Vaughan, ON — The Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON) is taking legal action against the city of Toronto over the escalation of the Toronto Green Standard (TGS) performance measures.
RESCON has filed a legal application in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice seeking a mandatory order that would enforce the Building Code Act and prohibit the city from imposing building regulations on planning applications because they are beyond the city’s legal authority.
“The city is overstepping the scope of its planning authority by mandating technical building measures already covered in the OBC, which have been progressively updated and grounded in research, building science, thorough consultation as well as cost-benefit analysis,” said Richard Lyall, president of RESCON.
As per its press release, RESCON agrees that the city has authority under the Planning Act over land-use planning matters and can impose site-specific controls over land development within city boundaries. However, we argue the manner of construction and construction standards are not subject to site plan control because those matters are already governed by the Ontario Building Code (OBC).
RESCON adds that Ontario homebuilders are among the most sustainable and are part of the solution to climate change.
“We would agree that municipalities sometimes push the code to higher levels when they feel their province isn’t progressive enough. Usually, it has to do with energy efficiency standards or the elimination of fossil fuels, as was the case in Vancouver. We would prefer to see a harmonized approach, at least across the province, if not across the country,” shares Martin Luymes, vice president of government and stakeholder relations at the Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada (HRAI). “Urban centers house more progressive voters, relative to rural and suburban areas, and often they are pressed by their voters to lead by example. I think that’s what the Toronto Green Building Standard represents.”