1. Express support to the…

1. Express support to the Province with respect to the proposed directions generally outlined in the consultation document.

2. Express support for the direction that the Province have the authority to specify which parts of provincial decisions on official plans would not be subject to appeal, provided that municipalities continue to retain their right of appeal.

3. Request the Minister of Municipal Affairs to amend the Planning Act such that the Province would have the authority to specify which parts of thematic official plan policy amendments would not be subject to appeal.

4. Request the Minister of Municipal Affairs to amend the Planning Act such that all official plans and official plan amendments subject to provincial approval not be appealable in their entirety following issuance of the provincial decision.

5. Express support for the proposal that the Province's decisions on new official plans or official plan amendments by municipalities to bring their official plans into conformity with the PPS or Provincial Plans be final and not subject to appeal.

6. Request the Minister of Municipal Affairs to amend the Planning Act to restrict appeals of a refusal or a non-decision by Council, of privately initiated official plan amendments relating to Urban Growth Centres that are planned to achieve by 2031, or have already achieved a gross density that exceeds the minimum density targets set in Policy 2.2.3.3 of the proposed Provincial Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, until such time as the municipality has completed its official plan and infrastructure capacity review to determine the impacts, if any, of permitting additional intensification in these areas.

7. Express support for the Province's proposal to give the Minister and not the OMB, the authority to make the final decision on requests to amend zoning provisions, put in place through a Minister’s Zoning Order.

8. Express support for the Province's proposal to restrict appeals of official plan policies that support provincially funded transit infrastructure provided that the wording of Policy 2.2.4. in the proposed Provincial Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe is amended to allow municipalities to identify which major transit station areas will be planned at higher densities.

9. Express support for the Province's proposal to amend the Planning Act to not permit privately initiated appeals of a municipality’s refusal to amend new secondary plans for five years

10. Request the Minister of Municipal Affairs to amend the Planning Act to not allow privately initiated amendments to newly approved official plan policies stemming from comprehensive municipal reviews of existing official plans and secondary plan amendments, along with concurrent implementing zoning by-laws, for a five-year period.

11. Express support for the Province's proposal to not permit appeals for a municipal interim control by-law.

12. Express support for the Province's proposal to expand the authority of local appeal bodies adjudicating appeals of minor variances and consents to include associated appeals relating to site plan applications.

13. Express support for the Province's proposal to further clarify, through legislation and OMB Practice Procedures, that the OMB’s authority is limited to dealing only with matters that are part of the municipal council’s decision.

14. Request the Province to make it mandatory for the OMB to send significant new information that arises in an OMB hearing back to the municipal council for re-evaluation of the original decision if a municipality brings a motion advising that the new information and material could have materially affected council's decision.

15. Request the Province to amend the legislation and regulations governing the planning approval and appeals process to reflect the primacy of municipal decision-making on planning matters.

16. Advise the Province of its concern that a full OMB hearing, or a hearing 'de novo' on an appeal of a planning application should not be automatic and should only be scheduled if the OMB first finds that a municipality’s decision falls outside a range of reasonable outcomes or in a manner not consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) or not in conformity with Provincial Plans.

17. Request the Minister of Municipal Affairs to amend the Planning Act to limit appeal matters and impose directions for changes to the OMB's Rules of Practice Procedure to effectively limit the scope of OMB hearings and focus on deference to municipal decision-making.

18. Express support for the Province's proposals to expand and re-configure the Citizen Liaison Office (CLO) and to explore funding tools, including intervenor funding to assist citizens to retain planning experts and lawyers, at no cost to the municipality.

19. Support the Province's proposal that the OMB reintroduce multi-member panels with panel members representing a broad range of skills and backgrounds.

20. Recommend that the Province re-examine OMB member recruitment practices and modernize OMB practices to improve the efficiency and quality of dispute resolution processes at the OMB and the scheduling of hearings.

21. Request the Province to prioritize the scheduling of OMB cases related to the adoption of planning policy documents such as official plans, municipally initiated comprehensive official plan amendments and comprehensive zoning by-laws.

22. Support the Province's proposal to actively promote meditation as a means to scope and resolve planning issues under appeal.

23. Advise the Province that it supports the use of government mediators to resolve disputes during the municipal planning approval process where there is no cost to the municipality and where the municipality, through a council motion, requests assistance from provincially appointed mediators.

24. Advise the Province that is supports the use of government mediators at no cost to the municipality, during the 60 day time-out period that a council may initiate alternative dispute resolution, prior to matters being appealed to the OMB, introduced through Bill 73.

25. Request the Minister of Municipal Affairs to amend the Planning Act to extend the period required for Alternative Dispute Resolution after an appeal has been made and the municipal council has given notice of its intention to use ADR, from 60 to 90 days, to further encourage opportunities for mediation.

26. Support the Province's proposals requiring all appeals to be considered by an OMB appointed mediator before scheduling a hearing.

27. Support the Province's proposal to strengthen the case management at the OMB to better stream and scope issues in dispute, identify areas that can be resolved at pre-hearings and support OMB members during hearings.

28. Recommend that the Minister of Municipal Affairs extend application processing timeframes in the Planning Act before “failure to proceed” appeals can be made for applications, in order to provide for more opportunities for mediation and reduce the potential number of "failure to proceed" based appeals, as follows:

a. official plan amendments be increased from 180 days to 240 days;

b. zoning by-law amendments be increased from 120 days to 180 days; and

c. zoning by-law amendments that run concurrently with an official plan amendment be increased from 180 days to 240 days.

29. Forward this Report to the Province before December 19, 2016 in order to meet the commenting deadline.

30. Request the Province to consult with the City on any legislative, regulatory or other changes associated with the review of the OMB, as per the Toronto-Ontario Cooperation and Consultation Agreement.

[Original Comment ID: 207233]