Oakville asked Ottawa to cap Midtown tower heights using airport rules. Ottawa said no.
A report to Council reveals Mayor Burton asked the federal transport minister to limit Midtown building heights near Pearson flight paths. The minister declined, leaving the 56-storey question to the incoming Council.
The details
What the report reveals
A report to Council on September 28, prepared by the Office of the Mayor, discloses a federal track in the fight over Midtown's heights. Mayor Rob Burton wrote to the federal Minister of Transport in May asking Ottawa to use an Airport Zoning Regulation to restrict building heights near Toronto Pearson's flight paths over Oakville. In August, the minister declined.
The minister's reply said Transport Canada does not establish or amend Airport Zoning Regulations without a formal request from the relevant airport authority, and that no such request has been received for Oakville. In other words, the federal route to force lower towers is, for now, closed.
What this means for Midtown
The Province's April 9, 2026 Minister's Zoning Orders still permit 11 towers of 45 to 56 storeys at the Oakville GO station sites, with a promise to work toward 38 storeys. The report says the Province is now developing a plan in principle to reach that promise, but no date is set, and there is no appeal of the zoning orders.
- Airport Zoning Regulation to cap Midtown heights
- Declined; needs a request from the airport authority
- 11 towers, 45 to 56 storeys (April 9, 2026)
- A plan in principle toward 38 storeys
- The Council sworn in after November 15, 2026
Because the current Council is in a lame-duck period before the municipal election, the choice to accept the Province's lower-height offer or reject it — and keep the 56-storey orders — falls to the Council that takes office after November 15. The characterizations here are the Mayor's; the federal position is set out in the ministerial letters attached to his report.
