As someone born and raised…

As someone born and raised in the GTA, Ontario's Greenbelt has been part of my upbringing. I have fond memories of weekends spent hiking local trails, treading through Hamilton's waterfalls and enjoying the drives beside Greenbelt land. As a child, I was fascinated that this vast wilderness was so close to my subdivision in Mississauga.

After moving to Toronto about five years ago, I learned to cherish green space even more. With small condos and less opportunity to get to the great outdoors, it was a blessing to be near some of the cities largest parks. As part of the non-car-owning community (a community that includes nearly 30% of Toronto residents; see link 1 below), I enjoy finding a friend and making the trek to the nearby Greenbelt space. My primary concern with these removals/redesignations is that this pushes our green space further from people who need it most. Removals, specifically those mentioned in Proposed Modifications Map 6, take away greenspace from residents in Scarborough, a community of over half a million, and move it to Erin, an area over an hour away.

Evidentially, this toying with protected lands makes me concerned for the future of Greenbelt space. If we allow this to happen once, what does that mean for further development? Will we continue to chip away at our nearby farmlands and green space? I think we also need to consider the vitality of our green areas, located in some of our countries warmest climates. According to the 'Plant the Seeds' document (link 2) produced by the Greenbelt Foundation, there is $2.2 billion in fruits and vegetables produced in Ontario. The Greenbelt accounts for 53% of Ontario's fruit acreage and 11% of vegetables. These are local resources that I worry will dwindle if we give this amendment the go-ahead.

While I support some of the Premier's notions, like allowing development of safe, affordable garden suites, I think we can further explore what other major cities have done to limit urban sprawl, like incentives for 'missing middle' properties in already-developed areas. While there are many other reasons why maintaining the Greenbelt is integral, I hope these few thoughts allow you to reconsider.