As the dust settles on the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing's recent decisions on the City of Toronto's Protected Major Transit Station Areas (PMTSAs) and Major Transit Station Areas (MTSAs) Official Plan Amendments (OPAs or transit station area OPAs), we are sharing answers to commonly asked questions on what these decisions mean for landowners and developers, neighbourhoods, and affordable housing.
Background
On August 15, 2025, the Minister issued its decisions on six Toronto transit station OPAs (see full list at the bottom of this Comment). The decisions approved the boundaries and policies for 95 PMTSAs and 25 MTSAs in the City.
Provincial policy directs municipalities to delineate the boundaries of MTSAs on higher-order transit corridors through official plan amendments under section 26 of the Planning Act (such amendments are not subject to appeal). The boundaries are generally within a 500 to 800-metre radius of a transit station and are subject to minimum density targets of residents and jobs combined per hectare. As a strategic growth area under the Provincial Policy Statement, 2024 (the PPS), MTSAs are required to be a focus for growth and development. The PPS further provides that for such areas planning authorities should plan to accommodate significant population and employment growth and prioritize planning and investment for infrastructure and public service facilities.
The Planning Act permits municipalities to elevate MTSAs to "protected" status, i.e., as PMTSAs, through additional policies related to authorized uses and minimum densities for buildings or sites within the area.
The Planning Act prohibits requiring the provision of vehicular parking facilities within in-effect delineated transit station areas and, with respect to PMTSAs only, permits inclusionary zoning (IZ), the requirement to provide affordable housing in a (re)development.
The recently (partially) approved transit station OPAs were adopted by Toronto in 2022. Prior to these OPAs, the City adopted inclusionary zoning policies (OPA 557) and a zoning by-law amendment (941-2021, the IZ By-law) to implement inclusionary zoning.
The City's IZ By-law provided for varying rates on the percentage of affordable units to be provided at rates of up to 22% of units, an affordability period of up to 99 years, certain exemptions, and transition provisions. Exemptions include developments with fewer than 100 dwelling units and 8,000 m2 GFA. The IZ By-law transition provisions generally provide that a building is not subject to inclusionary zoning requirements for which, prior to the date of the Minister's approval:
- complete zoning by-law amendment and site plan applications were made
- a complete site plan application was made
- a section 37 agreement was executed, and prior to August 15, 2022 (date the City's community benefits charge or CBC by-law was passed), a zoning by-law amendment came into force
- a complete minor variance application was made
- a building permit application was made
Earlier this year, the Province capped the inclusionary zoning rate to 5% of the total units or floor area and the period of time for which the affordable housing units must be maintained (the affordability period) to 25 years (O. Reg. 54/25, amending O.Reg. 232/18 Inclusionary Zoning i.e., the Inclusionary Zoning Regulation).
The Inclusionary Zoning Regulation also contains exemptions and transition provisions, transitioning out developments for which, prior to the City's adoption of its inclusionary zoning policies, i.e. November 12, 2021, a request for an official plan amendment (if required), zoning by-law, and plan of subdivision or condominium description were made or for which a complete site plan approval application was made.
With the Minister's approval of Toronto's OPAs, the City's IZ requirements are now in effect.
Frequently Asked Questions: The Ministerial Approval of Toronto's Transit Station Area OPAs
1. Can the Minister's decisions be appealed?
No, the Minister's decisions are final and not subject to appeal as the transit station OPAs were adopted pursuant to section 26 of the Planning Act and, in part, relate to PMTSAs.
2. Did the Minister change any of the City's transit station area OPAs?
Yes. While most PMTSAs and MTSAs were approved as adopted, several changes were made to the instruments, with OPA 537 being the only instrument left unmodified.
High-level changes include:
- Modified mapping for the York Mills, Birchmount, Golden Mile, Ionview, Islington, Keelesdale, Kennedy, Leslieville, Park Lawn, and Agincourt transit station areas. The changes generally relate to the addition of a Special Policy Area overlay (see Q. 9, below).
- The City's new Interpretation policies (part of Chapter 5 of the Toronto Official Plan) and new Chapter 8, Major Transit Station Areas and Protected Major Transit Station Areas, adopted originally in OPA 524, were removed from this instrument and largely replicated in OPA 540.
- The Ministry introduced several policies in support of greater density in transit station areas into an expanded Chapter 8 as part of OPA 540 (see Q. 10, below).
3. Does inclusionary zoning apply to new developments?
Only if the development is within an approved PMTSA and an exemption or transition provision in the Inclusionary Zoning Regulation or IZ By-law does not apply. The relevant transition date under the IZ By-law for those developments within the recently adopted PMTSAs is August 15, 2025. That is, with respect to a building, the specified application(s) were made or section 37 agreement was executed prior to August 15, 2025.
See Background, above, for more information.
4. Where are these PMTSAs?
Toronto's PMTSAs are located across the City, primarily concentrated on subway and LRT lines. The City has prepared a key map of its approved and not in-effect delineated transit stations (see here under the Major Transit Station Areas tab), but the OPAs, as modified by the Minister, should be reviewed to confirm whether any property is in or out of a PMTSA.
