HomeMy WebLinkAboutPSD-105-04
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REPORT
PLANNING SERVICES
Meeting:
GENERAL PURPOSE AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
Date:
Tuesday, September 7,2004
Report #:
PSD-105-04
File#: PLN 1.1.5.1, PLN 1.1,10
Ke6:#: (dJff'&s;l-6~f
By-law #:
Subject:
PLANNING REFORM INITIATIVES: CONSULTATION DISCUSSION PAPERS
ON PLANNING ACT REFORM AND IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS AND
PROVINCIAL POLICY STATEMENT
RECOMMENDATIONS:
It is respectfUlly recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee
recommend to Council the following:
1. THAT Report PSD-105-04 be received and endorsed as the Municipality's comments
on the Consultation Discussion Paper #1 on Planning Act Reform and Implementation
Tools and Consultation Discussion Paper #2 on the Provincial Policy Statement.
2. THAT Report PSD-105-04 be forwarded to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing
and the Region of Durham Planning Department.
SUbmitte4f:' -,
DaVid J. ro , MCIP, R. . .
. ' Director of lanning Services
R_byf2~ .
AJ anklin Wu,
/~. Chief Administrative Officer
FLlDJC/df
30 August 2004
CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOW MANVILLE. ONTARIO L 1 C 3A6 T (905)623-3379 F (905)623-0830
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REPORT NO.: PSD-105-04
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1.0 BACKGROUND
1.1 In June, 2004 the province released 3 discussion papers dealing with planning reform
for consultation. They include Planning Act Reform and Implementation Tools;
Provincial Policy Statement; and Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) Reform. Comments
were to be submitted by August 31, 2004.
1.2 The release of the 3 Planning Reform Consultation Discussion Papers on the land use
planning system is supported by other initiatives announced as part of the Province's
strong communities agenda. This includes the Strong Communities Act (Bill 26); the
Greenbelt Protection Act (Bill 27), which has led to the reports of the Greenbelt Task
Force. In addition, the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Renewal issued Places to Grow:
A Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe in the Summer of 2004 that provides
a long-term vision for growth.
1.3 The major issues that the three Planning Reform discussion papers attempt to address
are growth and growth management, especially in the GTAlGolden Horseshoe Area,
Source Water Protection and what the roles of local and provincial decision-making
should be. The three discussion papers propose to comprehensively bring together all
the reforms proposed by the govemment for land-use planning; as such, they cannot be
read in isolation from other discussion papers and proposed legislation currently under
consideration.
1.4 In preparing our comments, staff has attended the stakeholder sessions hosted by the
Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and other information meetings. Staff have
provided comments to the Region for their report (Attachment 1).
2.0 COMMENTS ON CONSULTATION PAPER #1
PLANNING ACT REFORM AND IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS
2.1 The Province should be commended for the initiatives it is undertaking across a number
of Ministries to address land-use planning and growth management. As a backdrop to
the issues raised under Consultation Discussion Paper #1 , the Province has introduced
initial changes to the Planning Act under Bill 26 as follows:
. Increased timeframes to review applications and make decisions on planning
applications.
. Requiring municipal decisions "to be consistent" with Provincial policy.
. Ensuring municipalities have the ability to determine their urban settlement
boundaries by limiting OMB appeals.
. Giving the province the authority to confirm, vary or rescind OMB decisions on
official plans and zoning by-laws.
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REPORT NO.: PSD-105-04
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2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6
2.7
Support for the Region of Durham's recommendations on Plannina Act Reform
and Implementation Tools.
The Regional staff report in Attachment 1 reflects a number of the comments provided
by our staff. The Municipality of Clarington generally supports the Region of Durham's
recommendations unless otherwise noted. This section of the report will not repeat
what has been stated by the Region in its report to the Province. The comments and
recommendations of the Municipality of Clarington set out below are intended to
reinforce and expand on the Region's recommendations and not to detract from them.
The province could take a lead role in improving research available to planners.
The province could take a lead role in improving the research available to land use
planners, either directly or indirectly through funding mechanisms to municipalities. For
instance updating the research on soil capabilities by ground truthing the existing
mapping would enhance the agricultural definitions. In addition, to truly determine
source protection much research is needed in determining how the hydro-geologic
features are recharging, especially in the Oak Ridges Moraine and Lake Iroquois
Shoreline.
