Agenda
[5:23]
CALL TO ORDER
[6:20]
INDIGENOUS LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT
[7:05]
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
[9:59]
DISCLOSURE OF PECUNIARY INTEREST
[10:02]
CONSENT AGENDA
[52:26]
DELEGATIONS
[13:15]
Request to Partner with the Town of Caledon to Build Affordable Homes
[1:13:37]
Staff Report 2025-0006: Boundary Highway Agreement Town of Caledon and City of Vaughan
[1:13:39]
Staff Report 2025-0007: Boundary Agreement Town of Caledon and Township of East Garafaxa
[1:13:42]
Staff Report 2025-0015: RZ 2024-0025 Broccolini ZBA Holding Symbol
[1:25:17]
Staff Report 2025-0026: Proposed Traffic Safety Advisory Committee
[1:28:01]
Councillor Russo - To Approve a Draft Plan of Subdivision submitted by Malone Given Parsons for Brooke Valley Development
[2:11:40]
Township of Puslinch Re: Enabling Greater Beneficial Reuse Excess Soil
[2:15:25]
ADJOURNMENT
Transcript
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[1:00:02]
to see this. And secondly,
[1:00:07]
the. The. Pardon me,
[1:00:10]
I'm sorry, but I wouldn't be rude to interrupt any other delegation.
[1:00:14]
Please, just. So, Councillor Russo,
[1:00:17]
I support this motion. Okay.
[1:00:22]
Our goal is. You know,
[1:00:25]
I'm surprised. I really am surprised. What's going on here?
[1:00:29]
Further, the last thing I'm going to say is this.
[1:00:32]
Councillor DeBoer, you declared a conflict with this, and you're sitting at this
[1:00:36]
table. And I really disappoints me that this is happening.
[1:00:39]
So. You know, this is the third time I've. I've brought this to your attention
[1:00:43]
publicly. And maybe further action is going to need to
[1:00:47]
be taken in the future. Thank you, Councillor Russo. And chair and council.
[1:00:51]
Thank you, Ms. Briyoshi. I don't see any questions.
[1:00:55]
Moving on to the next delegate, I will now call upon Ms.
[1:00:58]
Cheryl Connors to speak to the same agenda, item 12.1.
[1:01:02]
Council Russo to approve draft plan of subdivision submitted by Malone
[1:01:06]
Given Parsons for Brook Valley Development. Hang on.
[1:01:10]
Sorry. Whoops. Didn't mean to do that. Stop. My phone.
[1:01:14]
Hang on. Sorry about that. Hello. Sorry about that. So,
[1:01:17]
first of all, I just want to say again, planning meetings in the afternoon on
[1:01:20]
really important topics are very difficult. Sorry, just your name for the resume.
[1:01:24]
Cheryl Connors. And I'm just here as a resident, not representing anyone but my.
[1:01:28]
Myself. So first of all, I want to say again,
[1:01:31]
planning meetings on such important topics in the middle of the day are really
[1:01:35]
inconvenient for those of us who work. This all was brought to
[1:01:39]
my attention at the very last meeting. I have nothing prepared. I'm not reading a
[1:01:42]
speech. But this is an issue I've delegated on before. Sorry, this is a development
[1:01:46]
I've delegated on before. So I felt really compelled to hop
[1:01:49]
in the shower. Don't even know if I'm dressed. Race over here to speak to
[1:01:53]
it. So a few things.
[1:01:56]
When this came up the first time, when the MZO was requested,
[1:02:00]
and at the 11th hour,
[1:02:03]
the province informed Calden that
[1:02:06]
the Greenbelt lands would be removed from the application and that MZO
[1:02:10]
never went ahead because then the Greenbelt scandal broke and it's
[1:02:14]
all under investigation from the rcmp.
[1:02:18]
And all of that. But at the time at the public
[1:02:21]
information meeting, I did have the environmental site assessment and
[1:02:24]
spoke about my deep concerns about the greenbelt
[1:02:28]
land and how and how and
[1:02:32]
how important those lands are and that we should be doing our best when developing
[1:02:36]
to make sure that they're protected.
