The Town of East Gwillimbury (EG) plans our communities by balancing the needs of today, while considering the needs of the future. To achieve this objective, these guidelines and programs help guide proposed developments within EG:

  • Town-wide Urban Design Guidelines
  • Community specific Urban Design Guidelines and Architectural Control Guidelines
  • Thinking Green! Development Standards Program
  • Sustainable Development Incentive Program
  • Parking Lot and Drive-Through Urban Design Guidelines

The following documents linked on this page are available in other formats, please contact the Planning Branch to request. 

The Town-wide Urban Design Manual

The Town's Urban Design Manual establishes a Town-wide standard to promote an attractive, high quality and sustainable community in East Gwillimbury. The Manual provides the overall vision, design principles and objectives for the Town across the private and public realm. 

Community specific Urban Design Guidelines (UDG) & Architectural Control Guidelines (ACG)
To reflect the uniqueness of each community, individual Urban Design Guidelines are in place for each community in EG. These guidelines help to promote an attractive, high quality and sustainable community.

What is the difference between UDG vs ACG?

The UDG provides the overall vision, design principles and objectives.

The ACG supplements the UDG and establishes protocol to ensure the achievement of the vision for the community.

Please see the guidelines below for more information:

Thinking Green Development Standards Program (TGDS)

The TGDS is a set of measures created to evaluate the sustainable performance of new development within the Town. The TGDS evaluates proposed development in three categories:

  • Natural environment
  • Conservation of energy and water
  • Complete and connected communities

For more information, please see the TGDS User Guide. The User Guide explains how to use the TGDS Program and includes a glossary of specific terms and helpful links.

TGDS Checklist

To identify which measures to achieve and how to achieve, please complete the checklist for TGDS Subdivision and TGDS Site Plan before you submit the TGDS checklist, as part of your complete application to Planning staff.

Sustainable Development Incentive Program (SDIP)

In partnership with York Region, the SDIP gives developers the opportunity to obtain additional servicing allocation (sewer capacity), by satisfying various sustainability requirements. Please see the SDIP guide for more information.

Sustainability requirements include:

  • Improved water efficiency
  • Improved energy efficiency
  • Improved indoor air quality
  • Use of renewable energy
  • Enhanced monitoring programs
  • Improved resource management
  • Enhanced homeowner education

How much additional servicing allocation can you get?

If you are a successful candidate for this program, York Region will assign the first stage of credit allocation of 20% to the Town for allocation to the proposed development. Once you have constructed the development, York Region will assign the second stage of credit allocation of 8%, upon written confirmation from the Peer Reviewer on the applicant's Conformity Report. See the SDIP guide for more details.

Parking Lot and Drive-Through Urban Design Guidelines (UDG)

To ensure a high quality, functional, safe, and sustainable design of future parking lot and drive through facility developments, please see the Parking Lot & Drive Through UDG.

The Guidelines are arranged under Section 4.0 as follows:

  • 4.1 - Streetscapes, parking layout, and buildings
  • 4.2 - Safety, comfort, and pedestrian focused design
  • 4.3 - Sustainable development
  • 4.4 - Landscaping and buffering
  • 4.5 - Lighting and signage
  • 4.6 - Servicing and utilities
  • 4.7 - Stacking lanes and queuing