We are concerned with the…

We are concerned with the sudden change in the proposed Narrowed Area of Interest (“NAI”) for the Northwest GTA Transmission Corridor, which was released on October 10, 2025. The surprising change will have a severe negative effect on a property owned by First Gulf Halton Steeles Limited and Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada located at 14289 Steeles Avenue (the “First Gulf” site).

After six years during which only a very small sliver of the site was identified as within the Narrowed Area of Interest, the proposed hydro corridor is now dramatically expanded onto the First Gulf site, creating significant negative impacts that are detrimental to the active rezoning application on the site. The new proposed hydro corridor will make planned development of the site, for important large scale employment users, virtually impossible. It would be preferable for the hydro corridor to be restricted in this area to lands owned and under negotiation by the Province as part of the land acquisition process for the Highway 413 .

The previous more than six years of study have not included most of the First Gulf site as part of the identified Narrowed Area of Interest for the purposes of study and consultation. As such, the new expanded proposed route is a surprise. No direct notice has been provided to date from the Province of this change to First Gulf, despite the considerable adverse impact it will have on them, and despite a letter dated December 23, 2024 that demonstrated the landowners' concerns in the matter.

A factor in the hydro corridor siting in this area is the future connection to the transmission line south of the 401. In a previous change in the study area, (five years ago) a square of land south of the 401 was added to the study area, in apparent response to Hydro One comments, to accommodate such a connection. A direct connection from that block to a co-located hydro corridor beside the 413 would be the shortest path, could avoid impact on the First Gulf site, and would minimize land acquisition costs that would otherwise be borne by the taxpayers and ratepayers. This would also allow the municipality's planning process to be respected, and allow the contemplated opportunities for a major employment user to locate on the critical, large and high profile First Gulf site. The Provincial Government has faced challenges in being able to offer such sites to potential investors and job creators. It would be unfortunate to remove such an economic development opportunity, at great cost to the taxpayers, when such an outcome is entirely avoidable (and was not previously contemplated or studied).