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“I’m moving this very reluctantly. I’ve spent a considerable amount of time and effort working with my colleagues on council to find majority support … but I’ve been unable to find that,” Perks said in council chambers around 5 p.m.

His motion proposed to limit sixplex permissions to old ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ and East York, plus an area bound by Steeles Avenue, Midland Avenue, Highway 401 and the Rouge River where a pilot was already underway to study sixplex legalization.

It asked staff to ensure necessary community infrastructure such as street sweeping be available in the areas where more density will be allowed, and directed other councillors who want their wards to be included in the sixplex legalization change to reach out to ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½â€™s chief planner, Jason Thorne.

“I’m heartbroken that this is the only way that I can get this approved here,” Perks said. The altered plan passed nearly two hours laterÌýin an 18-to-6 vote.Ìý

AÌýstaff proposal to legalize sixplex housingÌýcitywide was released earlier this month, after council earlier this year approved a pilot to study sixplex legalization in Ward 23 (Scarborough North). The permissions were meant to expand on a 2023 decision to legalize multiplexes with up to four units as-of-right, meaning property owners don’t need special permission to build them.

The citywide legalization push is tied to a massive parcel of federal funding given to city hall. In 2023, the city struck a deal for $471 million in federal funds. Among conditions, the deal required staff to report back on opportunities and bylaws for citywide sixplex permissions by June of this year.Ìý

But like other efforts to allow denser housing forms across ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½, the issue has dividedÌýconstituents as well as councillors.

Sixplex supportersÌýsay the expansion is a way to offer more housing variety in neighbourhoods that, until recently, were largely roped off forÌýdetached and semi-detached housesÌý— building on the permissions for duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes and backyard suites that have been granted in recent years.

Critics, meanwhile, haveÌýsuggested the proposal has moved too fast. The citywide push came five months after the pilot project in a single Scarborough ward was approved by council. Several critics have also raised concern about the impact of more neighbours on parking availability and street traffic.

“We love to talk about our unique neighbourhoods, and the diversity of our neighbourhoodsÌý— yet then we then bring a motion forward, or legislation forward, to treat everyone the same,” Coun. Jon Burnside (Ward 16, Don Valley East) said Wednesday morning, arguing sixplexes worked better downtown than in his wardÌýand stating that he wouldn’t support the proposal “as it stands.”ÌýHe later voted in favour of the area-specific changes.

While a city staff report about sixplex legalization addressed concerns about having enough infrastructure to support more densityÌý— saying multiplexesÌýwould contribute “only minor increases in flow” to the sewer systemÌý—Ìýit cautioned a “longer-term concentration of multiplex development” could increase the risks of basement flooding in certain locations.

Leading up to the debate, officials knew the vote could swing either way.

“I don’t know if the majority of councillors support it. And we will see what is the path forward and we’ll see what the debate brings,” Mayor Olivia ChowÌýtoldÌýreporters Wednesday morning. “I understand some of the concerns, because change is difficult, and so let’s look at what are some of the key concerns and there may be ways to mitigate the concerns.”

Asked about the fate of the $471-million deal with Ottawa should the proposal not receive council’s green light, Chow saidÌýthe city had already spent some of the money, which it receives in installments, and would have to negotiate.

A March letter to Chow from former housing minister Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, which she later shared, warned that if ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ did not “fully implement” its agreed-upon initiatives on time, it could lose 25 per cent of its annual payout.Ìý

EvenÌýbefore the sixplex debate began,Ìýthe issue loomed large over the chambers,ÌýwithÌýthe speaker chidingÌýcouncillors for leaving their seats to share their views with reporters.

Coun. Brad Bradford (Ward 19, Beaches—East York), who backs sixplexes, said more than anything, he wanted to see something approved WednesdayÌý— even if it wasn’t the full, citywide change staff proposed.

“The idea of ramming it down everybody’s throats before they’re ready, at the risk of not moving anything forward, that’s something I don’t want to chance.”

Flanked by members of severalÌýresidents’ associationsÌýand wielding an open letter he said was signed by upwards of 50 groups, Coun. Parthi Kandavel (Ward 20, Scarborough Southwest) called for a pause of the legalization push. He called allowing sixplexes as-of-right a “drastic” move, raising concerns about upzoning making land in suburban areas more expensiveÌýfor prospective buyers as well as about parking impacts.

Minutes later, PerksÌýwarned about jeopardizing the city’s funding under the federal housing dealÌý— which he repeated when later proposing the walk-back to the staff proposalÌý—Ìýand argued the move would create homes for a greater variety of households. “ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ can’t be a city where there’s nothing between living in a detached house and living in a little shoebox condo,” he said.

Chow, in a statement right after the vote, framed the concessions made on Wednesday as “a path forward to allow more missing middle housing,” noting the option to build sixplex housing will take effect in nine of the city’s 25 wards to start. ”I am confident that, as more people see the benefits of missing middle housing … more councillors will also opt in,” she said.

With files from May Warren

Clarification - June 27, 2025Ìý

This article was updated from a previous version to make clear the motion proposed to limit sixplex permissions toÌýpre-amalgamation oldÌýÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ and East York,Ìýplus one ward in Scarborough.ÌýThe previous version referred toÌýold metropolitan ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½Ìý