with respect to ERO 026-0229…

with respect to ERO 026-0229 and City of Burlington.

The Parkway Belt West (PBW) area within Burlington west (commonly referred to as North Aldershot) has a band of land across the northern edge which is within the Niagara Escarpment Lands. Lands south of the identifying power land down to the 403 were placed into the PBW at its time of inception in 1978.

Prior to the PBW much of the open land in North Aldershot had been identified within the City and Region OP's as being for Residential development.

In the 1980's the City of Burlington requested the Province to extend the NEP Boundary southward to include the PBW lands in North Aldershot on the justification that it was always the intent that the PBW was a temporary hold to preserve these lands for NEP expansion. The Province did not agree with this argument and in testimony at that time the Province was clear in its statements, stating that the PBW was never intended to be a hold to stop development to buy time for the incorporation of PBW lands into the NEP. That the goals of the PBW were 4 fold ( not 3 as identified by MNR) which was to accomplish an overall plan of development activity ( not piecemeal ) for the area which included, municipal and provincial utilities, roads, corridors, natural heritage and development (including residential and other )

SInce 1978,over the subsequent 48 years these PBW lands have had a tremendous amount of planning and environmental work completed by govt and private entities which have ensured zonings and planning have met all the needs defined in the PBW. Vast areas of the PBW in North Aldershot, Burlington, have been removed from the PBW with only minor non critical small parcels still remaining within the PBW. EG part but not all of a pipeline easement may still show as in the PBW yet both ends have been removed.

In or around 2000, the Province determined the goals of the PBW had been met and ongoing need for the PBW was not required, however the City of Burlington at that time requested the PBW remain in effect.

The Greenbelt was subsequently placed over these Non NEP lands and new natural Heritage policies were implemented which further removed any justification for continuing the PBW as a continuing restrictive Provincial hold.

The removal of the PBW in this North Aldershot not in the NEP, Burlington, area is long overdue and the residual vestiges of remaining PBW should be turned over to the City of Burlington as part of its normal activities.

Respective to ERP 026-0260 which is to now extend control over the lands that were identified in the original PBW below the current NEP boundary and placing this under control of the NEC for future planning and control, removing said from the City of Burlington and Region of Halton Planning - there is no justification to expand authority of the NEC over lands outside the NEP and indeed there is no justification to place any of these lands under new restrictive NEP zoning which affects the vast amounts of planning and agreements that have been placed in effect over the years. There is no justification to rescind 48 plus years of ongoing planning in this area, nor any justification to place non NEP PBW lands into the NEP and NEC control.