Report

8.1-1 Report Planning & Infrastructure Services Committee The Corporation of the City of Brampton

2016-06-20 Date:

2016-05-30

Subject:

Recommendation Report: Light Rail Transit Alternatives from Gateway Terminal to Brampton GO Station - Wards 1 & 3 (File IA.A (16-3130-101))

Contact:

Chris Duyvestyn, Director, Transportation Special Projects, Planning & Infrastructure Services (905-874-2544) [email protected]

Recommendations: 1. That the report from Chris Duyvestyn, Director, Transportation Special Projects, Planning & Infrastructure Services, dated May 30, 2016, to the Planning & infrastructure Services Committee Meeting of June 20, 2016, re: Recommendation Report: Light Rail Transit Alternatives from Gateway Terminal to Brampton GO Station – Wards 1 & 3 (File IA.A (16-3130-101)), be received; and 2. That the Etobicoke Creek valley route be eliminated from further study due to the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority’s (TRCA) decision on May 27, 2016 to not support the Light Rail Transit (LRT) route within the Etobicoke Creek valley as well as noncompliance with the Provincial policies and municipal planning and environmental policies; and 3. That staff be directed to undertake an Environmental Assessment (EA) study for the two LRT alternative routes on Kennedy Road and McLaughlin Road from the Gateway Terminal to the Brampton GO station; and 4. That staff be directed to prepare the Terms of Reference for the EA study with the evaluation criteria for the LRT alternative routes to include the most intensification opportunities in the central area, and the most economic benefit to the City of Brampton, in addition to other criteria associated with the EA process ; and 5. That staff be directed to prepare a Request to Begin Procurement Report for a budget amendment to fund the EA study following preparation of the EA Terms of Reference; and 6. That the City Clerk be directed to forward a copy of this report and Council resolution to the City of Mississauga, Region of Peel, Toronto and Region

8.1-2 Conservation Authority, Metrolinx, Ministry of Transportation, and Ministry of Environment and Climate Change for information. Overview:  On May 27, 2016, the TRCA Authority voted unanimously not to support the LRT route within the Etobicoke Creek valley.  Based on the TRCA Authority’s decision as well as noncompliance with the Provincial policies and municipal planning and environmental policies, staff recommends that the Etobicoke Creek valley route be eliminated from further study.  Staff recommends that an EA study be undertaken for the two remaining alternative routes (Kennedy and McLaughlin) between the Gateway Terminal and the Brampton GO station, including any sub-options.  The EA study will examine these two routes with the evaluation criteria to include the most intensification opportunities in the central area, and the most economic benefit to the City of Brampton, in addition to other criteria associated with the EA process.  Project funding for the EA study will be requested as part of a future budget amendment for approval by Council.

Background: At its March 9, 2016 meeting, Council directed staff to hire a qualified expert consultant to identify the most intensification opportunities in the Central Area and the most economic benefit to the City of Brampton for three light rail transit (LRT) alternative routes (see Attachment A – Map of Alternative Alignments North of Steeles Avenue):  Option 3: Main-Etobicoke Creek Valley-Queen-Brampton GO  Option 4: Steeles-Kennedy-Queen-Brampton GO  Option 5: Steeles-McLaughlin-Queen-Orangeville Brampton RailwayBrampton GO In addition, staff was directed to work with Toronto & Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) staff to come to an agreement on the Etobicoke Creek valley route, and if an agreement cannot be reached, request that the matter be brought forward to the TRCA Board of Directors.

