February 3, 2023 …

February 3, 2023 Project: PB.BW

Re: ERO number 019-6113 – 3087 5 Sideroad, Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury- Request for Policy Recognition and Additional Employment Numbers to reinforce the Bradford West Gwillimbury Strategic Settlement Employment Area

On behalf of 3087 5Side Holdings Inc.

RE: 3087 Sideroad 5, Bradford West Gwillimbury
(Assessment Roll No. 431202000201600)

(content to be uploaded to EBR site)

Introduction

This submission is to provide comments regarding County of Simcoe Official Plan Amendment No. 7 (SCOPA7) and its potential to support the activation of employment lands within the Bradford West Gwillimbury Strategic Settlement Employment Area (BWGSSEA).

We respectfully request that the Minister consider our request to amend SCOPA7 to recognize the importance of the subject lands in the context of the Bradford Bypass and their role as an employment attractor in BWG as it moves towards being a more Complete Community. Prominent employment lands coming online sooner, together with BWG’s Major Transit Station Area, have the opportunity to accelerate investment and housing supply in Simcoe County. Recognition of the subject lands in SCOPA7 will also support any potential changes to the BWGSSEA through future Minister Directions under the Places to Grow Act.

Background and Context:

Our client, 3087 5Side Holdings Inc, owns 38 Ha of land at the southwest corner of Line 9 and Highway 400 in the Town of Bradford West Gwillimbury (BWG), and within the BWGSSEA. The south portion of the site abuts the future Bradford Bypass and will be located directly adjacent to the future interchange with Highway 400. The subject lands have few, if any, identified development constraints. The topography of the site above Highway 400 makes it a prominent/gateway site at the northern end of the BWGSSEA.

Since the site’s inclusion in the BWGSSEA, the Province has announced the Bradford Bypass project – a significant infrastructure investment that will serve the needs of the fast-growing south Simcoe region. With the bypass likely to break ground soon, the subject lands will play an important role in attracting new employment and reinforcing BWGSSEA planning policies through SCOPA7.

We consider SCOPA7 to be an opportunity to further reinforce the role of this site as a premier gateway location that will anchor the proposed interchange and drive investment in BWG.

The certainty of development occurring sooner at the northern gateway of the BWGSSEA will accelerate further public and private infrastructure investment – thus having a multiplier effect on Provincial highway investment. More jobs, coupled with more homes through the MTSA, will help relieve Provincial growth pressures.

SCOPA 7 Requests:

1) Similar to how MTSAs are recognized in Section 3.2.12 of SCOPA7, SSEAs in Simcoe should be reinforced to complement anticipated residential growth to achieve complete communities. The importance of SSEAs in this context cannot be underestimated and therefore policy recognition in SCOPA7 would help ensure balanced growth between employment and residential uses.

More specific policies, implementing those in the BWGSSEA Minister Direction, can bring lands currently shown as “Area D” online sooner. This can be achieved by SCOPA7 establishing land uses in the BWGSSEA that mirror those already contained in “Area C”. Area D land uses are essentially a holding provision put in place prior to the announcement of the Bradford Bypass. Now that the project is real, policies should be updated at all levels to reinforce new infrastructure investment. The expansion of Area C land uses onto the subject lands is logical and appropriate from a land use planning perspective.

To reiterate the permitted uses in Area C of the BWGSSEA, we consider the following uses appropriate for the subject lands:
a. Permitted employment uses: Distribution centre, food processing, manufacturing, outdoor storage as an accessory use, research facility including laboratory, warehouse, and training facility. Data centre if total gross floor area is less than 7,500m2. Ancillary office. Ancillary retail sales with a maximum of 10 per cent of the gross floor area of the total gross floor area of the building or structure.
b. Permitted office uses: To a maximum gross floor area of 7,500 m2.
c. Permitted employment supportive uses: Automobile service station, bank, convenience store, day care facility, fitness centre, machinery and equipment sales and rental, personal service shop, restaurant, service shop and private training centre.
d. Other permitted uses: Parks and open space and public uses.

2) Section 3.2.5 of SCOPA should be amended to clarify and reinforce that the employment numbers in Table C can be exceeded and used to justify land use policy changes. These policy changes will help deliver employment lands sooner while reinforcing existing infrastructure investment and promoting further infrastructure planning and investment.

As already occurring along the Highway 400 corridor, demand for employment lands continues to grow. Lower employment densities associated with warehousing and logistics uses will mean that larger amounts of employment lands will be required.

Providing clear direction in SCOPA7 that the employment forecasts in Table C can be exceeded, will assist with and justify any future Minister Directions to amend the BWGSSEA. This could also be accomplished by allocating additional employment numbers to BWG by amending Table C.

Summary

The Province has the opportunity through the approval of SCOPA7, with the amendments proposed above, to facilitate land uses that reinforce its significant infrastructure investment in the Bradford Bypass. More supportive policies for the BWGSSEA (including establishing employment land uses and additional population numbers) will promote growth of more complete communities that can better supply housing and jobs.