HomeMy WebLinkAboutPSD-081-09Leading the Way O RT
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PLANNING SERVICES
Meeting: GENERAL PUIRPOSE AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
Date: Monday, September 14, 2009 ~~, ~ D q
Report #: PSD-081-09 ' File #: PLN 23.5.12 By-law #:
Subject: DISSOLUTION OF CLARINGTON HIGHWAY 407 COMMUNITY ADVISORY
COMMITTEE
RECOMMENDATIONS:
It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee
recommend to Council the following:
1. THAT Report PSD-081-09 be received;
2. THAT the Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee be DISSOLVED;
3. THAT the members of the Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee be
thanked for assisting the Municipality in the review of the Environmental Assessment for
the Highway 407 East Extension; and
4. THAT all interested parties listed in this report and any delegations be advised of
Council's decision.
Submitted by: Reviewed b 1 "`^^~'4-' (~-~ (•t
David J. Crome, MCIP, RPP ranklin Wu,
Director f Planning ices Chief Administrative Officer
Submitted by:
A..S. Cannella, C.E.T.
Director of Englineering Services
JS/FL/sh
August 24, 2009
CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOWMANVILLE, ONTARIO L1C 3A6 T (905)623-3379 F (905)623-0830
REPORT NO.: PSD-081-09
1.0 BACKGROUND
PAGE 2
1.1 Council approved the establishment of the Clarington Highway 407 Community
Advisory Committee (CAC) in January 2003. The CAC has been re-established and
new members appointed in January 2004 and January 2007 at -the start of new terms
of Council
1.2 The Terms of Reference for the CAC, as initially approved by Council in January 2003
and re-approved in January 2004, indicate that the CAC's mandate will be to "provide
advice to Clarington Council, from a community perspective, regarding the need and
justification for the highway, the proposed Terms of Reference (for the EA Study), and
the environmental, social, cultural and economic issues associated with the proposed
highway." The Terms of Reference for the CAC form Attachment No. 1 to this report.
1.3 CAC membership currently consists of two residents from each ward, as well as
representatives from the Clarington Agricultural Advisory Committee, the Clarington
Heritage Committee, and industry and business. Councillor Novak sits on the CAC
as the Council liaison, and technical and administrative support is provided by
Planning Services staff. Engineering Services staff attends meetings as required.
1.4 The Terms of Reference state that "The Committee will disband upon completion of
the Environmental Assessment for the Highway 407 East Completion or at such time
as Council may determine."
2.0 STATUS OF 407 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT STUDY
2.1 In mid-June 2009, the 407 Project Team released a Draft EA Report that documented
the entire EA process for the proposed 407 East Transportation Corridor that has
been underway since 2005. The Report was made available to agencies and the
public for comment prior to a formal submission to the Ministry of the Environment
(MOE). Council provided comments on the draft EA Report through its consideration
of Staff Report PSD-075-09 (July 6, 2009 GPA meeting).
2.2 The 407 Project Team has finalized the EA Report in response to comments provided
on the Draft Report. The final EA Report, which consists of both the Individual
Environmental Assessment for the 407 and the Preliminary Design Study, has been
submitted to MOE for the formal provincial review and approval process. The Report
is available for public review from August 28th to October 16th, 2009.
2.3 Given the extensive consultation that the 407 Project Team has undertaken with
various agencies, including the Municipality of Clarington, throughout the EA Study.
process, Staff does not expect any further major changes will be made to the planning
component of the EA Study (e.g. corridor alignment). The Municipality's comments
through the formal provincial review will focus primarily on technical and engineering
issues such as detailed road design and traffic modelling.
REPORT NO.: PSD-081-09 PAGE 3
3.0 CONCLUSIONS
3.1 Over the past several years the Highway 407 CAC has provided comments on the
various studies and reports prepared as part of the 407 EA Study process. Through
their input and comments, the CAC has provided a valuable community perspective
on the impact of the proposed transportation corridor on Clarington's residents,
businesses and agricultural operations.
3.2 The planning phase of the 407 EA,Study, as documented in the Individual EA Report,
has been completed. As such, the 407 CAC has fulfilled its mandate as set out in the
Committee's Terms of Reference.
3.3 Should additional comments on specific functional design-related items be necessary
in the future, it is anticipated that the appropriate Council advisory committee can be
called upon to provide advice, such as the Clarington Heritage Committee, the
Agricultural Advisory Committee of Clarington and/or the Traffic Management
Committee.
Attachments:
Attachment 1 -Terms of Reference
List of interested parties to be advised of Council's decision:
Jo-Anne McFarland
Bradford Soles
Denise Pickett
John Sturdy
Mark Canning
Jean-Maurice Cormier
Linda Gasser
Mark Bragg
Karina Isert
AECom/TSH
Ministry of Transportation
Attachment 1
To Report PSD-081-09
TERMS OF REFERENCE
CLARINGTON HIGHWAY 407 COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Background
The Ontario Ministry of Transportation has initiated the Environmental Assessment
study for the Highway 407 East Completion. The highway extension is proposed to
start at the current terminus at Brock Road in Pickering and run eastward to connect
with Highway 35/115 in Clarington. The section of Highway 407 through Clarington
will be approximately 25 kms. As well, a 10 km north-south highway to connect
Highway 407 with Highway 401 is also proposed in the vicinity of Solina Road.
