Malone Given Parsons Ltd. (…

Malone Given Parsons Ltd. (“MGP”) is the planning and land economics consultant for the Group, which represents owners of much of the ‘Whitebelt’ lands in the Town of East Gwillimbury (“Town”), in northern York Region, and includes experienced community and home builders as shown on the attached Appendix A.

The Group owns a significant portion of lands that can accommodate growth in the Town. However, these lands can only proceed to planning approval, and then development, once a servicing solution has been decided upon by the Province.

The purpose of this letter is to provide our comments on Bill 306 and to urge the government not to undertake unnecessary and costly further study, and instead make a decision as soon as possible on the servicing solution to support much-needed growth in northern York Region.

We understand that York Region and the Town are making similar submissions to the Province requesting an immediate decision on servicing for upper York Region.
We wish to emphasize the following points:

1. The Provincial Housing Action Plan and Growth Plan establish the need to accommodate significant growth forecast for York Region.
2. The Town currently has approximately 17,000 residential dwelling units and 14,000 jobs on lands planned to be fully developed by the year 2031, but which cannot proceed to development until a servicing solution is realized.
3. The Town has adopted a resolution that the entire Whitebelt be included within the settlement area to meet growth needs to 2051, which would provide another 17,000 residential dwelling units and the potential to accommodate another 19,000 jobs.
4. These 34,000 residential dwelling units and 33,000 jobs (in addition to additional stalled development in the Towns of Newmarket and Aurora) are required to implement the Growth Plan and the Housing Supply Action Plan in York Region.
5. Significant delays in finalizing a servicing solution for upper York Region have resulted in this growth being stranded for over 15 years, such that, currently, any growth on these lands is now unlikely to commence until 2028 (the estimated construction timing of the Upper York Sewage Solutions (“UYSS”)) if a decision on this solution is made immediately.
6. Approval of a servicing solution is urgently needed to provide certainty for the Region’s ongoing Municipal Comprehensive Review of its Official Plan; without a servicing solution in place before the Fall of 2021, we believe York Region will be unable to implement either the Growth Plan or the Housing Supply Action Plan as contemplated and required by the Province.

Members of our Group have been working with the Town and Region for more than 15 years to find an appropriate servicing solution that can accommodate the completion of the Town’s primary urban area. Our Group strongly supports York Region’s efforts to complete the Environmental Assessment for the UYSS and has been dismayed at the lack of a decision from the Province on this critical infrastructure.

It is essential that a servicing solution, regardless of which one, be finally determined and approved by the Province as soon as possible to facilitate the implementation of its policy plans, in order to realize much-needed growth.

We therefore urge the Province to NOT put a hold on a decision on the UYSS and NOT to commence a lengthy and redundant study process. Rather, we request that an approval for a servicing solution in upper York Region be issued no case later than the Fall of 2021.