Amendments to other legislation to address alternative standards.
Amendments to other legislation could address the alternative standards that the
Province is recommending. For example amendments to the Building Code to address
energy efficiency standards, sustainability (green roof technology), fire suppression and
more flexibility in renovation and re-use of heritage buildings would be beneficial.
Stronger tools to control phasing of growth.
The Province should provide municipalities with greater ability to determine the timing of
development through the efficient use of existing sunk infrastructure costs by limiting
challenges to the OMB on this issue.
Parkland Dedication Requirements should be increased to 8%.
The emphasis on intensification and infill in the emerging provincial policy, the
increasingly smaller lots and the need for linear corridors, bikeways and trails renders
the current requirement of 5% inadequate. Parkland requirements should be increased
to at least 8%, allowing for 5 % for active parkland and 3% for linear corridors.
Natural Heritage Features should be dedicated gratuitously in the development
process.
The Planning Act addresses the need for parkland but does not provide adequate
authority to municipalities to implement provincial direction with regard to the protection
of natural heritage features. In a number of instances, developers in Clarington have
refused to dedicate valleylands, wetlands or other sensitive features to a public
authority, in some cases simply to use as leverage in regard to future development.
Municipalities may not always prefer public ownership as the most effective mechanism
for preservation for some or all natural heritage features, however, there should be the
authority for municipalities to require such dedications should they determine that this is
the best means of preserving the natural heritage features or providing hazard
protection.
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REPORT NO.: PSD.105-04
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2.8 Improved powers through site plan and recognition of urban design guidelines in
the planning process.
Implementing the Province's agenda for compact urban form, infilling and intensification
will require municipalities to be increasingly sophisticated in developing and applying
urban design standards. This will be critical to address neighbourhood acceptance and
ensuring that high quality "urban" environments are created. The Planning Act should
recognize urban design plans and guidelines as part the planning process. Municipal
powers of site plan approval should provide for implementation of urban design
guidelines. Improvements to site plan authority should include:
. The clear ability to regulate features such the amount of architectural fenestration,
the articulation of buildings, the location of doors and architectural focal points as
determined through an approved urban design plan;
. In heritage areas, plans and drawing can include information on the colour, texture
and type of building materials and window details; and
. As a condition of site plan approval the Municipality can impose conditions to protect
the natural environment.
2.9 Amending Development Charges to permit a surcharge on Greenfield
development to fund incentives for intensification
A number of provincial documents have indicated implementation ideas to encourage
intensification and infilling through the provision of incentives, including the waiver or
reduction of development charges. Provision of such incentives can only be offered if
the Municipality is willing to assign a portion of growth-related costs to the tax base.
Rather than funding incentives from the existing tax base, the development charges
legislation should have a provision for a municipality to provide a surcharge on
greenfield development to fund incentives for brownfield and greyfield development.
This would not only provide a source for funding incentives but would be a strong
economic incentive for the development industry to undertake more complicated
process required for infill development and intensification.
3.0 COMMENTS ON CONSULTATION DISCUSSION PAPER #2
PROVINCIAL POLICY STATEMENT
3.1 The draft policies build on the framework of the existing Provincial Policy Statement
(PPS). The PPS establishes the provincial interest, from a policy perspective, in the
land use planning system in Ontario. The new policy directions have an increasing
emphasis on infill and intensification, protection of the natural heritage system and
natural resources and the protection of the health and safety of people from natural and
human-made hazards.
3.2. Generally we are in support of the Regional comments except for Section 3.27. -
communal servicing. The Regional stance on communal servicing systems stems from
a variety of development proposals seeking to use communal services to create rather
extensive developments in the rural areas and the potential liability for the Region to
assume these systems in the event of failure. The Region only supports communal
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REPORT NO.: PSD-105-04
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services to address health issues. This stance does not take into account the
improvements in technology in these systems. The type of system and mechanisms for
long term renewal of the system that need to be examined rather than an outright ban
through provincial policy.
3.3 Additional Comments
The following comments are provided as additional comments over and above those
provided by the Region's report on various sections of the Provincial Policy Statement
Efficient Development and Land Use Patterns for Employment, Residential and
Other Uses.
