Regarding the issuance of…

Regarding the issuance of the Provincial Planning Statement as a policy under subsection 3(1) of the Planning Act, set to take effect on October 20, 2024, as a planning consultant, we respectfully request that the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) consider addressing the newly updated policies related to Employment Areas through transitional policies.

Specifically, our reasoning for this request stems from an application that has been submitted on behalf of our client for a site-specific policy in the City of Sarnia’s Official Plan to allow retail as a permitted use on a portion of their lands, along with an amendment to Zoning By-law 85 of 2002 to permit standalone retail uses on the subject property. Office uses are currently permitted as of right under both the existing Official Plan and Zoning By-law. The current designation of the subject lands in the City of Sarnia Official Plan is Prestige Employment.

With the introduction of new policies, particularly subsection 1(1) of the Planning Act, which no longer recognizes standalone retail and office uses that are not associated with primary permitted uses in Employment Areas, our client faces challenges in proceeding with the comprehensive development of their lands.

The client owns the entirety of the subject lands, which have been developed in phases. This development proposal represents the third and final phase, crucial for the comprehensive development of our client’s property as well as offering future employment opportunities within the City of Sarnia

A public meeting has been scheduled for September 9, 2024, to discuss the OPA/ZBA. However, there is concern that our client may not be able to establish these uses on the lands before October 20, 2024. This is due to the fact that the County of Lambton, as the approval authority for Official Plan Amendments, will still need to review the amendment, and a Site Plan application is also required to facilitate the proposed development. Although we are actively working on the Site Plan application to file it concurrently, the recent legislative changes raise concerns about whether the timing will align with the necessary approvals.

We kindly request that fair transitional measures for areas and planning matters impacted by the new Areas of Employment regulations could be to permit the processing and approval of planning and development applications submitted before October 20, 2024. This would enable the resolution of any planning and development applications that are currently pending and allow these developments to proceed as intended.