Committee of Adjustment

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Current agendas, comments and decisions

Access recent agendas, comments and decisions and watch videos of past Committee of Adjustment meetings in the Council and Committees calendar.

View agendas, minutes and videos

Archived agendas, comments and decisions

Agendas prior to May 2020

Comments prior to May 2020

Decisions prior to May 2020

What is the Committee of Adjustment?

If you plan to use, develop or make changes to your property such as enlarging a building so that it does not meet existing Zoning By-law requirements, you can apply to the Committee of Adjustment to make changes (referred to as minor variances) to the specific part of the Zoning By-law that applies to your situation.

You need permission (referred to as consent or severance) from the Committee to:

Create a new lot of land from an existing plot
Use or enter a private property (referred to as private easement or interest in land) through an agreement, mortgage or lease that’s for 21 years or more
Sell or mortgage a portion of your land
Validate land title and Power of Sale

The Committee is appointed by City Council and consists of seven citizen members.

Make an application to the Committee of Adjustment

Depending on the purpose of your application, complete either the Minor Variance Application or Consent Application. If you have questions, contact staff at committee.adjustment@mississauga.ca or 905-615-3200 ext. 2408.

You can submit your application in one of the following ways:

By email

Email your completed application form along with the relevant documents to cofa.applications@mississauga.ca.

You can pay your Committee of Adjustment application fee online.

Pay new application fee

In person

You can submit your application in person at the Committee of Adjustment office by booking an appointment online. Appointments are available on Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Payment can be made at this time by credit, debit or cheque.

Book an appointment

The counter is located on the second floor, 300 City Centre Drive, Mississauga, ON L5B 3C1. You may be able to make a walk-in reservation if times slots are available, by using the electronic kiosks located in the Great Hall.

Submit comments on an application

Written comments on an application can be sent to committee.adjustment@mississauga.ca. Please include your name, address, and the file number or address of the property.

For Thursday hearings, comments must be received no later than 4:30 p.m. the Friday prior to the hearing in order for them to be considered by the Committee.

Register to participate in an electronic hearing

Advance registration is required to participate in an electronic hearing.

Requests to participate can be submitted to committee.adjustment@mississauga.ca. Any materials you wish to include in your presentation must be attached to the email. Links to cloud services will not be accepted.

For Thursday hearings, registrations must be received no later than 4:30 p.m. the Friday prior to the hearing.

We may not be able to accept registrations after the deadline.

Application review process

Once your application is received, it’s sent to the relevant City departments and agencies for their comments
A notice of your proposal is sent by mail to property owners within a 60-metre radius of your property and a notice sign is placed on the subject property
A public hearing before the Committee of Adjustment is scheduled for the first available agenda once the payment has been received. At the hearing, the Committee will consider your verbal and written evidence, comments from departments and agencies, and comments from people who have received notice of your application.
If your application is not approved, you can appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT)

Appeal process

If you disagree with a decision of the Committee of Adjustment, you can appeal to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal within the 20 day appeal period.

Your appeal must include:

All forms, information and materials required by LPAT
A certified cheque or money order for $400 as the applicable fee payable to the Minister of Finance
A cheque or money order for $300 as municipal as the administration fee payable to the City of Mississauga

Submit all the LPAT required completed forms and materials along with all fees to:

Committee of Adjustment
300 City Centre Drive, second floor
Mississauga, ON L5B 3C1

Role of City staff

The administrative office of the Committee of Adjustment processes applications received for consideration by the Committee. City staff don’t make decisions on applications.

You can contact the administrative staff for information about the application submission requirements or if you need details of the applications being processed.

What is a minor variance?

If you want to make changes to your property and your proposed changes don’t exactly meet the zoning by-law, but follows the general purpose of the zoning standards, you can apply for a minor variance. Examples of minor variance applications include:

Requests for relief from the building setbacks
Building height
Driveway width
Porch enclosure or new deck
New accessory buildings such as garages and sheds
Parking spaces required for new or expanded businesses

The Committee of Adjustment determines that an application can be approved if the majority of the members agree that it meets the following four tests:

The variance is minor
The variance is desirable for the appropriate development or use of the property
The general intent and purpose of the zoning by-law is maintained
The general intent and purpose of the official plan is maintained

The Committee does not change the zoning of a property, it only adjusts regulations on a case by case basis.

If you want to know whether your development proposal requires a re-zoning, you can email eplans.devdes@mississauga.ca or visit the Customer Service Counter on the third floor of 300 City Centre Drive.

What is consent or severance?

If you want to sell or mortgage a portion of your land, create a new lot of land from an existing lot, use or enter a private property (referred to as private easement or interest in land) through an agreement, mortgage or lease that extends for 21 years or more you must get permission (referred to as consent or severance) from the Committee of Adjustment is required.

In some cases, other land division approval processes such as a plan of subdivision or part lot control may be more appropriate or there might be other circumstances that require consent from the Committee of Adjustment. It is best to consult a lawyer to determine if consent is required.

Watch past Committee meetings

Watch previous meetings of the Committee of Adjustment.