City Property have all been planted and consist of typical landscape planted tree species, including several that are non-native (Kuntz, 2018). The species consist of non-native and native trees, and the area is heavily disturbed by a major road (Lakeshore Boulevard East) and from urbanization.

The current development plan as shown in Addendum 2 Figure 1 has not changed the site plan layout significantly in the vicinity of the City Property and therefore no change from the original SNHIA Report is anticipated. Additional detail with respect to existing species was provided in the SNHIA Report (CH2M, 2017a).

Birds As indicated in the SNHIA Report, no Species At Risk or Species of Special Concern were observed during the March 17, 2017 site reconnaissance visit or are expected to inhabit the Subject Property or City Property.

Subject Property (Including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza). No birds or bird nests were observed during the 2017 site reconnaissance as described in the SNHIA Report (CH2M, 2017a), and habitat is not present on the Subject Property due to site development and active commercial use.

City Property. Given the vegetation type and current disturbance, the bird species that may nest along the City Property as described in the SNHIA Report, are all common species and many are commonly found in urban settings.



Impact Identification and Analysis Vegetation The removal of 52 healthy trees within the Subject Property and the City Property will be required to accommodate the proposed development. An additional 20 trees are recommended for removal due to their condition for a total of 72 across both areas, Subject Property (including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza) plus the City Property.

Subject Property (Including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza). The Subject Property is an actively used commercial property that is nearly devoid of vegetation with the exception of a few landscape planted trees. Therefore, negligible impacts are expected to vegetation on the Subject Property (including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza) as a result of site redevelopment including the most recent site plan layout changes (Quadrangle, 2018). Five trees are recommended for removal within the Subject Property.

City Property. The revised Site Plan includes the recommended removal of 67 trees within the City Property either due to the proposed development as a result of proposed site access and enhanced landscaping or due to their condition (47 healthy and 20 in poor condition).

Birds The current proposed site plan layout is not expected to change the conclusions regarding impacts to Birds at the Subject Property (including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza) or the City Property, from earlier reports.

Subject Property (Including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza). Impacts to birds that would be resident on the property are not expected. It is possible however, that there could be minor impacts to birds that are transient and moving through the area due to the presence of the new buildings.

City Property. The bird species that may nest along the City Property as described in the SNHIA Report are not expected to be directly affected by construction activities. The Kuntz Forestry Consulting Tree Inventory and Preservation Plan (Kuntz, 2018) includes the removal of 67 trees from the City Property. Minor impacts to birds are expected as a result of the loss of these trees. The quantity and quality of bird habitat within the City Property is poor however, as no naturalized habitat and vegetation was observed and they are all landscape planted trees.

Responses to Impacts As noted in Section 3 of the SNHIA Report, impacts are not expected to vegetation or birds on the Subject Property (including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza) but minor impacts are expected within the City Property. The avoidance and mitigative measures as proposed in the SNHIA Report are still valid with the following minor changes based on the changes to the planting plan.

The updated proposed Site layout is not expected to have any impact on the following as described in the SNHIA Report:

• Site and Building Lighting • Indoor Plantings

As a result of comments received from Jane Weninger, Senior Planner, City of Toronto (email dated February 1, 2018), the design for the Green Roof has been further confirmed to include features as described in Section 4.3 of the SNHIA Report (CH2M, 2017a). The proposed roof of the GM Mobility Campus will therefore meet requirements that would result in its classification as a Tier 2, or Intensive Biodiverse Green Roof, under the Toronto Green Standard Checklist (City, 2017).



In addition, as per the Toronto Green Standard Checklist, mitigation measures, such as bird friendly surface glazing, will be incorporated into the final building design.

Tree Planting Plan The proposed development of the Subject Property provides an excellent opportunity to greatly increase both the quantity and quality of vegetation present, which will subsequently increase the quantity and quality of habitat for birds. The landscape proposal (Terraplan, 2018) for the Toronto GM Mobility Campus includes a planting strategy and approach that will provide habitats for bird species that exist naturally within the urban fabric of Toronto, such as Gulls (sp.), Northern Cardinals, American Robins, House Sparrows and European Starlings. These species may be able to nest and inhabit the Subject Property and/or will utilize the Toronto GM Mobility Campus site as a transitory corridor as they move within and around the City. Additionally, migratory or transitory species that migrate north in summer and south in the winter will also benefit from this added habitat as it will provide a resting and feeding area. It is proposed that 127 trees be planted throughout the Subject Property (Site 1, Innovation Plaza and the new Proposed public ROW) and City Property. Ultimately the site will see an increase in canopy as a result of the new plantings including a broad diversity of tree species as outlined in Section 4.1 of the SNHIA Report (CH2M, 2017) and detailed in the Kuntz report (2018).