As noted above under the Planning Act, the PPS should reinforce the ability of
municipalities to determine the timing of development through the efficient use of
existing sunk infrastructure costs by limiting challenges to the OMB on this issue.
The PPS should endorse the MNR recommendation that minimum permeability and
maximum coverage of impervious surfaces for urban areas be implemented (12% is
recommended) to address ground water recharge and storm water management
objectives.
Housing
The PPS needs to clearly define Intensification and should take into account the
existing servicing capacity of an area.
Infrastructure
A clear definition of what waste is, what a product is, biosolids, compost and whether
the resulting materials (and combinations thereof) can be land applied and under what
restrictions has to be set out by MOE. The regulation of paper fibre biosolids and other
biosolids is beyond the implementation tools of land use zoning and needs to be
addressed in a comprehensive manner.
Agriculture
The PPS needs to address implementation tools for the protection of agricultural lands
while fairly compensating farmers. The recommendations of the GTA Agricultural Action
Plan, Beaubien Report and current discussions identify additional tools that could
enhance long term protection of the soil capability and microclimate that produce food.
Clarifying the definition and separating food production agricultural uses and other
forms of agriculture not dependant on the soil capability (such as sod farms, nurseries,
etc.) is important.
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4.0 CONCLUSION
The Province should be commended for its recent initiatives to improve the planning
system through these and other recently released discussion papers. The combination
of the 3 discussion papers shows the Province is serious about providing the
implementation tools, policies and provincial direction necessary to address planning
reform. We trust that our comments in combination with those from the Region will be
helpful to the Province in their efforts to manage growth and provide strong leadership
for municipalities.
Attachments:
Attachment 1 - Regional Planning Committee Report 2004-P-68
692
ATTACHMENT 1
The Regional Municipality of Durham
To: The Planning Committee
From: Commissioner of Planning
Report No.: 2004-P-68
Date: August 31, 2004
SUBJECT:
Provincial Planning Reform Initiatives: Consultation Discussion Papers on Planning Act
Reform and Implementation Tools; Provincial Policy Statement; and Ontario Municipal Board
Reform, File: L 14-27
RECOMMENDATIONS:
a) THAT Regional Council advise the Province of its general support of the planning
reform initiatives and offer the following comments on the Consultation Discussion
Papers:
· Planning reform should be integrated with other initiatives, such as Greenbelt
Protection and the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, to provide a
comprehensive and compelling long-term vision for the Provincial strong
communities initiative;
· While changes to the Planning Act will provide greater direction and tools to
municipalities, additional complementary actions are required to:
Expand the definition of "complete application";
Streamline environmental assessment and other provincial regulations to
expedite the delivery of infrastructure;
Allow the municipalities the ability to make decisions on applications
based on the latest provincial legislation and policies;
Provide funding, financial tools, and other resources, to enable
municipalities to effectively implement programs critical to the success of
the strong communities initiative;
Refine the implementation tools, such as community improvement plans,
development permit system, conditional zoning, and density bonusing;
· The policy directions in the PPS should be strengthened by addressing the
following:
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Provide clear definition on what constitutes an acceptable level of
"intensification" and "redevelopment", including development guidelines
and measurable performance standards to assist with implementation;
Develop separate and distinct provincial planning policies for the high-
growth areas, such as the Greater Golden Horseshoe;
Provide strong direction to maintain a sufficient long-term supply of
employment lands;
Include effective policies requiring minimum affordable housing targets for
low and moderate income households;
Strengthen the policies for sewage/water and transportation systems
based on designated growth areas and the staging of infrastructure and
incorporate new policies to address the provision of human services;
Clarify priorities among the various policy areas in the PPS, especially
between aggregate resources and natural heritage, and between
agriculture and settlement areas; and
. The recommendations of the GT A Task Force on Ontario Municipal Board
(OMB) Reform should be adopted to redefine the role and function of the
Board. Administrative changes that assist in decision making and provide a
more user friendly OMB are supported.
b) THAT the Province consider the above comments in conjunction with previous
submissions of the Region on Bill 26, the Strong Communities Act, Bill 27, the
Greenbelt Protection Act, Smart Growth, Brownfields, the draft Drinking Water
Source Protection Act, the GTA Agricultural Action Plan and OMB reform; and
c) THAT a copy of Commissioner's Report No. 2004-P-68 be forwarded to the Minister
of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Minister of Public Infrastructure Renewal, and
the area municipalities in Durham.
