Pre-Application Consultation

Although pre-application consultation is not mandatory for all applications, the City strongly encourages applicants to contact staff to discuss their proposal prior to submitting a formal application. If you fail to consult with staff, the City cannot guarantee the completeness or accuracy of your application submission which may result in processing delays. The pre-application process is designed to help promote the exchange of information and development considerations early in the planning process. A key outcome of this process is a customized list of the studies and plans required in support of a development application. Topics for discussion may include land use policies and guidelines, zoning information, public consultation, transportation and engineering requirements, development review, application fees, and other issues.

Please note that you are quite welcome to contact staff informally before fulfilling the City’s pre-application consultation requirements if you require further information or clarification, or if you are developing land for the first time.

Please email one of the contacts below if you are uncertain whether pre-application consultation applies to your proposal, or if you have questions related to this process. Use the City’s ward mapping and/or Development Review Areas map to verify the location of your development property.

Development Review Areas 

Central (Wards 12, 13, 14, 15, 17) - DR Central

East (Wards 1, 2, 11, urban part of 1, 19 and 20) - DR East

West (Wards 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 23) - DR West

South (Wards 3, 10, 16, 18, 22, 24) - DR South

Rural (Wards 5, rural part of 1, 19, 20 and 21) - DR Rural

Below are the general steps of the pre-application consultation process

  1. Save an Adobe .pdf copy of the form. Email the form, a simple concept plan illustrating the proposal and the Transportation Impact Assessment Step 1 (Screening) to the correct Development Review Area with the subject line Pre-application Consultation Request.
  2. The File Lead assigned to manage the review of your proposal will contact you within 3 business days to acknowledge receiving your application and advise if enough information has been provided. If enough preliminary information has not been provided, you will be advised to obtain more information and re-submit the application.
  3. Once the File Lead has reviewed the form and made any corrections or additions, they will email you to organize the pre-application consultation meeting. In most cases, a meeting will be held within 10-15 business days following the submission of the pre-application consultation form.
  4. Be prepared to discuss the proposal in detail at the pre-application consultation meeting. The Applicant is strongly encouraged to ask questions and highlight potential concerns during the meeting. Don't be shy about asking questions.
  5. The staff assigned to review the proposal will email a Study and Plan Identification List to the Applicant no more than five business days following the pre-application consultation meeting.

There is no fee where pre-application consultation is not mandatory, however, a fee of $679.00 (not subject to HST) does apply to all mandatory pre-application consultations.

The fee is fully refundable upon receipt of a development application for the same lands for which the pre-application consultation occurred, provided that the development application is received within (12) twelve months of the date of the pre-application consultation.

The fee is non-refundable if no development application is submitted within 12 (twelve) months from the date of the pre-application consultation.

An applicant must complete the pre-application consultation process with the City before applying for any of the following development applications:

  • Official Plan Amendment
  • Major or Minor Zoning By-Law Amendment
  • Plan of Subdivision
  • Site Plan Control (subject to public consultation)
  • Vacant Land
  • Municipal Concurrence and Public Consultation Process for Antenna Systems

An application form is required to initiate a mandatory pre-application consultation. Applicants should review the checklist to assist with preparing their submission for a pre-application consultation.

Upon application submission, File Leads will provide confirmation of the amount due, the specific payment methods available for the application type, and the necessary details for the different payment methods.

PDF Documents - Download in .pdf format and read it with Adobe Acrobat.

If you require assistance using an electronic application form please contact a Development Information Officer, located at any of the Client Service Centres. You can make an appointment by calling 3-1-1 and asking to speak with a Development Information Officer.

If you would like to speak with planning staff please contact the appropriate development review group via email, as outlined above, or by calling 3-1-1.