[1:02:39]
So that's a significant wetland at
[1:02:43]
the south end of the property. There was unevaluated wetlands
[1:02:47]
and you know, somebody needs to
[1:02:51]
speak out. What I don't understand, my concerns
[1:02:54]
are all about process. When the 12
[1:02:58]
zoning orders were approved, we were told, I mean, one of my big
[1:03:01]
concerns was the public would be cut out of the process. We're not going to
[1:03:04]
have a voice in what our communities look like. But we were assured
[1:03:08]
that the community would be able to be involved when these subdivisions
[1:03:12]
came forward and that we would have a voice. But here, once again,
[1:03:16]
a subdivision is being approved and there's not even a staff report and staff
[1:03:20]
making the recommendation for it to go ahead. So once again,
[1:03:24]
the public isn't being doesn't get the opportunity
[1:03:28]
to go ahead. This particular plot of land does
[1:03:32]
include greenbelt. My really quick look at it looks
[1:03:36]
like there are houses going through that. The wetlands in
[1:03:39]
the north part are being looked at. I don't really know because I don't see
[1:03:43]
a staff report. I emailed you this morning. I guess you didn't get the email.
[1:03:47]
I don't see the linkages to the website. I don't
[1:03:50]
see, you know, if there's comments from conservation
[1:03:55]
authorities as to how that important greenbelt
[1:03:59]
land is going to be protected.
[1:04:02]
And that's the problem and that's how the public is being cut out of the
[1:04:05]
process. These are precedent setting cases
[1:04:09]
that if you do this for one subdivision and one particular developer,
[1:04:13]
then why wouldn't every developer not do the same thing?
[1:04:18]
And if the purpose of pre zoning land for developers is just to
[1:04:21]
avoid land tribunal costs, does that mean we're
[1:04:24]
just going to skip the planning department? And then we just may as well
[1:04:28]
tell all our highly paid planners that
[1:04:32]
their services aren't needed because to the best of my knowledge,
[1:04:36]
members of council aren't planners. You don't have
[1:04:39]
planning degrees, not your responsibility to understand
[1:04:43]
the technical requirements of a subdivision.
[1:04:46]
And then going back to what may be the purpose of all
[1:04:49]
of this, you know, housing crisis attainable,
[1:04:53]
housing affordable, whatever that that means.
[1:04:57]
I still don't believe that expediting this is going
[1:05:01]
to do anything to make those houses built any
[1:05:05]
faster. And let's just look at what is going on in the world
[1:05:09]
right now. We have the potential for 30% tariffs from Trump.
[1:05:13]
You know, most of LA just burned to the ground. They didn't have a lot
[1:05:16]
of water. Canada has water and we have water in our green
[1:05:19]
belt. And as ontarians, we decided
[1:05:22]
the green belt was important to protect.
[1:05:25]
So if you feel the need to develop on these lands, let's at least
[1:05:29]
do so carefully, cautiously to
[1:05:32]
assess to ensure that as
[1:05:36]
much of the greenbelt land will be protected, that the development that you're building
[1:05:41]
isn't, isn't going to be damaged by what you're doing.
[1:05:45]
And I still haven't seen any fiscal plans and how
[1:05:48]
the burden of this infrastructure isn't going to be borne on
[1:05:52]
the existing taxpayers. Because I'm telling you, we are
[1:05:56]
in trouble. If those tariffs go in
[1:06:00]
and you go to the grocery store, it might cost you $20 for,
[1:06:03]
for that lettuce or broccoli or cauliflower.
[1:06:07]
Long term planning could be all thrown out the door.
[1:06:12]
So why are we rushing to do this?
[1:06:17]
I don't believe a motion from a councilor to
[1:06:20]
approve a subdivision without that going through the normal
[1:06:24]
process of going through staff, coming after a recommendation
[1:06:28]
of staff, as all the highly paid planning folks
[1:06:32]
have made a decision and brought it forward to staff with their recommendation
[1:06:36]
that you look for that. That's the process that we
[1:06:41]
work under. And it's like Calden has just decided that
[1:06:44]
all of the decades of planning in
[1:06:48]
this province, all of the legislation, all of the processes,
[1:06:52]
while imperfect, just don't matter anymore
[1:06:55]
because we're just going to do this developer driven planning
[1:07:01]
which isn't going to build good communities.
[1:07:05]
So that's really all
[1:07:08]
I had to say. I just am really disappointed that this is
[1:07:12]
once again how
[1:07:15]
you feel that you need to do this. I don't understand why
[1:07:20]
a council representing Wards 4,
[1:07:23]
5 and 6 is bringing this forward in Ward 2.
