May 9, 2024 The Honourable…

May 9, 2024

The Honourable Paul Calandra
Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing
Toronto, Ontario
Dear Minister Calandra,

Re: Our Opposition to Bill 185

On behalf of Guildwood Residents Alliance, a registered citizens’ association and member of the Federation of Citizens’ Associations in Ottawa, we wish to express our firm opposition to the provisions in Schedule 12 of Bill 185 that amend section 17 of the Planning Act in order to remove the public’s right to appeal local land use planning decisions before the Ontario Land Tribunal.

If the Ford government wishes to maintain a participatory democracy in Ontario, the government must provide to citizens the ability to appeal the adoption or amendment of Official Plans and Zoning By-laws before the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT). These appeal rights represent a critical tool available to citizens to challenge inappropriate or bad planning decisions and planning mistakes before the OLT. These appeal rights are essential to a democratic process of urban planning and zoning. If citizens are deprived of appeal rights, they will lose trust in their local government and their provincial government, and they will withdraw from all public engagement. Public consultations will then have no meaning and will be scorned and shunned by the public. This will have a serious adverse effect on volunteer work and activities within communities. And this will severely damage the social fabric of our communities.

A former chair of the Ontario Municipal Board, J.A. Kennedy, stated that “public participation is an important feature of the Planning Act, and it has served this province well.” He also recognized the importance of the public having a voice in the formulation of plans and policies that directly affect neighbourhoods.

Mr. Minister, if you delete the public’s appeal rights, you will harm public participation and foster public disengagement. Is that what you want in a participatory democracy?

We urge the government to delete the amendments in Bill 185 that remove the public’s right to appeal land use planning decisions before the OLT, and we exhort the government to maintain the public’s right to appeal land use planning decisions before the OLT in order to preserve and protect democracy and public participation.

Respectfully,
Lynne Davidson-Fournier
President, Guildwood Residents Alliance

cc.: Mr. John Fraser, MPP for Ottawa South