Ontario development planning
Getting land approved is the hard part. It’s what we do.
G-Force is a planning firm for Ontario landowners and developers. We tell you what your site can carry, build the case for it, and take it through the municipality.
Start here
What are you trying to do?
Pick the closest match. You’ll see the approvals it usually involves and a G-Force project like it.
Build apartments or condos
Adding height or density almost always means changing what the zoning allows, and sometimes the Official Plan above it. The detailed design is then settled through Site Plan Approval.
Usually involves
- Planning Justification Report
- Zoning By-law Amendment
- Official Plan Amendment, where policy has to change
- Site Plan Approval
G-Force projects like it
Ask about a site like this →Build townhomes
A townhouse community needs zoning that permits the number of homes and the setbacks, and often a condominium structure for the shared roads and amenities.
Usually involves
- Planning Justification Report
- Zoning By-law Amendment
- Draft Plan of Condominium
A G-Force project like it
Ask about a site like this →Split a lot
Dividing one property into two or more lots is done by consent at the Committee of Adjustment, often with minor variances for the new lots. The conditions that follow decide whether the lots are actually created.
Usually involves
- Consent (severance)
- Minor Variance
- Clearing the conditions of approval
A G-Force project like it
Build retail or offices
A commercial project needs the zoning, and sometimes the Official Plan, to permit the use. Site Plan Approval then settles access, parking and design, and a condominium plan can add flexible ownership.
Usually involves
- Zoning By-law Amendment
- Official Plan Amendment, where policy has to change
- Site Plan Approval
- Draft Plan of Condominium, if units will be sold
G-Force projects like it
Ask about a site like this →Build a hotel or event venue
Hotels, banquet halls and venues turn on Site Plan Approval, with minor variances or a rezoning where the existing zoning does not fit the use, the height or the parking.
Usually involves
- Site Plan Approval
- Minor Variance
- Zoning By-law Amendment, where needed
G-Force projects like it
Build a place of worship
Places of worship and community buildings often sit on land planned for something else. The Official Plan and zoning are amended first, and the building is then refined through Site Plan Approval.
Usually involves
- Official Plan Amendment
- Zoning By-law Amendment
- Site Plan Approval
A G-Force project like it
Ask about a site like this →Fix a zoning problem or a stalled file
A small conflict with the by-law may only need a minor variance or a zoning certificate. A stalled or appealed application needs its comments, conditions or Tribunal strategy brought back under one plan.
Usually involves
- Minor Variance
- Certificate of Occupancy (Zoning)
- Comment responses and condition clearance
- Ontario Land Tribunal, if appealed
Start with this guide
Ask about a site like this →A general guide. The actual route depends on the site and the municipality, and we confirm it once we have read the property.
Projects
Real projects, with their real status.
Some are built. Some are approved. Some are still in review, and we say which.
40-Storey Mixed-Use Tower
346 homes above ground-floor retail at a major Brampton intersection, carried on a full planning and urban-design case.
- The goal
- 346 homes above retail
- Approvals
- Zoning By-law Amendment + Site Plan
- Status
- In review
In review11-Storey Marriott Hotel
A 159-suite hotel on one of Mississauga’s most prominent corridors, led through approvals from the outset.
In review12-Storey Purpose-Built Rental
208 residences, including purpose-built rental — feasibility, variance, site plan, and development charges under one file.
OPA + ZBA securedPlace of Worship & Community Hub
Official Plan and zoning amendments secured; the building is placed to preserve the site’s tree cover.
In reviewNeighbourhood Retail Plaza
A two-storey plaza on 1.74 acres: 14 street-level retail units and four upper-level spaces in an established neighbourhood.
Delivered100-Home Townhouse Community
Density raised from 85 to 100 homes within a registered plan, argued on policy and structured as a common element condominium.
Delivered700-Guest Banquet Hall & Motel
A 700-guest banquet hall with a 200-guest motel, carried through four approvals to a built, operating venue.
How we work
Read the land. Build the case. Move the file.
Nothing gets built until it is approved, and an approval is an argument: about the land, the policy, the design, the servicing and the timing. We make that argument and carry it to a decision.
Read the land.
Before you spend on design, we tell you what the zoning, policy, access and servicing will allow, and where the real risk sits.
Build the case.
We set the approval route, bring the consultants together, and shape an application that holds up under technical and public scrutiny.
Move the file.
We answer the municipality’s comments, manage revisions and conditions, and carry the matter through committee, council or the Tribunal.
Services
Where are you in the process?
Most clients arrive with a property and a goal, not a list of applications. Start from where you are.
Before you buy
Can the land carry the objective? Feasibility, due diligence, zoning and policy review, approval-path analysis.
See the services →02Before you apply
What case must the application make? Planning strategy, reports, studies, design coordination, pre-consultation.
See the services →03During review
How does the proposal reach decision? OPA, ZBA, Site Plan, variances, severances, condominiums, comment responses.
See the services →04After the decision
What remains after the decision? Conditions, agreements, consultant coordination, certificates, and OLT matters.
See the services →The firm
Senior planning, with legal and project management on the same file.
G-Force is led by Manni Chauhan, RPP, who has spent more than 30 years in land-use planning and development. The team around him adds legal training and project control.
Guides
Ontario approvals, in plain language.
Have a site in mind?
Tell us about your site.
We’ll tell you what it can carry, which approvals it needs, and what it will take to get there.