As a result of the planting of 127 trees, as well as a variety of shrubs, the quality and quantity of vegetation present in the area will increase and will benefit the birds substantially. The proposed planting for the Subject Property can be summarized as follows:

• Site 1 – 49 trees • Innovation Plaza – 9 trees

The remaining 69 proposed trees fall within the City Property and the new proposed Public ROW.

Tree Layout The design layout and positioning of trees within the landscape will have several beneficial impacts. Firstly, they will integrate the proposed building seamlessly into the surrounding landscape. Trees also will act as shade areas around seating and hardscape elements and in doing so will reduce the urban heat island effect, cooling the microclimate within their vicinity. They will act as a natural transitory corridor for bird movement with many trees being located within bioswales at the sidewalk edges. Trees define space both horizontally and vertically, and rows of trees on both sides of a street will humanize the height-to-width ratio between the building and street. The landscape proposal endeavors to locate trees away from the immediate vicinity of the building, mitigating the reflective vegetation that confuses birds and results in impaction with glass.

Tree Preservation The updated proposed site plan layout is not expected to change the conclusions regarding tree preservation at the Subject Property (including Site 1). Please refer to section 4.6 of the SNHIA Report and Summary and Recommendations section in the revised updated Kuntz report (Kuntz, 2018).

Best Management Practices As described in the SNHIA Report, it is expected that a series of best management practices (BMPs) will be implemented during construction to prevent and minimize environmental impacts including to vegetation and birds.



Conclusions and Recommendations This second Addendum letter to the SNHIA Report was prepared to support the updated applications focusing on potential impacts to vegetation and birds at Site 1 and Innovation Plaza, in the adjacent City Property and within the Subject Property as a whole, that may be affected by the development of the property as proposed (Quadrangle, 2018). As noted in the SNHIA Report, impacts are not expected to vegetation or birds on the Subject Property (including Site 1 and Innovation Plaza) but minor impacts are expected within the City Property. This conclusion does not change in light of the changes to the Site layout (Quadrangle, 2018). To prevent and mitigate potential impacts, a series of building and landscape design considerations will be incorporated into the development of the Toronto GM Mobility Campus. Only a few landscape planted trees are present on the Subject Property and 62 trees will be removed from within the City Property. A total of 127 trees representing a range of species will be planted to compensate for the loss of trees during redevelopment, thus significantly enhancing the quality and quantity of vegetation and bird habitat present in the area. Impacts to trees and birds will also be mitigated through tree placement, incorporation of an Intensive Biodiverse Green Roof, site and building lighting design, bird friendly glazing, indoor planting locations, tree preservation measures and well as the implementation of BMPs.

Based on the above considerations, it is expected that impacts to vegetation and birds will be mitigated and in fact, construction of the Toronto GM Mobility Campus is likely to provide beneficial effects to vegetation and birds.

Closure Please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned should you have questions regarding this document.

Regards, CH2M HILL Canada Limited

Jennifer L Caron, P.Eng. Project Engineer

Approved and Reviewed By:

James T. Kroetsch, F.W.T., M.Sc., CCEP, QPRA Kurt O. Hansen, B.E.S., M.E.S., QPESA Senior Scientist Senior Project Manager



References CH2M HILL. 2017a. Final Report, Scoped Natural Heritage Impact Assessment, 721 Eastern Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, March 27, 2017.

CH2M HILL. 2017b. Addendum to the Scoped Natural Heritage Impact Assessment for 721 Eastern Avenue, Site Plan Approval Application – Site 1; files 17 137240 STE 30 OZ and 17 137249 STE 30 SB, 721 Eastern Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, November 28, 2017.

City of Toronto, 2017. Toronto Green Standard Version 2.0 Checklist, https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/official-plan-guidelines/toronto-green-standard/tier-1-planning-application-requriements/.

Kuntz Forestry Consulting, 2018. Tree Inventory & Preservation Plan Report, 721 Eastern Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, Revised March 5, 2018.

Quadrangle 2018. Architectural Plans dated March 5, 2018.

Terraplan, 2018. Existing Conditions, Proposed Site Plan, Tree Inventory &Preservation Plan, Figure 1, March 5, 2018.

Toronto (City of) email correspondence to Urban Strategies from Jane Weninger (February 1, 2018) via Paul Mule, (February 2, 2018) regarding Green Roof.

https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/planning-development/official-plan-guidelines/toronto-green-standard/tier-1-planning-application-requriements/



Second Addendum Letter – Figures

November 23, 2017

SOURCE: QUADRANGLE ARCHITECTURAL PLANS, MARCH 5, 2018.

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ADDENDUM 2 - FIGURE 1

Proposed Site Plan

Second Addendum to the SNHIA Report

Toronto GM Mobility Campus General Motors of Canada

Company 721 Eastern Avenue, Toronto, Ontario

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