Thank you for the…

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the changes enacted through Bill 197, the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, 2020, that was passed on 21 July 2020.
As a Canadian citizen and resident of the Province of Ontario, I am strongly opposed to the changes enacted under Bill 197, specifically with regard to the enhanced powers granted to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing
• to unilaterally remove municipal use of site plan control,
• to require agreements between the municipality and development proponents concerning site plan matters, and
• to make amendments to Minister’s Zoning Orders that use any of these enhanced authorities without first giving public notice or requiring public consultation.
These enhanced powers should be repealed and the power to determine the site plan controls returned to the municipalities.
Because these changes are part of an ‘economic recovery act’ and because the economy cannot be dissociated from the environment, no development should be allowed without a rigorous environmental review. I am very, very unhappy that MZOs are being used to by-pass normal environmental reviews, even in municipalities that have formally declared that we are facing a climate emergency.
Finally, and most importantly, no development should be allowed to take place in Ontario without the meaningful engagement and democratic consent of the people. If a government claims to be ‘For the People’, then it certainly should not short-circuit public consultation and debate about development within a municipality. The effect of the provisions re MZOs in Bill 197 is to do just that, and I strongly oppose the erosion of democracy in practice that these provisions represent.