Due to the scale of the project through Clarington, the Highway 407 extension has
the potential to significantly affect the entire community. In order to facilitate public
input on the project, Clarington Council is establishing a Community Advisory
Committee for the Highway 407 East Extension.
Mandate
The Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee (CAC) will provide
advice to Clarington Council, from a community perspective, regarding the need and
justification for the highway, the proposed Terms of Reference, and the
environmental, social, cultural and economic issues associated with the proposed
highway.
Scope of Activities
The Community Advisory Committee, in fulfilling its mandate, is to provide advice to
Council and communicate information back to their respective stakeholder groups,
where appropriate. The Committee will review information associated with the
proposed highway and provide strategic advice to Council on these matters.
Terms of Reference -Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee
Approved -January 19, 2004
While individual members of the CAC may represent various interest groups, the
opinions and positions taken by the members and the CAC are not binding, in whole
or in part, on either Clarington Council or the groups they represent.
Membership
The Community Advisory is a volunteer Committee consisting of eight citizen
members, two representing each ward. Council shall seek to appoint members
representing a variety of interests from across the Municipality, including, but not
limited to:
^ residents within the study area
^ agriculture
^ industry and business
^ social/cultural environment
^ natural environment.
In the event that insufficient applications are received to fill the two positions from
each ward, members will be appointed from the remaining applications.
Members may represent a specific committee or group. In particular, the following
groups will be invited to nominate members to sit on the CAC:
^ Clarington Board of Trade -one member from a local BIA and one
industry representative
^ Clarington Agricultural Advisory Committee - 1 member
^ Durham Regional Police Services - 1 member
^ LACAC - 1 member.
One member of Council shall also be appointed to sit on the Committee. Staff
representatives from both the Planning Services Department and the Engineering
Services Department shalt sit on the Committee as non-voting members. In addition,
the Committee may recommend to Council that Durham Region staff, Conservation
Authority staff and staff of other municipalities be invited to attend as non-voting
members.
Members appointed to sit on the Committee must be willing to commit the time
required to understand and evaluate the information provided, as well as be open-
minded to various opinions and perspectives on the Project.
Terms of Reference -Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee
Approved -January 19, 2004
Openings for membership shall be publicly advertised and all residents of the
Municipality are eligible to apply. • Applicants will submit applications to the
Municipality of Clarington Clerk's Department. Members will be formally appointed
by Council.
The Council representative shall sit as the interim Chair. The Committee will select a
Chair and Vice-Chair from among its membership. The Chair shall provide
leadership to the Committee, ensure that the Committee carries out its mandate, and
act as the primary liaison between the Committee and Staff.
If an individual member is unable to attend a meeting, he/she may request
permission from the Chair to send an alternate, at least 24 hours in advance of the
meeting. The Chair shall advise the Clerk of any member who is absent for three
consecutive meetings, and may request that the member be removed from the
Committee. The Chair shall also advise the Clerk of the resignation of any member.
Council shall appoint new members to the Committee to fill any vacancies as
required.
Technical Support
Municipal staff will provide clerical, administrative and technical assistance to the
Committee. Staff and consultants, including consultants hired by the Ministry of
Transportation, will share technical information and assist in the interpretation of this
material
Meetincls
Committee meetings shall be held in the Municipal Administrative Centre. The
Committee shall generally meet a minimum of once per month; however, the Chair
may schedule additional meetings or cancel meetings after consulting with the other
members of the Committee. The Chair shall set the agenda for each meeting in
consultation with Municipal Staff.
Terms of Reference -Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee
Approved -January 19, 2004
A majority of voting members (6) shall constitute a quorum. Recommendations and
decisions reached by the CAC will be based on consensus, wherever possible. In
the event that a consensus cannot tie reached and there are divergent opinions on
issues, formal votes may be called by the Chair, with each member having one vote.
Decisions will be carried by a majority of the members present.
All members of the Committee will be eligible to participate in discussions related to the project. However, any
member who would be directly affected by a specific issue related to the project shall refrain from voting on a motion
directly related to that issue. Individual members of the Committee shall be responsible for determining whether they
have a conflict of interest with respect to any issue.'
Reporting to Council
The Community Advisory group shall report to Council as follows:
• The recording secretary shall submit the minutes of all Committee
meetings to the Municipal Clerk for inclusion in the Council agenda for
information;
• All recommendations from the Committee shall be submitted to the
Clerk for inclusion in the Council agenda for direction;
• The Committee Chair will submit reports to Council prior to key
decisions being made by Council on the proposed highway.
Term of the Committee
The term of the Committee shall coiricide with the term of Council. The Committee
will disband upon completion of the Environmental Assessment for the Highway 407
East Completion or at such other time as Council may determine.
Terms of Reference - Clarington Highway 407 Community Advisory Committee
Approved -January 19, 2004