This is an important local Toronto issue: city heritage planning out of control. Staff want to add nearly 900 buildings on heritage register, most of them totally ordinary, on the thinnest of pretexts. #topoli /1 http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/decisionBodyProfile.do?function=doPrepare&meetingId=18140#Meeting-2020.PB19

In six areas in and around Toronto's old core, these are main-street buildings -- which are also the only permitted development sites. 2/

This is a dramatic change. Toronto heritage planning under @MaryPlanningMac has been reluctant to mass-list buildings, even types of obvious historical and architectural importance like schools and religious buildings. 3/

Their attempt to create a Heritage Conservation District in the downtown St. Lawrence area was shredded by a provincial appeals body. Now: they're trying to list 257 buildings there. 4/ http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2020.PB19.11

There's a huge tension between heritage conservation and intensifcation here. Should we be protecting small and undistinguished buildings in the middle of a fast-growing city? A very serious policy question. I've written about this. 5/ https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto/article-heritage-rules-and-development-pressures-create-an-explosive-mix-in/

At this scale, it's arguably not even heritage planning at all. It's urban design by another name -- making development difficult or impossible. This deserves intense scrutiny @m_layton @kristynwongtam 6/

To back up: protecting main streets is arguably a good idea. But not if you've already locked down the rest of the city to much-needed development. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto/article-should-development-hit-a-beloved-dive-bar-or-our-backyards/

From the city’s official plan. Yellow is untouchable. The dark gold strips are one place development is allowed. Most of these new heritage listings are in those zones 8/

The city is facing intense growth pressures, already has a huge shortage of housing, and has a plan to add much more growth in the core. It has to go somewhere. 9/

Meanwhile the important Modern building on the cover of this book, which I flagged in @globeandmail years ago, is being torn down for a big-box parking lot. 10/

This doesn’t seem like an urgent issue at the moment. But it will, in time. 11/