The City of Guelph has…

The City of Guelph has already made plans for growth. This policy review (019-6177) ignores that work, work which consumed time, resources and engaged buy-in locally. To now conduct this review of the Place To Grow and Provincial Policy is a waste of that time, effort and money.

Yes, Ontario needs more housing. The province knew that when Places to Grow was initiated. Ontario also needs farmland, greenspace, forests, fresh air, clean water and planned development, taking into consideration affordability, infrastructure (transportation, education, healthcare, sewage disposal, waste collection etc). These are not exclusive of each other. That's why planning is so important: it integrates these components. This policy review ignores that and does nothing to insure affordability, let alone assessing the long term implications of the proposed changes. We don't need faster, we need smarter. Increasing and accommodating human population can bring enormous benefits to the Province, but only if it is done wisely, with care and not at the expense of other necessary considerations.