ARUs within Greenbelt and Oak Ridges Moraine?

Town Council is asking the provincial government to consider permitting Additional Residential Units (ARUs) within the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan (ORMCP) and Greenbelt Plan areas.

Recent provincial legislation and policies, including the new Provincial Planning Statement (PPS), October 2024, permit up to two ARUs within prime agricultural areas but the policies of the ORMCP and Greenbelt Plan are more restrictive and take precedence, according to a Development Services Commission report presented to Council on June 4.

While the Planning Act doesn’t explicitly define ARUs, the legislation refers to them as comprising a second and a third residential unit in addition to a primary residential unit, for a total of three units, on a residential lot containing a detached house, semi-detached house or townhouse. A ‘residential unit’ includes self-contained rooms containing a kitchen, sleeping and bathroom facilities intended for the exclusive use of the unit.

ARUs are commonly referred to as second units, secondary suites, accessory dwelling units, basement apartments, coach houses, laneway houses, garden suites and tiny homes.

The ORMCP and Greenbelt Plan limit ARUs to one unit in specific zones and prohibit them in others, such as Natural Core and Natural Linkage Areas. The Town recommends aligning those plans with the PPS 2024 by permitting up to two ARUs in all ORMCP and Greenbelt designations, including within primary dwellings and accessory structures.

The report proposes development criteria to ensure environmental protection and compatibility with agricultural operations, including setbacks from natural features, scale limitations, proximity to existing infrastructure and efficient use of services.

The Town also urges the provincial government to consider broader reforms, such as enabling local decision-making for minor amendments and clarifying the process for redesignating prime agricultural areas. Council elected to defer requesting the provincial government to expand permissions for small-scale commercial, industrial and institutional uses, pending a further report.