Bringing more housing choices to Mississauga: Learn more and have your voice heard

Mississauga needs more housing options for families, older adults, students and the next generation who want to live in the city. Currently, many homes in Mississauga neighbourhoods are located on large lots with two or fewer residents. The result is that some neighbourhoods are seeing their populations shrink despite a city-wide need for more housing.

The City’s Zoning By-law regulates the types of buildings that can be built in different parts of the city and how those buildings are used. Updating the city’s neighbourhood zoning to allow more semi-detached and homes on smaller lots is one way to add density in a gentle way. It’s also a creative way to bring more housing to areas of the city which lack open parcels of developable land.

The City is holding three community meetings to get feedback on its neighbourhood zoning review. This includes:

• Allowing more semi-detached homes to be built in residential areas that have historically allowed only detached homes
• Updating lot requirements to allow for homes on smaller lots
• Simplifying single-detached neighbourhood zones in the City’s Zoning By-law

The aim is to give residents more flexibility and low-rise housing options on their properties by removing barriers for detached and semi-detached homes on smaller lots.

The neighbourhood zoning review is the next phase in the City’s Increasing Housing Choices in Neighbourhoods (IHCN) work. Since 2021, IHCN has established new rules for additional residential units such as garden suites, garage conversions and laneway suites as well as fourplexes.

Meeting Details

What: Neighbourhood zoning review virtual community engagement meetings

When: There are three virtual sessions available for different areas of the city:

• Northern Mississauga (Wards 5, 9, 10, 11): Thursday, November 7 from 6 – 7:30 p.m.
• Central Mississauga (Wards 3, 4, 6, 7): Thursday, November 14 from 6 – 7:30 p.m.
• Southern Mississauga (Wards 1, 2, 8): Thursday, November 21 from 6 – 7:30 p.m.

Residents are encouraged to attend the session tailored for their area, but are welcome to join any meeting that fits their schedule. The City’s Find My Ward map is available for those who want to determine the most appropriate meeting date based on their area.

For those unable to attend, a recorded presentation will be posted on the project website once the meetings are complete. Comments and questions are welcome anytime.

Where: Register online by visiting the YourSay – Increasing Housing Choices in Neighbourhoods website.

Background

• Mississauga City Council supports exploring policies to introduce gentle density and build more housing.
• In 2021, the City launched the Increasing Housing Choices in Neighbourhoods (IHCN) study to find ways to bring more housing choices to neighbourhoods.
• In late 2023, the City updated its Official Plan and Zoning By-law to make it easier for homeowners to build:
  • Up to two additional residential units (ARUs) in addition to the primary home; or
  • A new fourplex on a lot (or convert their home into four separate units)
• IHCN stemmed from Mississauga’s 2017 Making Room for the Middle affordable housing strategy. At the time, the City was one of the first municipalities in Canada to develop a housing strategy focused on middle-income earners.
• Increasing the supply and variety of homes across Mississauga is a primary action in the City’s Housing Action Plan. Visit Growing Mississauga to learn more about the City’s efforts to get more homes built, streamline building approvals and make homes more affordable.

Visit the City’s Guide to Planning and Development to learn more about housing, growth and development in Mississauga.