We represent the owner of…

We represent the owner of the lands located at 1685 Ridge Road West in the Township of Oro-Medonte, County of Simcoe. During the County of Simcoe Municipal Comprehensive Review (MCR) and Township of Oro-Medonte Official Plan Review we requested the re-designation of the above noted lands to be included in the Shanty Bay settlement area. We also made a delegation to the Township of Oro-Medonte Council on January 25, 2023 requesting that the Township support the inclusion of these lands in the Shanty Bay Settlement Area in response the December 12, 2022 letter to the Township Mayor.

We understand that the Township of Oro-Medonte will also be requesting the opportunity to expand settlement areas through this ERO posting, but is not prepared at this time to identify the specific location of settlement area boundary expansion.

The justification for including 1685 Ridge Road West is as follows:

1. The subject property is 17 acres and is contiguous with the Shanty Bay Settlement Area;

2. The subject property is the only property on the south side of Ridge Road and west of Line 3 that does not have water frontage or is not within the settlement area;

3. The subject property is adjacent to both the settlement area and waterfront properties. Rounding out the Settlement Area to include the subject property will ensure compatibility of uses in the area in the future. Given the surrounding residential and shoreline residential lots, the use of the subject lands for any substantial agricultural purpose would likely be incompatible with the existing surrounding residential uses;

4. Settlement area residential uses would be more compatible with surrounding uses than the current rural designation and the permitted uses in the Agricultural/Rural zoning. The use of the subject lands for agricultural purposes is further limited given the existing residential uses and compliance with Minimum Distance Separation II guidelines for agricultural uses (setbacks between proposed new or altered livestock facilities and existing or approved development); and

5. The rounding out of the settlement area to include the subject lands is a logical extension for the settlement area for future residential development given the existing uses on surrounding residential lots.