I object to the…

I object to the deregistration of the following lands from the Greenbelt:

Land located in the Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville at 11861 and 12045 McCowan Road Map 4
Land located in City of Markham at 5474 19th Ave. at the northeast corner of 19th Ave. and McCowan Road Map 4

The 59 hectares of land on 12045 McCowan Rd. and 11861 McCowan Rd. is next door to land where Flato Developments has already received multiple MZOs in the block between Highway 48, McCowan Road, Stouffville Road and 19th Avenue for roughly 3,000 homes.

One of the premises permitting the deregistration of land is that it is adjacent to other parcels of land being developed. These other parcels of land have been achieved only by virtue of Ministerial Zoning Orders, that were not subject to public consultation. There was no due process to comment on the paving over of viable farmland in Whitchurch-Stouffville in the name of 'agriculturally inspired' development. Farmers would laugh at this concept.

The addition of these new lands to the inventory for development boxes in the Willowgrove Day Camp and Outdoor Education centre. As the neighbouring land is getting swallowed up by 4,500 MZOs’ worth of homes, Willowgrove’s primary concern is being able to continue its operation as a working farm with a day camp, outdoor education and nature school. They just want to know that they can continue doing what they do. What they offer here is very unique, which makes it all the more worthwhile to continue the operation. My children actively participated in programs at this centre through a number of community organizations.

While the MZOs benefited Flato Developments, it is also a striking parallel that 12045 McCowan Road also benefits Lebovic Enterprises, who coincidentally also build residential homes. This is blatant, patronizing, self-interest.

I doubt that the land at 12045 McCowan Road is so important to be added to the adjacent MZO inventory, that it absolutely must be added in the public interest. If that were the case, then expropriate that land. That, however, would not be as desirable for Lebovic since it would yield a significantly lower return on investment.

The continued accumulation of land for development on McCowan Road, creates a discontinuous path of development from the west side of Stouffville at Highway 48 through to McCowan. Development approaching from McCowan freezes out landowners on Highway 48, who will now stand in the way of the continuous road network. We all know what happens to those owners - it is called expropriation at lower prices than those that Lebovic will get, after they created the situation / “need”. You can really see how all of this will play out – give it 1-2 years.

Whitchurch-Stouffville held a visioning exercise a few years ago that really did nothing more than set the stage to permit the MZOs and the deregistration of land from the Oak Ridges Moraine. They were just puppets to the Province of Ontario in the continued development of the Greenbelt.