REPORT:
1. PURPOSE
1.1 The purpose of this report is to review and comment on the recent Provincial
planning reform initiatives embodied in its Consultation Discussion Papers and make
recommendations to Council for submission to the Province.
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2. BACKGROUND
2.1 On June 1, 2004, the province released three consultation papers dealing with
planning reform. They include: Planning Act Reform and Implementation Tools;
Provincial Policy Statement; and Ontario Municipal Board Reform. Comments are
required by August 31,2004.
2.2 The release of the three Planning Reform Consultation Discussion Papers on the
land use planning system, together with other initiatives announced, form part of the
Province's strong communities agenda. These initiatives include:
. Bill 26, the Strong Communities Act,
· Bill 27, the Greenbelt Protection Act and the appointment of the Greenbelt Task
Force,
· A Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, and
. Source Water Protection.
The Region has commented on these initiatives through the following
Commissioners' Reports: CR 2004-P-7, CR 2004-P-20, CR 2004-P-60 and 2004-
COW-03. The comments from these reports should be considered in conjunction
with the comments contained in this report.
Consultation
2.3 Following the release of the Consultation Discussion Papers, Regional Planning staff
attended workshop and information sessions hosted by the Province; convened a
meeting of planning staff from the area municipalities; and solicited comments from
the Durham Agricultural Advisory Committee (DAAC) and the Durham
Environmental Advisory Committee (D-EAC). More specifically:
· On June 15, 2004, staff participated in a Planning Reform stakeholder session
hosted by the Province in Toronto;
· On June 24, 2004, staff attended and participated in a Provincial Information
Session held in the City of Pickering;
· On August 9, 2004, staff met with planning staff/consultants from the area
municipalities; and
· DAAC and D-EAC also provided input on the Discussion Papers.
The Region's position has considered and incorporated the comments and
suggestions received from the staff of area municipalities and the Advisory
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Committees. The report was prepared in consultation with the Finance, Works and
Social Services Departments.
3. COMMENTS
PLANNING ACT REFORM AND IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS: DISCUSSION
PAPER #1
3.1 Discussion Paper #1 requests input on changes already proposed to the Planning
Act through Bill 26, other ideas for further reform of the Act and potential
implementation tools.
Proposed changes in Bill 26
3.2 Regional Council, at its meeting of February 19, 2004, endorsed general support for
the proposed changes to the Planning Act contained in Bill 26, as they related to:
· requiring all planning decisions to "be consistent with" the PPS, instead of the
current "have regard to";
· eliminating appeals to the Ontario Municipal Board when the municipality does
not support an urban boundary expansion provided public bodies retain their
current rights to appeal the decisions of area or regional municipalities on
requests for urban boundary expansion;
increasing time periods for municipal review of applications; and
· empowering the Minister of Municipal Affairs & Housing to identify matters of
Provincial interest on matters before the Ontario Municipal Board.
Ideas for further reform
3.3 Discussion Paper #1 requested input on a series of possible areas for further
change. The following comments are provided on the changes required to:
· expand the definition of "complete application";
· define the scope of Official Plan Reviews;
· streamline the Environmental Assessment process;
· decide on applications based on current legislation and policies; and
· provide municipalities with enhanced financial tools.
3.4 A "complete application" must include the technical studies necessary to assess the
merits of the changes requested by the applicant, and provide the municipality with
sufficient information to fully assess the application with respect to Official Plan
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policy and matters of Provincial interest. The Planning Act should contain provisions,
which provide for:
. municipalities to define what is required to constitute a complete submission in
their Official Plans or by by-laws;
. additional technical studies based on findings/consultation determined during
the processing of applications or amendments to plans;
. flexibility to exempt non-complex applications and amendments from certain
studies;
. comprehensive and mandatory pre-consultation as part of the application
process and to determine precisely what constitutes a complete application;
. applicants to pay the costs of peer reviews of supporting technical reports
required by municipalities; and
. specifying that the time frame for processing an application would only
commence, once an application is complete.
