Malone Given Parsons Ltd. (…

Malone Given Parsons Ltd. (“MGP”) is the planning and land economic consultant for the North-East Pickering Landowners Group (“NEPLOG”), who own multiple properties in North-East Pickering. On behalf of the NEPLOG we request that the Province modify Durham Region Official Plan Amendment 186 (“ROPA 186”) to expedite the second phase of the Growth Management Study (“GMS”) and approve the proposed settlement area boundary expansions, which include the lands in North-East Pickering.

Given the significant housing supply and affordability issues and the anticipated timing of the completion of the GMS and adoption of the new Durham Region Official Plan (which has already exceeded the provincial conformity deadline of July 1, 2022), the Province has an opportunity now to accelerate development by modifying ROPA 186 to include both the delineation of Major Transit Station Areas (“MTSAs”) and the designation of the settlement area boundary expansions, so that all lands requiring local planning to provide additional housing can proceed as soon as possible.

For the reasons set out in the attached letter, it is our opinion that North-East Pickering is the most logical and appropriate location for this settlement area boundary expansion and will achieve all the goals of the City of Pickering (“City”), Durham Region (“Region”) and Province, for the following reasons:

1) North-East Pickering is required for growth in the City and Region and has been identified as a growth area since 2006 by the Region through two MCR processes.

2) As part of the current Envision Durham Municipal Comprehensive Review (“MCR”), Durham Information Report #2022-INFO-91 identifies the settlement area boundary expansion of North-East Pickering as required as part of the current conformity exercise with A Place to Grow: Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (“Growth Plan”).

3) North-East Pickering provides the only opportunity along the Highway 407 corridor to realize a comprehensively planned complete, healthy, smart and sustainable community that can accommodate significant new population and employment growth.

4) North-East Pickering is essential to the Region’s economic prosperity and the creation of a contiguous urban structure along the Highway 407 corridor consisting of strategic employment lands near to the future Pickering Airport.

5) North-East Pickering implements a critical portion of the Region’s east-west settlement and mobility pattern by providing new community and mixed-use nodes that will meet residential growth needs while supporting future transit corridors through north Pickering, Whitby, and Oshawa.

6) The City has already commenced a Secondary Planning process to advance local planning in anticipation of the designation of this area for urban uses in the new Durham Region Official Plan, which will accelerate housing and development. This means that the North-East Pickering lands are significantly more advanced in their planning than any other lands within the Region outside of the existing urban area.

The NEPLOG have undertaken extensive master planning and technical studies for this area to realize a complete community that protects significant natural features and functions, provides sustainable forms of development and strategic community and public uses that will serve residents of North-East Pickering and the surrounding area.

As further background to our request, we are attaching our prior submissions to the City and Region which include the NEPLOG’s detailed comments on the Region’s GMS, the proposed SABEs, and other components of the MCR, as well as MGP’s owns land needs assessment.

We would like to thank the Province for giving us the opportunity to provide comments on these proposed amendments. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned.

Yours very truly,
Malone Given Parsons Ltd.

Matthew Cory, MCIP, RPP, PLE, PMP
Principal, Planner, Land Economist, Project Manager