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Report To: Planning and Development Committee
Date of Meeting: December 9, 2024 Report Number: PDS-049-24
Authored by:Sarah Allin, Principal Planner
Submitted By:Darryl Lyons, Deputy CAO, Planning and Infrastructure Services
Reviewed By:Mary-Anne Dempster, CAO
By-law Number:Resolution Number:
File Number:PLN 1.1.33
Report Subject: Amendment to Ontario Regulation 525/97 Re: Exempting Certain Official
Plan Matters from Provincial Approval
Recommendation:
1. That Report PDS-049-24, and any related delegations or communication items, be
received;
2. That Council endorses Staff Comments, identified in subsections 2.8 through 2.11
inclusive of Report PDS-049-24, to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing on the
proposed amendment to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to Exempt Certain Official Plan
Matters from Approval under the Planning Act;
3. That Report PDS-049-24 be adopted as the Municipality of Clarington’s submission to
the Province on the proposed Amendment to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to Exempt
Certain Official Plan Matters from Approval under the Planning Act;
4. That a copy of Report PDS-049-24 and Council’s decision be sent to the Ministry of
Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Region of Durham, and other Durham Region area
municipalities; and
5. That all interested parties in Report PDS-049-24, and any delegations be advised of
Council’s decision.
Municipality of Clarington Page 2
Report PDS-049-24
Report Overview
On November 5, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing advised, subject to
government decision-making, that January 1, 2025, is the intended date for the removal of
Durham Region’s land use planning responsibilities.
To support this change, the Province has proposed an amendment to Ontario Regulation (O.
Reg.) 525/97 of the Planning Act to exempt certain official plan matters undertaken by
Clarington from the need for provincial approval. The proposed amendment is posted for
comments for 30 days, closing December 5, 2024.
The purpose of this report is to provide (i) information about the Province’s decision to
remove Durham Region’s land use planning responsibilities, and (ii) a summary of and
comments on the supporting amendment to O. Reg. 525/97 for Council’s consideration.
Staff submitted draft comments, identified in subsections 2.8 through 2.11 of this Report, to
the Province ahead of the December 5, 2024, deadline, subject to Council’s ratification.
1. Background
Durham Region to become an upper-tier municipality without land use planning
responsibilities
1.1 In 2022, changes to the Planning Act introduced as part of Bill 23 (More Homes Built
Faster Act, 2022) defined Durham Region as an upper-tier municipality without land use
planning responsibilities. In April 2024, Bill 185 (Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes
Act, 2024) provided the change would take effect on a date to be proclaimed by the
Lieutenant Governor.
1.2 On November 5, 2024, the Municipality received a letter from the Province (Attachment
1) advising that January 1, 2025, is intended to be proclaimed as the date on which
Durham Region will become an upper-tier municipality without land use planning
responsibilities.
1.3 Once its planning responsibilities are removed, Durham Region will no longer (i)
exercise approval authority over Clarington’s planning decisions (ii) maintain the
Durham Region Official Plan, or (iii) have appeal rights as a public body on Planning Act
applications.
1.4 Clarington provided comments to the Province on this matter over the last two years of
legislative changes requesting clarification on (i) the Region’s continued role in capital
projects for transportation and servicing infrastructure, and (ii) the logistics of the
transfer of regional planning responsibilities (FSD-024-24; PDS 054-22).
Municipality of Clarington Page 3
Report PDS-049-24
The Province proposed an amendment to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to support the
change to the existing two-tier municipal planning framework
1.5 Ontario Regulation (O. Reg.) 525/97 is a regulation that exempts certain listed
municipalities from the need to obtain the Minister’s approval for official plan
amendments (OPAs) under the Planning Act.
1.6 The proposed amendment to O. Reg. 525/97 would exempt certain official plan matters
for lower-tier municipalities in Durham Region, Waterloo Region, and Niagara Region
from the need for the Minister’s approval as of the proclamation date. The details of the
proposed amendment and staff comments are outlined in Section 2, below.
2. Proposed O. Reg. Amendment and Discussion
2.1 The Planning Act sets out planning matters requiring approval, identifies approval
authorities, and identifies such matters that can and cannot be exempt from approval of
the delegated authority.
2.2 On January 1, 2025, lower tier municipalities in the Regions of Durham and Waterloo
would be granted delegated approval authority for certain official plan matters by being
included on the Schedule to O. Reg. 525/97. This means that Clarington would be the
approval authority for most OPA matters adopted by Council.