3.5 A requirement to prescribe the mandatory contents of an official plan is not
warranted. The opportunity to develop an official plan based on local context and
community input should be encouraged, while matters of Provincial interest can be
assured through consideration of the PPS during the consultation process. There is
also no need to change the current five year requirement to a more frequent official
plan review, since such comprehensive reviews are lengthy and time-consuming
and require significant resources.
3.6 A streamlined and integrated planning and environmental assessment (EA) process
will implement growth management policies in a more efficient and timely manner. A
comprehensive official plan process provides the sound basis for infrastructure
projects and should be deemed to comply with the need requirements of an EA.
Specifically, the Class EA process should be amended to recognize projects dealt
with through a comprehensive planning process (such as a secondary plan) as
having achieved their Phase 2 approval status. Consideration should be made to
exempt all major infrastructure projects within priority urban growth areas, such as
transit projects on existing rights-of-way, from a full EA. We note that in April of this
year, the Minister of Environment has established a Task Force to examine and
streamline the EA process. 6 9 7
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Page No. 12
3.7 The Planning Act should give municipalities the ability to assess the merits of a
planning application, based on the most up-to-date approved Provincial legislation
and policies. The emphasis should be placed on current legislation and policies at
the time of decision-making, not on outdated policies in effect when the application is
made. Some area municipal staff would prefer a more stable policy context, where
applications are considered under the legislative policies in effect at the time the
application was filed.
3.8 In conjunction with Planning Act reform, the Province must arm municipalities with
enhanced financial programs geared to sustain development and revitalization within
nodes and corridors, build higher order transit infrastructure, while increasing the
supply of affordable housing. Regional Council has previously endorsed the need
for a much broader growth management approach that must also put emphasis on
"tools to implement" existing official plans. Examples of enhanced
provincial/municipal program support were detailed in Commissioner's Reports
2003-P-36 and 2004-P-26.
Implementation Tools to Better Achieve Planning Objectives
3.9 Additional and more flexible planning tools (Le. conditional zoning, development
permit system, Community Improvement Plans, density bonusing) which assist
municipalities and support intensification and redevelopment are supported.
Municipalities should have the flexibility to determine which tools work best, based
on local conditions.
3.10 To effectively utilize the Implementation Planning Tools, the Province is requested
to:
· Allow upper-tier municipalities to participate jointly with the local municipalities
in Community Improvement Plans by providing incentives to private property
owners to improve their properties. Regional Council is already on record
requesting this change;
· Make a development permit system available Province-wide for use in targeted
areas to stimulate development or to facilitate matters of public interest by
offering a streamlined approval process. Consideration should be given to
permitting municipalities to exercise architectural control in accordance with
approved streetscape master plans;
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· Include matters of Regional interest such as noise attenuation for Regional
roads, site decontamination and adequacy of infrastructure, and human
services as considerations of conditional zoning;
· Allow the use of density bonusing to encourage developments that provide
essential public services, such as daycare facilities and community centres;
and
· Give Regiona/ Municipalities the right of appeal on site plan applications to
acquire land dedication for the widening of Regiona/ roads. Stronger provisions
for site plan/urban design controls are required by local municipalities to
support intill, redevelopment, intensification and community livability.
Enhancements to the ability of municipalities to deal with off site matters such
as lighting, turning lanes and sight/ines are also required.
PROVINCIAL POLICY STATEMENT: CONSULTATION DISCUSSION PAPER #2
3.11 The Draft Policies of the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) builds on the framework of
the existing PPS. It provides policies complementary to the Planning Act by setting out
matters of provincial interest in land use planning. The draft policies of the PPS are
reflected in the current Regional Official Plan and the proposed directions outlined in the
Region's Official Plan Review Discussion Papers. The draft PPS also incorporates
many of the comments in the Region's submission on the five-year review of the PPS,
contained in Commissioner's Report No. 2001-P-84. The proposed new policy
directions of the PPS are intended to build strong, livable and healthy communities by
promoting infill and intensification; protecting the environment and resources such as
water, greenspace, agricultural lands and cultural heritage; and protecting the long-term
health and safety of the population from natural and human-made hazards.