[1:07:26]
I think you have lots of issues on our side of town that should be
[1:07:30]
looked at. I think this should be coming through from a
[1:07:33]
recommendation from planning staff. And I'd like to once again
[1:07:37]
ask for a full, transparent process where the public does
[1:07:41]
get the opportunity to view what's
[1:07:45]
happening, make suggestions for improvement,
[1:07:48]
because that builds better communities and it assures that council makes
[1:07:53]
decisions based on the best advice of the people
[1:07:56]
that have been hired in this town and that it's done so in a fiscally
[1:08:00]
responsible way that isn't going to be put the burden of paying
[1:08:03]
for all this development on the backs of existing residents.
[1:08:07]
Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Connors.
[1:08:12]
Moving on. I believe that's all the delegates. Moving on
[1:08:16]
to staff reports, the next item on the
[1:08:19]
agenda we have had. Two of the items were
[1:08:23]
dealt with in consent. Moving on to
[1:08:27]
Staff Report 10.3. Staff Report
[1:08:31]
20250015 RZ2024 0025.
[1:08:36]
Broccolini ZBA holding
[1:08:40]
symbol. May I get a mover or a seconder on that? Moved by
[1:08:43]
Councilor Sheen, seconded by counselor early that
[1:08:48]
the bylaw attached. Is there any discussion on this? Seeing none
[1:08:53]
that the bylaw attached as schedule C to
[1:08:56]
Staff Report 20250015 be
[1:09:00]
enacted to amend Comprehensive Zoning Bylaw 200650
[1:09:07]
as amended to remove site specific holding
[1:09:10]
symbol H34 from specific
[1:09:14]
lands which per. Will permit the intended development of
[1:09:17]
the property for industrial purposes.
[1:09:21]
Are there any questions on the motion? I see. Councilor Sheen.
[1:09:26]
Thank you. Chair Russo. Can I just ask staff to very briefly talk
[1:09:32]
about why we're in a position to remove the H on these properties?
[1:09:36]
I. I think I know the answer, but I just want to button it up
[1:09:39]
for the public through
[1:09:46]
the chair to the councilor. I'm going to just step in with a little
[1:09:49]
bit of how we got here today and then Mr.
[1:09:52]
Hughes can get into a little more of the detail. This goes
[1:09:56]
back to council in December where delegated Authority
[1:10:00]
for lifting Hs was pulled back from staff to
[1:10:04]
give to council. So we. What we did here today was actually rush to get
[1:10:07]
a report because we wanted to ensure that development could proceed on this property.
[1:10:11]
So that's some of the context that I wanted to offer. And Mr. Hughes will.
[1:10:15]
Will provide a little more detail. That's good. Thank you,
[1:10:19]
Mr. Hughes. Thank you. So through the chair,
[1:10:23]
perhaps as council may be aware, staff have been reviewing
[1:10:28]
associated development applications that speak to land
[1:10:32]
uses that are permitted on these lands. Going back
[1:10:36]
to the zoning matter,
[1:10:39]
as noted through the delegation, this was dealt with through the Ontario Lands
[1:10:43]
Tribunal. And at that time it was highly
[1:10:47]
desirous of staff to. Excuse me, ensure that
[1:10:51]
the road extending out to Heartlake Road be
[1:10:56]
constructed and opened. So in working with the
[1:11:00]
developer, the holding symbol that
[1:11:04]
was incorporated within the zoning and approved on the property
[1:11:07]
through the OLT prescribed that certain
[1:11:11]
matters take place. That in the end, and that
[1:11:14]
was through subdivision agreements and other associated documents,
[1:11:18]
staff had some level of understanding and concern control as
[1:11:22]
to how that would transpire. And I think, as the committee
[1:11:26]
may be aware, we were successful in ensuring
[1:11:30]
that construction was commenced.
[1:11:33]
And that is happening at this point in time.
[1:11:36]
In terms of a brief update on the opening of that road I
[1:11:40]
did speak to engineering staff just prior to this meeting
[1:11:43]
and they've indicated that the hope is that that
[1:11:47]
road will be open in the early to
[1:11:51]
mid spring of this year.
