As a result of the City’s…

   As a result of the City’s Station Area Planning work completed to date, the City initiated a Municipal Comprehensive Review on May 29, 2017. Station Area Planning was initiated in 2015 to address a requirement of the Regional Official Plan, and a key recommendation has been that LRT stops centred around Employment Areas should be considered for a greater range of mixed-use development, such that office and other workers have the ability to live near their place of work.

  The City has invested the last 2 years in understanding best practices in Station Area Planning, landowner development plans, public’s wishes for Station Areas, and appropriate planning processes to contemplate such directions. The City began planning to undertake an MCR in late 2016 in order to realize the common vision that stakeholders have presented for Station Areas, and has been working with staff at the Regional Municipality of Waterloo on this and other aspects of Station Area Planning. Regional staff has indicated support in our approach.

  The City’s primary purpose in launching a MCR is to contemplate a greater mix of uses  and facilitate the achievement of the density targets prescribed by the Growth Plan for Station Areas. Without the ability to contemplate a greater range of uses, the City is not certain that it can appropriately compete for high tech talent that wishes to live in vibrant, connected Station Areas, facilitate the type of transit-supportive development envisioned by the Growth Plan or appropriately plan to achieve the density targets for Station Areas required by the Growth Plan.

  The Region of Waterloo is anticipated to initiate a MCR of the Regional Official Plan in 2019. Because the contemplated land use changes cannot be implemented until the completion of the Region’s MCR, the timing of this process and any subsequent appeals could delay the full implementation of the City’s Station Area Planning and ultimately the objectives of the Growth Plan for 3-5 years.

  Based on the foregoing, the City requests that Ontario Regulation 311/06 permit in-process Municipal Comprehensive Reviews to be completed by the level of government that began said Municipal Comprehensive Review, provided that all other aspects of the Growth Plan are conformed to. The Province should find comfort that any lower-tier Official Plan Amendment which proposes to implement a Municipal Comprehensive Review will require upper-tier approval (with potential modifications, as determined by the upper-tier government).

[Original Comment ID: 209673]