8.1-3 Current Situation: Etobicoke Creek Valley Route – TRCA Position: A meeting was held between City and TRCA staff on April 28, 2016 to discuss the feasibility of the LRT route within the Etobicoke Creek valley including surface and elevated options as well as a tunnel option. During these discussions, TRCA staff stated they still had significant concerns with these three options within the Etobicoke Creek valley as they are contrary to the policies of TRCA and the Province. Following the meeting, City staff issued a letter to TRCA dated May 5, 2016 requesting that TRCA staff take a report to the TRCA Authority (Board) for a formal position on this matter as soon as possible as requested by Brampton Council. At its May 27, 2016 meeting, the TRCA Authority voted unanimously on the following recommendations (see Attachment B – TRCA Authority Minutes and Report from May 27, 2016 meeting: Hurontario-Main Street Light Rail Transit (LRT) Proposed Etobicoke Creek Valley Alignment): 1. “That an LRT alignment through the Etobicoke Creek Valley not be supported based on TRCA’s policies, permitting requirements under Ontario Regulation 166/06, our delegated role to represent the provincial interest on natural hazards, previously approved work with the Province and City of Brampton on risk reduction within Downtown Brampton and the increased risk to life, property and infrastructure that an LRT would pose within the valley; 2. THAT TRCA does not support a surface, tunnel or elevated LRT route within the Etobicoke Creek valley, on land which is owned by TRCA, which is subject to significant risk from flooding and erosion, and which provides one of the few contiguous natural heritage corridors within the City; 3. THAT should the City of Brampton proceed with further investigations for an LRT alignment through Etobicoke Creek Valley, despite TRCA’s recommendations to the contrary, an Individual Environmental Assessment (IEA) be completed due to the scope and level of work that will need to take place to ensure an integrated study between this transit initiative, flood remediation efforts, hazard risks and land use planning/growth implications, and that the IEA be subject to approval by the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change as is provided for in the legislation.” In addition to the TRCA Authority’s objections noted above, the Etobicoke Creek valley route does not comply with Provincial policies and municipal planning and environmental policies as mentioned in previous staff reports. While the TRCA does not recommend undertaking further study on the valley route, should the City decide to proceed, TRCA states that an Individual Environmental Assessment needs to be completed integrating several projects in Downtown Brampton including the LRT, flood remediation for the Regional storm event (Downtown Etobicoke Creek Revitalization Study), and Downtown Special Policy Area work.

8.1-4 There are several issues to consider if an Individual Environmental Assessment study is pursued further including:  A Terms of Reference (ToR) will need to be developed with input from the public and agencies and must be approved by the Minister of Environment and Climate Change. However, given the objections by TRCA on the valley route and possibly other ministries, there is no guarantee that the Minister will approve the ToR, which will likely take two years to complete;  An IEA integrating several projects in Downtown Brampton is expected to take 6 to 8 years total to complete including the ToR, and cost an estimated $10 to $15 million;  If there is an issue with any component of one of these downtown projects, the remaining downtown projects will likely be delayed (e.g. LRT issues may delay the Downtown Etobicoke Creek Revitalization Study approvals);  After undertaking a costly, lengthy and complex IEA process, there are no guarantees that the Minister will ultimately grant Environmental Assessment (EA) approval since the issues identified by the TRCA Authority will likely still remain; and  If EA approval is granted by the Minister, the TRCA owns the lands in the valley, and the City cannot expropriate from TRCA. Given the TRCA Authority’s decision not to support the LRT route within the Etobicoke Creek valley, noncompliance with the Provincial policies and municipal planning and environmental planning policies, and the other reasons outlined above, staff recommends that the Etobicoke Creek valley route be eliminated from further study. Environmental Assessment of LRT Alternative Routes: An EA study is needed to determine the preferred LRT route and satisfy the requirements of the EA Act. If one alternative route were chosen based only on the two factors identified previously (intensification and economic benefits), there is the potential that another factor could become a “show stopper” thereby halting the EA study. As a result, a new EA study would then need to be initiated for another route. In order to avoid this scenario, staff recommend that an EA study be undertaken for the two remaining LRT alternative routes (Kennedy and McLaughlin), which will include Council’s two factors previously identified: the most intensification opportunities in the central area, and the most economic benefit to the City of Brampton, as well as other criteria associated with the EA process. Since the previous work undertaken for the Hurontario-Main LRT only looked at the HurontarioMain Street corridor, the scope of work for the EA study is expected to include some of the planning elements of the previous Hurontario Main Street Corridor Master Plan as well as the preliminary design and Transit Project Assessment Process (TPAP) work including public consultation, planning and technical studies, and business case

