1) The inclusion of the open…

Numéro du REO

013-4125

Identifiant (ID) du commentaire

20876

Commentaire fait au nom

Individual

Statut du commentaire

Commentaire

1) The inclusion of the open-for-business planning by-law process component of Bill 66 can too easily allow for political pressure from developers and land owners on local municipal politicians who may then push for expansion into the Greenbelt and the Niagara Escarpment Planning areas by local municipalities. These lands have been protected for very valid reasons and must be protected for generations to come, not dealt with on one-off manner. I have seen this pressure happen first hand. The Niagara Escarpment Commission, the NEPlan and the NEPDA are examples of sound protection of the environment by a commission of members serving at arms length and not readily available to local pressures for expansion.

The opening statement 'Allow municipalities to permit the use (i.e., zone the lands) without having to strictly adhere to existing local requirements (e.g., official plan and zoning)' indicates how easily this could happen.

The rest negatively reinforces this.
Remove the application of a separate approval process for site plan control;
Remove ability to use density bonusing (community benefits in exchange for height or density) and holding by-law provisions;
Allow the municipality to impose limited planning-related conditions that may help to facilitate the proposal [e.g., approval of plans and drawings that show site plan matters (transportation access, lighting, parking, etc. )] and enter into agreements to ensure development conditions are secured;
Allow public consultation at the discretion of the municipality, while requiring public notice after the by-law is passed (at a minimum);
Provide that decisions are final and cannot be appealed to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (but allow the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to intervene before the by-law comes into effect, 20 days after its passing);
Remove the requirement for decisions to strictly adhere to provincial policies and provincial plans (but allow the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to impose conditions to protect matters like public health and safety when endorsing the use of the tool).

This is another example of this governments "act in haste, repent at your leisure" philosophy. Abide by rules that have been established with good reasons. If rules must be changed, do so democratically with consultation and due process.

2) There are FAR TOO MANY changes included in this Bill. There should be no hurry to make so many changes at one time.
Please slow down your actions and truly consult with the residents of Ontario. Stop these knee-jerk activities before more damage is done.