Efficient Settlement Patterns
3.12 The draft policies direct growth to settlement areas and provide the following policies to
focus development:
· Opportunities in built up areas within settlement areas should be utilized through
intensification and redevelopment before extending development into greenfield
areas;
· Urban boundary expansions will only be permitted at the time of a
comprehensive review, as defined in the policy;
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. Urban boundary expansions will only be permitted where it is demonstrated that
the infrastructure and public service facilities (including human service facilities)
which are planned or available are suitable for the development; and
. Urban boundary expansions are permitted in prime agricultural areas where
there are no reasonable alternatives.
3.13 The general policy direction in the PPS on how to define and alter settlement areas
boundaries is supported. The PPS should include clear policies on what constitutes
an acceptable level of "intensification" and "redevelopment", as well as establish
development guidelines and measurable performance standards to assist with
implementation. Such policies and guidelines should be structured to accommodate
communities of varying sizes and/or densities. Some area municipal staff have
concerns with applying further development criteria to all greenfield development
within designated urban areas. They also indicated that there should be a
recognition that the realization of intensification and redevelopment will only occur
over time.
3.14 The draft policies on intensification and redevelopment should be strengthened by
specifying the types of Provincial programs or incentives that will support this
initiative, and assist municipalities in implementation.
3.15 To co-ordinate efficient development of priority growth areas, PPS should provide
separate and distinct policies relating to jobs, housing, transit and other
infrastructure for high growth areas such as the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Such
policies should encourage the establishment of centres and corridors as key urban
structural elements.
Efficient Development and Land Use Patterns for Employment, Residential and
Other Uses
3.16 To achieve efficient development and land use patterns, the draft PPS directs that
land requirements and land use patterns are to be based on the provision of
sufficient land for employment opportunities; and an appropriate range and mix of
housing. Growth projections should be based on a time horizon of up to 20 years or
for a longer period for specific areas of the Province.
3.17 While a 20 to 30 year time horizon is appropriate for determining land requirement
and urban expansion, the PPS should be amended to promote the analyses of land
use pattern and infrastructure requirementl'l b~f~l?pn a 50-year time horizon for the
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Page No. 15
Greater Golden Horseshoe. The PPS should also require phasing policies to ensure
the orderly progression of development, within the designated urban areas.
3.18 In setting the planning horizon for the provision of sufficient land, recognition and
special treatment must be given to matured and maturing communities where the
supply of raw lands is limited or exhausted.
3.19 New policies and implementation tools are needed to ensure the long-term stability
of employment areas. Designating and preserving these areas and protecting them
from non-compatible uses should be a priority. In this regard, the conversion of land
uses on individual sites from employment to residential use, on a site by site or
incremental basis, should be strictly controlled or prohibited. The PPS needs to
provide strong direction to maintain a sufficient long-term supply of employment
lands.
3.20 The draft PPS relies on official plans as the primary vehicle for its implementation.
As well, the PPS advocates the use of performance indicators to measure the
effectiveness of the implementation. Both of these directions are supported.
Co-ordination Within and Between Municipalities
3.21 The PPS proposes to address growth management matters which cross municipal
boundaries by using a coordinated, integrated and comprehensive approach. The
proposed PPS clarifies that upper-tiers, in consultation with the lower-tier
municipalities be responsible for key planning functions which include:
. Identify priority growth areas and co-ordinate and allocate population, housing
and employment projects for lower tier municipalities;
. Identify targets for intensification and redevelopment including minimum targets
that should be met before alteration to the urban growth boundaries is permitted;
and
. Identify minimum densities for transit corridors and other significant corridors and
areas including minimum densities that should be met before alteration to urban
growth boundaries is permitted.
3.22
The continued role of the upper-tier governments in setting land supply and housing
targets and providing policy directions in consultation with the lower-tier
governments is supported.
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Housing
3.23 The draft policies place greater priority on increasing housing supply through
residential intensification and redevelopment, before consideration is given to
expanding urban boundaries or designated growth areas. The PPS directs all
planning authorities to maintain a minimum of 10 years of residential growth. A
minimum three-year supply of residential land with servicing capacity in draft
approved and registered plans or in lands suitably zoned for residential
intensification and redevelopment is also required.
3.24 The term "full range of housing" needs to be explicitly defined to include tenure, i.e.
rental and ownership housing. There needs to be a strong provincial position
confirming the importance of rental housing, and in particular, affordable rental
housing. The PPS should emphasize the need to promote new rental and protect
existing rental housing from demolition and conversion to other uses, as well as
support various rental types such as emergency, supportive and transitional
housing, second suites and rooming houses. In this regard, the draft policies
requiring minimum affordable housing targets for low and moderate income
households, is supported.
Infrastructure
3.25 The proposed PPS requires planning authorities to provide a comprehensive,
integrated and long-term approach to planning for municipal sewage and water
services, and transportation systems. Intensification and redevelopment will be
promoted in planning for municipal sewage and water systems. As well, planning for
transportation should promote a land use pattern, density and mix that reduces the
length and number of vehicular trips, and creates viable choices for public transit.
3.26 Under both Sewage and Water Systems and Transportation System, the reference
to a long-term approach in the PPS should be based on a 50 year time horizon or a
"mature state" of development. This could afford the opportunity to plan for
infrastructure well in advance of need. Infrastructure planning should support
designated growth areas and staging of development.
3.27 In line with the Region's position on communal servicing systems, which prohibits
the use of such services, except for justified health reasons, the draft PPS should
not promote private communal servicing systems. This also becomes relevant in
light of new directions and requirements of The Safe Drinking Water Act and the
potential municipal responsibility and liability that accompany them.
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3.28 The PPS needs to provide stronger policies to support municipal efforts on waste
management, including support for alternatives to traditional methods of waste
disposal and objectives for waste reduction.
3.29 Provincial interest should go beyond physical land use and the provision of hard
services, to recognize that human services need to be provided to accommodate a
diverse and growing population. Particularly, attention to planning for public facilities
and services such as schools, health care facilities, emergency services and
recreation and cultural facilities, is essential and should be addressed in the PPS.
These are key components of a strong community and will be critical to maintaining
a high quality of life in conjunction with efforts to intensify development.
Natural Heritage
3.30 Development will generally be directed away from natural heritage features and
areas. It is permitted on adjacent lands only when an ecological evaluation has been
conducted, and it has been demonstrated that there will be no negative impacts on
the natural features or ecological functions of the area.
3.31 The natural heritage policies should be strengthened by promoting the concept of a
"systems approach" to define the natural heritage features. This provides
municipalities with greater ability to take into account the function and connectivity of
the core natural areas, including woodlands, valleylands, wildlife habitat and ANSI's,
with buffers and linkages.
3.32 The draft PPS should provide clarity on provincial priorities among the various policy
areas i.e. natural heritage features vis-a-vis agricultural lands and mineral
aggregates.
Water
3.33 The proposed PPS expands the policies protecting water. Planning authorities are
directed to provide for a comprehensive, integrated and long-term approach for the
protection, improvement and restoration of the quality and quantity of water by;
utilizing the watershed as the ecologically meaningful scale for planning; and
identifying surface and ground water features, hydrologic functions and natural
heritage features. Development and site alteration will be restricted near sensitive
surface and ground water features.
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3.34 This section of the PPS is strongly supported. Detailed implementation guidelines
integrated with requirements of the anticipated source water protection legislation
would greatly enhance its application.
Agriculture
3.35 The proposed policies direct that prime agricultural areas will be protected for long-
term agricultural use. In prime agricultural areas, agricultural uses, secondary uses
and agriculture-related uses are permitted. The draft policies would eliminate the
creation of new lots for farm retirement, residences surplus to farm operations and
residential infilling.
3.36 The Province needs to consider the economic viability of agricultural operations in
the planning of rural areas, while affording a higher level of protection for farmland.
The current practice of using the soils classification under the Canada Land
Inventory should be augmented. An alternative evaluation system for identifying
prime agricultural areas that takes into account additional criteria such as capital
investment, should be further developed.
3.37 Within the Greater Golden Horseshoe, the protection of prime agricultural areas
should be undertaken within the context of establishing the permanent Greenbelt.
The recommendations of the GT A Agricultural Action Plan, endorsed by Regional
Council, provide guidance for agricultural land protection and advancing farming as
an industry, and thus should be incorporated in the PPS.
3.38 The DAAC indicated specialty crop areas should be provided the same level of
protection as prime agricultural areas, where alterations to settlement area
boundaries are being considered. As well, specialty crops protection should be
considered and based on the potential of the land production, not the current land
use. Both the DAAC and D-EAC suggest the Province needs to consider the
importance of buffers to protect farmland.
Mineral Aggregates
3.39
The proposed policies direct that the mineral aggregate resource be made available
as close to market as possible. Demonstration of the need for mineral aggregate
resources, including any type of supply/demand analysis, will not be required by the
PPS. However, extraction is still required to minimize social and environmental
costs.
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3.40 Additional policies in the PPS and detailed implementation guidelines should be
included to properly assess the feasibility of new extraction operations, conduct
analyses of social and environmental impacts, and balance resource need against
other Provincial interests. Additional policies, such as those recommended by the
Greenbelt Task Force, are needed to strengthen the requirement for timely
progressive rehabilitation of extraction areas.
ONTARIO MUNICIPAL BOARD REFORM: CONSULTATION DISCUSSION
PAPER #3
3.41 The OMB discussion paper builds upon reforms introduced by Bill 26, focusing on the
role and administrative process of the Board. The discussion paper confirms that any
reform to the role and mandate of the Board is governed by the Planning Act and the
Ontario Municipal Board Act. However, no direction or recommendations are provided
in the discussion paper.
3.42 An effective and efficient dispute resolution mechanism is a key component of the
planning system. The appeal mechanism ensures the appropriateness of decisions
relative to provincial and municipal planning policies. The OMB is a necessity,
however, its role must be updated and the administrative performance and
responsiveness of the Board must also be improved.
3.43 On March 26, 2003, Regional Council endorsed the recommendations of the GT A
Task Force on OMB Reform through Commissioner's Report No. 2003-P-35, as
follows:
il update the role of the Ontario Municipal Board as a true appeal body;
iil enable timely municipal planning decisions based on complete information;
iiil support citizen participation with limited intervenor funding; and
ivl promote a fair and independent appeal body with 6-year terms.
3.44 The Task Force made recommendations to strengthen municipal decision-making
and reduce the cost of hearings, by establishing a 2 stage appeal process. The role
of the OMB would be changed to an appellate body, where "de novo" hearings
would be limited through the use of a "leave to appeal" mechanism, and only occur
where the Board finds an unreasonable decision has been made by applying a
specific test.
3.45 The Task Force recommendations also addressed administrative improvements to
the Board. The recommendations promote the independence of the Board by
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addressing the qualifications and recruitment process. Specific measures such as a
multi-stakeholder panel to screen candidates and a probationary period for Board
members were also included.
3.46 Initiatives that would improve decision-making at the OMB, are supported. These
would include decision writing standards, on-going education and training and
measures to encourage professional development. The introduction of a standard
decision format and a clear articulation of how provincial and municipal policies were
applied in arriving at a decision, would serve to achieve greater consistency.
Updating Board policies in these areas would improve the quality and consistency of
decisions and the ability of Board members to issue decisions in an expeditious
matter.
3.47 Measures to increase the OMB's accessibility to the public should be undertaken.
Public participation in the OMB process should be improved through enhanced case
management, dispute resolution and mediation functions. Allocating additional
resources in the form of advisors to help citizens understand and participate in the
process would be a step in the right direction. The public's understanding of the
Board would also be improved by increasing the level of information about the Board
that is publicly available in both written and electronic forms.
4. CONCLUSION
4.1 The Province should be commended for its recent initiatives to improve the planning
system by reviewing the planning process, examining implementation tools,
releasing the draft policies of the Provincial Policy Statement and reviewing the role
and functions of the Ontario Municipal Board. The combination of three Consultation
Discussion Papers demonstrates that the Province recognizes the linkages and
coordinated actions required to address planning reform. The comments included in
this report, as well as previous submissions by the Region on related planning
issues, are provided to the Province to assist their efforts to secure strong
communities.
A.L. Georgieff, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.
Commissioner of Planning
H:\ 1-2\agendas\2004\08-31-04\Planning Refonn-Final.DOC
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RECOMMENDED FOR PRESENTATION TO COMMITTEE
Garry H. Cubitt, M.S.w.
Chief Administrative Officer