What's Proposed?
The Road Ahead
The Midtown Official Plan is intended to provide area-specific policies that will shape and define this urban neighbourhood. The language in the OP is particularly important, as it will be what must be considered when evaluating future development applications and what the Ontario Land Tribunal would consider if Oakville Council decisions were appealed.
Within the overall 103 square hectare plot of Midtown, only 43 square hectares are developable. That's because there are elements within the boundaries, often called 'takeouts' such as hydro corridors, valley lands, railway easements, cemeteries, etc., that reduce the available land for development.
Oakville's current population is approximately 222,000, By 2051, Halton Region suggests it will grow to 375,000. That means Oakville must plan to accommodate an additional 153,000 people across its six Growth Areas.
As one of those 6 Growth Areas, Midtown is intended to be a complete community that will focus on people and where they can live, work and play in walkable, mixed-use neighbourhoods.
The Official Plan Amendment for Midtown is to play one role in the many that are usually needed to create a new community - A Master Plan, a Transportation Plan, a Parks Plan, etc. At this time the other plans referenced above are not in place.
The density permissions outlined in the proposed Midtown Amendment could result in a Midtown population 90,000
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The scale of what is now being proposed for Midtown far exceeds what was previously contemplated.
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'Tall' was not meant to be forty-plus stories and now there are development applications for fifty-eight storeys.
Development Applications
A sample of current development applications for Midtown. Additional information on other applications as well as details are available at the Oakville.ca website.
Distrikt Developments
166 South Service Road
Proposed three towers
44 storeys, 50 storeys and 58 storeys in height.
1,606 Units
A word about FSI
Also known as the floor area ratio (FAR), FSI is the relationship between the total amount of usable floor area and the total area of the property on which it stands. It is determined by dividing the gross floor area of the building by the gross area of the lot.
The transition from using storeys or meters/feet in defining and controlling the built form of buildings in Midtown has resulted in confusion. Now, it is not transparent to the public what height and density would be allowed on each property and the cumulative impact over the 43 hectares/106 acres. The current Midtown OP also references units per hectare, raising the question of what the proposed OP will allow in terms of units per hectare?
Proposed Policies
Each of these map illustrations represents a different facet of the proposed policies for Midtown - land use, density, FSI, etc. Each can be enlarged for viewing by clicking on the image.