8.1-5 analysis. The EA study will also need to coordinate with other studies in Downtown Brampton including the Central Area Master Plan and Queen Street Rapid Transit Master Plan. In particular, the transit technology (bus rapid transit (BRT) vs. LRT) to be determined through the Queen Street Rapid Transit Master Plan is important as input into EA study. The EA study is expected to take three years to complete once a consultant is retained, which will allow for further planning studies, public consultation and coordination with the other studies in downtown. Staff Resources: On February 24, 2016, Council approved the formation of a Brampton project office (Transportation Special Projects) that is structured to deliver the Hurontario LRT project (south of Gateway Terminal) as well as the LRT north of the Gateway Terminal and other rapid transit projects planned for Brampton. Staff resources will be required for the project management of this EA study for the LRT alternative routes on Kennedy and McLaughlin Roads. Corporate Implications: Financial Implications: The resources required to prepare the terms of reference and prepare the budget request to Council for the EA study are available within existing approved resources. There is sufficient funding available to proceed with these recommendations. In order to fund the EA study and needed staff resources, staff will be required to prepare a budget amendment report for approval by Council. The estimated capital cost for these two alternative routes range from $360 to $530 million. However, these costs are high level estimates based on 2014 cost estimates from the Hurontario-Main LRT work and do not include property and annual operating costs. Updated capital cost estimates will be developed as part of the EA study. Given the significant estimated capital cost, external funding opportunities should be pursued with the Provincial and Federal governments. Strategic Plan: This report achieves the Strategic Plan priorities of Move & Connect and Smart Growth with the delivery of well-planned infrastructure and efficient transit modes to shape a liveable city and the building of complete communities to accommodate growth for people and jobs.

8.1-6 Conclusion: Staff recommends that the Etobicoke Creek valley route be eliminated from further study due to the TRCA Authority’s decision on May 27, 2016 to not support the LRT route within the Etobicoke Creek valley as well as noncompliance with Provincial policies and municipal planning and environmental policies. Staff also recommends that an EA study be undertaken for the two remaining alternative routes between the Gateway Terminal and the Brampton GO station including any sub-options for:  Steeles-Kennedy-Queen-Brampton GO  Steeles-McLaughlin-Queen-Orangeville Brampton Railway-Brampton GO The EA study shall examine the two LRT alternative routes considering Council’s two factors previously identified including the most intensification opportunities in the central area, and the most economic benefit to the City of Brampton, in addition to other evaluation criteria associated with the EA process. The scope of work for the EA study is expected to include public consultation, planning and technical studies, preliminary design, business case analysis, and TPAP. Funding will be required to complete this work through the preparation of a budget amendment report for approval by Council.

Approved by: Chris Duyvestyn, P. Eng. Director, Transportation Special Projects

Approved by: J.J. Pitushka, P. Eng. Acting Chief, Planning & Infrastructure Services

Attachments: A. Map of Alternative Alignments North of Steeles Avenue B. TRCA Authority Minutes and Report from May 27, 2016 meeting: HurontarioMain Street Light Rail Transit (LRT) Proposed Etobicoke Creek Valley Alignment Report authored by: Chris Duyvestyn, Director, Transportation Special Projects

8.1-7 ATTACHMENT A: Map of Alternative Alignments North of Steeles Avenue Notes: 1. There are eight families of alternative alignments with Options 2 and 3 having subalternatives for a total of eleven alternative alignments. 2. As per Council’s decision on March 9, 2016, Options 3, 4 and 5 are only to be considered.

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