2.3 In the letter sent to the Municipality, the Province clarified that only the following matters
would require Provincial approval going forward:
(i) New official plans;
(ii) Municipally initiated official plan amendments (OPAs) to update the official plan
(under s. 26); and
(iii) OPAs addressing policies required in connection with protected major transit
station areas (PMTSAs).
It is noted these three types of official plan matters are those that are specifically
identified in the Planning Act as not being eligible for exemption from the approval
authority.
2.4 The Ministry is also proposing housekeeping changes to O. Reg. 525/97 to remove
section 2. Section 2 identifies OPAs undertaken by municipalities that are subject to the
Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe are not exempt from Ministry approval.
The Growth Plan was revoked on October 20, 2024, and the Ministry has indicated this
section is no longer necessary.
2.5 The Ministry has acknowledged there are many lower tier official plan matters, such as
site-specific official plan amendments, that the Regions have exempted from the need
for their approval. The Ministry has stated it intends that these matters or similar matters
would continue to be reviewed and adopted by the relevant lower -tier municipality
without an additional level of approval.
Municipality of Clarington Page 4
Report PDS-049-24
2.6 The Ministry has also noted the Minister will retain the authority under the Planning Act
to intervene where necessary to ensure all exempt OPAs are in accordance with
provincial policy.
2.7 The Province is seeking feedback on the proposed changes to O. Reg. 525/97. Staff’s
comments are included below. These comments were submitted to the Province as
draft and subject to Council ratification, before the December 5, 2024, commenting
deadline.
Staff Comments
2.8 Planning and Infrastructure Services staff are generally supportive of the proposed
amendment to O. Reg. 525/97 to delegate approval authority of certain official plan
matters to Clarington. This aligns with current practice whereby Council-adopted OPAs
that meet certain criteria have been exempt from Regional approval.
2.9 The Province is requested to clarify what constitutes ‘official plan amendments
addressing policies required in connection with PMTSAs’ and specifically cite the types
of policies in the amended O. Reg. 525/97. To this end, the Province is requested to
scope provincial approval of matters related to PMTSAs to only the delineation of Major
Transit Station Area boundaries and the establishment of the minimum people and jobs
per hectare targets in accordance with provincial policy.
2.10 The Province is requested to exempt the other PMTSA matters currently identified in
subsection 16(15) of the Planning Act as not eligible for exemption, including approvals
for land use designations, densities, and height in PMTSAs. Such a change may require
an amendment to subsection 16(15) but would help to reduce duplication and enable
municipalities to account for local context through the use of density and height to
achieve provincial targets.
2.11 The Province is requested to provide additional clarity and explicitly state in O. Reg.
525/97 that all official plan amendment applications submitted under subsection 22 of
the Planning Act (i.e. those that are not municipally initiated) are delegated to the lower-
tier municipality for approval.
3. Financial Considerations
3.1 The transfer of the Region’s land use planning responsibilities will require allocation of
Department resources to understand and adapt to this new framework , including taking
on the implementation of the Durham Regional Official Plan. Additional resources will
also be required to adapt planning processes and take on new roles and responsibilities
that had been previously provided by Durham Region . Resource needs will be
addressed through the budget process.
Municipality of Clarington Page 5
Report PDS-049-24
4. Strategic Plan
4.1 The subject of this report does not directly relate to specific priorities identified in the
Strategic Plan. However, opportunities for increased efficiencies in processes may be
realized as staff adapts to the new framework, which could indirectly support the Grow
Responsibly priorities of the Strategic Plan.
5. Climate Change
5.1 Not Applicable.
6. Concurrence
6.1 Not Applicable.
7. Conclusion
7.1 The purpose of this report is to provide (i) information about the Province’s decision to
remove Durham Region’s land use planning responsibilities, and (ii) a summary of and
comments on the supporting amendment to O. Reg. 525/97 for Council’s consideration.
7.2 Staff’s draft comments identified in subsections 2.8 through 2.11 of this Report were
submitted to the Province, subject to Council ratification, in advance of the December 5
deadline.
7.3 It is respectfully recommended that (i) the comments on the amendment to O. Reg.
525/97 be endorsed, and (ii) that a copy of the report and Council’s decision be sent to
the Province, the Region of Durham, and other Durham Region area municipalities.