5. Will more affordable housing be built?
Toronto's IZ By-law will now operate to require a minimum provision of affordable housing units in PMTSAs, subject to other considerations, including the exemptions and transition provisions (see Background, above). With the provincial Inclusionary Zoning Regulation cap on requirements, the IZ By-law should be read down to comply with the 5% maximum rate, while the applicable lower rates for purpose-built rental housing developments would be maintained. The 25-year affordability period is the maximum permissible period under the Planning Act.
6. Will new developments have zero parking spaces?
Not necessarily. In 2022 Toronto removed parking minimums for many land uses across the City. This included the removal of resident parking space minimums but excluded visitor and accessible parking. With the approval of the PMTSAs, the Planning Act operates to prohibit requirements to provide parking facilities in PMTSAs and MTSAs, though we anticipate many developments may still provide parking facilities.
7. What happens to the deferred PMTSAs and MTSAs?
Owners of lands in deferred areas do not (yet) have new minimum development permissions. Likewise, owners in a deferred PMTSA are not yet subject to IZ requirements. As was the case prior to the Minister's decisions, the timeline for any approval, modification, or refusal of these transit station areas is uncertain.
8. What changes around Toronto's transit stations could occur as a result of these decisions?
With new minimum density standards, Toronto's transit station areas are planned to intensify in accordance with provincial policy.
In the PMTSAs, the OPAs set out the minimum Floor Space Index (FSI) or unit requirements for buildings on lands in each approved PMTSA. The approved minimum requirements are defined at a block level but provide owners with site-specific minimum standards. Any changes to the zoning permissions will have to conform to these minimums, potentially resulting in increased density and heights.
The new Official Plan MTSA and PMTSA policies in Chapter 8 of the Toronto Official Plan (see Q. 10, below) will further support increased density, including new minimum as-of-right heights in some cases.
Any site-specific development application must also conform to the new policies. As certain PMTSA conformity amendments are not subject to appeal if passed within one year of the Minister's approval, the City may move to implement these newly in-effect OPAs through zoning by-law amendments.
9. What are the new Special Policy Areas?
These are provincially delineated areas across nine PMTSAs and one MTSA (see OPAs 544, 570, and 575). Special Policy Areas have a permitted development density of (a minimum) 0 FSI. These additions seek to implement PPS policies which direct provincial delineation of areas associated with a flooding hazard where development and site alteration may be permitted. A new policy in Chapter 8 of the Toronto Official Plan protects for any pre-existing permissions and provides that any changes to policies, designations, and permissions in these areas are subject to Minister of Natural Resources and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing approval.
10. What are the new Toronto Official Plan Chapter 8 policies?
The Minister's decision introduced further policies into Chapter 8, "Major Transit Station Areas and Protected Major Transit Station Areas" of the City's Official Plan. These new policies generally direct density to transit stations, with additional as-of-right development permissions in some cases and, in other cases, further density minimums, subject to further amendments, while still protecting for other provincial policies such as health, safety, and protection of the natural environment.
The policies direct:
- Height. In Neighbourhoods designations within the delineated MTSAs and PMTSAs, multiplexes and apartment buildings are permitted up to four storeys and up to six storeys within 200 metres of an existing or planned transit station or that are on a major street, without an amendment to the Official Plan.
- More height. For a site that can accommodate three or more towers, zoning will permit height up to 30 storeys within 200 metres of an existing or planned transit station and 20 storeys within 200–500 metres, with additional height permitted without an OPA if a block context plan is provided that demonstrates certain public realm improvements.
- Density. In Apartment Neighbourhoods, Mixed Uses Areas, or Regeneration Areas designations within the delineated PMTSAs and MTSAs, City-initiated zoning will permit a FSI of 8 within 200 metres of an existing or planned station and 6 within 200–500 metres of such existing or planned station.
The new policies also:
- Provide that growth will be directed to PMTSAs and MTSAs (in addition to Centres, Avenues, Employment Areas, and Downtown);
- State that as between secondary plan and site and area specific policies (SASPs) and PMTSA and MTSA policies, the policies which provide for greater densities prevail in the event of a conflict;
- Commit the City to reviewing its Chapter 8 policies and minimum density targets as part of its regular Official Plan and infrastructure reviews; and
- Provide that policies related to matters of health, safety, accessibility, sustainable design, protection of the natural environment, watershed and water resource systems, and the protection of adjoining lands are prioritized over any other development criteria policies.
To understand the site-specific impacts of the Minister's decisions, interested persons can review the in force OPAs by following the links below or by reaching out to any member of the Cassels planning law team.
- OPA 524: As adopted; Notice of Decision; Decision; ERO page
- OPA 537: As adopted; Notice of Decision; Decision; ERO page
- OPA 540: As adopted; Notice of Decision; Decision; ERO page
- OPA 544: As adopted; Notice of Decision; Decision; ERO page
- OPA 570: As adopted; Notice of Decision; Decision; ERO page
- OPA 575: As adopted; Notice of Decision; Decision; ERO page
The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of Peter Voltsinis in the preparation of this article.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
