When the legislators insert…

When the legislators insert elements into omnibus bills which are not obviously supportive of the aims of the main intent of the bill, the public can only interpret that these elements would not stand on their own. This leads to public cynicism .

The history of the use of the MZO across the whole province leads one to expect that its main use is to organize zoning in municipalities where planning expertise is not strong. To take this little-used power and apply it to circumvent the work of a competent bureaucracy and the wishes of an engaged community multiplies the cynicism. There are examples of this approach in a number of recent applications but nowhere is it more evident than in the case of the Dominion Foundry on Eastern Avenue in the West Don Lands community in Toronto.

The development of the West Don Lands and the Distillery Historic District have been the result of more than two decades of dialog, compromise and the advice of experts chosen for their world-wide reputations. The result appears to provide an instant pride of residency, a group desire to keep the good process moving ahead and a sense of optimism for its completion. The unilateral intervention by a Ministerial body without a track record in sensitive community building leads to a suspicion that backroom deals rather than transparent plans are behind these actions.

The greenest building is one that is already built. Until there are specific plans showing that the aims of the project cannot accommodate any of the existing buildings for new purposes means that the government is blind to need for sustainability, minimum carbon footprint and social coherence in neighbourhhoods.

The public tendering of a demolition contract to be paid out of public funds has not been evident. In addition, the mobilization of the project where the contractor takes a small part out of each structure rather than concentrating building by building leads one to believe that the aim is maximum destruction in the minimum time in the hope that they can argue that the complex cannot be saved even if their efforts are blocked.

It is to be hoped that the application of MZO will be reserved for situations where it is needed. It should not be applied to further private interests that are afraid that the application of the existing processes may thwart their plans.