Staff Contact: Sarah Allin, Principal Planner, sallin@clarington.net or 905-623-3379 ext. 2419
or Lisa Backus, Manager of Community Planning, lbackus@clarington.net or 905-623-3379
ext. 2413.
Attachments:
Attachment 1 – Letter from Province to Clarington Re: Proposed Amendments to Ontario
Regulation 525/97, dated November 5, 2024
Interested Parties:
There are no interested parties to be notified of Council's dec ision.
234-2024-4549
November 5, 2024
Mayor
Adrian Foster
Municipality of Clarington
mayor@clarington.net
Subject: Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to Exempt Certain
Official Plan Matters from Approval under the Planning Act
Dear Mayor Adrian Foster
I am writing to advise you that subject to government decision making, January 1, 2025
is the proposed date for removal of the land use planning responsibilities for Durham
and Waterloo Regions and March 31, 2025 is the proposed date for the removal of the
land use planning responsibilities from Niagara Region.
Following the successful removal of upper-tier planning responsibilities in York, Halton,
and Peel Region on July 1, 2024, the removal of upper-tier responsibilities for Durham
and Waterloo Regions on January 1, 2025 and for Niagara Region on March 31, 2025
would help to remove duplication and support efficient land use planning decision-
making.
To support this change, I am also proposing to amend Ontario Regulation 525/97 under
the Planning Act. To help inform decision-making, there is a posting on the Regulatory
Registry for public input which outlines proposed amendments to Ontario Regulation
525/97. These amendments would exempt most official plan matters of lower-tier
municipalities in Durham and Waterloo Regions as of January 1, 2025 and Niagara
Region as of March 31, 2025 from the need for provincial approval.
The Ministry is aware that there are many lower-tier official plan amendments,
particularly ones that are site-specific in nature, that the Regions have exempted from
the need for its approval. These matters would continue to be reviewed and adopted by
the relevant lower-tier municipality without an additional level of approval.
…/2
Ministry of
Municipal Affairs
and Housing
Office of the Minister
777 Bay Street, 17th Floor
Toronto ON M7A 2J3
Tel.: 416 585-7000
Ministère des
Affaires municipales
et du Logement
Bureau du ministre
777, rue Bay, 17e étage
Toronto (Ontario) M7A 2J3
Tél. : 416 585-7000
-2-
As proposed, amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 would mean that the only
official plan matters that would require provincial approval in lower-tier municipalities in
the Regions of Durham and Waterloo as of January 1, 2025 and lower -tier
municipalities in the Region of Niagara as of March 31, 2025, would be:
1.New official plans;
2.Official plan amendments adopted in accordance with section 26 of the Planning
Act; and
3.Official plan amendments establishing, amending, or revoking any policies
required as part of a protected major transit station area in accordance
subsections 16 (15) or (16) of the Planning Act.
However, the province will retain the authority under the Planning Act to intervene
where necessary in order to ensure exempt official plan amendments are in accordance
with provincial policy.
In addition, decisions on land division, including both consents and plans of subdivision,
are automatically assigned to lower-tier municipalities in the Regions of Durham,
Waterloo, and Niagara following removal of the upper-tier municipality’s land use
planning responsibilities (see subsections 50 (1) and 51 (5.1) of the Planning Act, as
revised by Bill 23). To the extent the Regions were responsible for land division matters
prior to the removal of their planning responsibilities, subsections 70.13 (8) and (9) of
the Planning Act (also added by Bill 23) assign ongoing matters to the relevant lower-
tier municipality as well.
Request for Feedback
The Ministry is currently seeking feedback on proposed amendments to Ontario
Regulation 525/97 to take effect on January 1, 2025 and March 31, 2025. The proposed
amendments have been posted on the Regulatory Registry for 30 days, until December
5, 2024.
Comments can be sent through the Regulatory Registry postings or by email to
mmahofficialplans@ontario.ca
More information on the legislative proposal can be found on the Regulatory Registry at:
•Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to Exempt Certain Official
Plan Matters from Approval under the Planning Act
…/3
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I look forward to receiving your feedback on this proposal.
Sincerely,
Hon. Paul Calandra
Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing
cc. CAO, Mary-Anne Dempster
Regional Chair, John Henry
Regional CAO, Elaine Baxter-Trahair
Laurie Miller, Regional Director – Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing