The proposed amendment for…

The proposed amendment for exemption for property from archaeological assessment open dangerous doors for commercial developers of luxury homes. Most of the locations required to house those most in need are in higher density areas that have already been developed and undergone assessments. This change in the law would allow wealthy cottagers building in archaeologically sensitive areas (e.g., Kawartha Lakes region) to move forward with developments unrelated to relieving the housing crisis. Removing archaeological assessments is unnecessary for the types of development that will contribute to building affordable homes. The most sensitive archaeological sites are those associated with Indigenous heritage. Many of these are located in farmlands and along waterways, which are exact locations where land is being developed for luxury homes and cottages. Archaeological assessments of land set to be developed for low-income housing are typically already completed or would not move past Stage 2 (maybe Stage 3 in rare cases). This amendment is unnecessary and creates false pretense to allow commercial developers to side-step work that would, in the end, do nothing except eat into the massive profits they generate from building non-primary residences for Ontario's wealthiest families, or largely unaffordable, massive subdivisions in farmland and sensitive greenspaces. We all know that this is not where we need to build homes that will make life affordable for Ontario residents. I understand and probably agree that exemptions could make sense for homeowners who are carrying out minor developments on existing property that does not contain human remains, though this is type of development is also largely unrelated to the housing crisis.