[1:11:53]
There's matters that they've been working with the region,
[1:11:57]
appeal for some pavement and lighting,
[1:12:01]
and those are the next things that need to be dealt with in the season,
[1:12:04]
of course, doesn't assist for construction purposes.
[1:12:08]
So work is continuing to progress on
[1:12:11]
that road because the associated
[1:12:15]
agreements and all those types of things have been dealt with.
[1:12:18]
Engineering staff have signed off on the release of the holding.
[1:12:22]
Staff were comfortable in bringing forward a report to council for
[1:12:26]
their consideration that removes that holding.
[1:12:29]
The lands are still subject to site plan approval or
[1:12:33]
are subject to site plan approval. There is an application that has been filed.
[1:12:37]
My understanding from the applicant is that they're probably going to resubmit
[1:12:40]
an application and move through those processes
[1:12:44]
in the near future, for which then we will be addressing some
[1:12:48]
of the matters that the delegate did raise
[1:12:53]
that speak to access, landscaping,
[1:12:57]
compatibility with some of the surrounding land uses and those types of
[1:13:00]
things. Okay, so it's fair
[1:13:03]
to say that there's been some extended negotiations with
[1:13:07]
the developer around this area,
[1:13:10]
and as I recall,
[1:13:14]
approval for this subdivision, I guess, was highly contingent on
[1:13:18]
completing Abbotside way out to Heartlake, is that right?
[1:13:21]
I would suggest that's correct, yes. So through those OLT processes,
[1:13:26]
staff worked diligently to ensure agreements
[1:13:30]
were in place and would suggest that we're
[1:13:33]
now seeing the fulfillment of that. Right.
[1:13:37]
As I recall, it was a painstaking process and probably the first
[1:13:41]
time I was ever involved in something that looked so
[1:13:45]
simple, yet seemed to take so much work from staff and the developer to
[1:13:49]
get it done. So I just want to give
[1:13:53]
thanks to the staff and to the developer because
[1:13:57]
I believe they started construction on that road finally in August and
[1:14:01]
said they would get it done by the end of December. And from all intents
[1:14:04]
and purposes, for me anyway, looking over the barriers,
[1:14:08]
it looks done to me. I understand there's a bit of a holdup with
[1:14:11]
respect to hydro and that some other landscaping planning
[1:14:15]
was going to happen in the new year anyway. First time I'm
[1:14:19]
hearing that the scheduled opening is early spring.
[1:14:22]
Hopefully that can be sooner than later, but nevertheless,
[1:14:26]
we're way further ahead than I really thought we'd be. When I heard it would
[1:14:30]
be done in August or when I was first told it would be done by
[1:14:33]
the end of December, I was a little skeptical, but it looks done to me.
[1:14:36]
So, anyway, thanks very much for all your work. Thank you.
[1:14:39]
Thank You, Councillor Sheen, Councillor early through
[1:14:43]
you, Chair. I need to get on the mic before Councillor
[1:14:46]
Sheen because he often takes a lot of my thoughts, but I have. Hi,
[1:14:49]
Rob, how are you? Just a couple things and I think you covered them
[1:14:53]
first of all. And Councillor Sheen did as well. Really pleased to see this road.
[1:14:57]
The community needs this road desperately. It's long time coming and we've been
[1:15:00]
dealing with this application. I think it started last term of council, but my
[1:15:04]
biggest concern is what the delegate brought forward and
[1:15:07]
that's obviously the trucks turning east
[1:15:11]
to Heart Lake and then the
[1:15:14]
mitigation of sound and barriers to all of the homes on
[1:15:18]
the other side. So how can we be guaranteed. And we're very thankful that
[1:15:21]
we actually that the whole did come back to staff so that we've got a
[1:15:24]
staff report and have an opportunity to talk for the public.
[1:15:27]
Because while I know there has been newspapers and
[1:15:30]
there's been communication to the public, I suspect that many may not
[1:15:34]
still be aware that a warehouse might be coming in as imminent.
[1:15:37]
So it is a concern and I just want to make sure when they start
[1:15:40]
calling that we can answer those questions.
[1:15:44]
So, through the chair, as noted, a site plan application
[1:15:48]
has been filed with the town. What they're looking to build is
[1:15:52]
a warehousing structure. As to whether
[1:15:56]
they'll follow through with that and file
[1:16:00]
something that's a resubmission that's in keeping with that remains to be
[1:16:03]
seen, but there are a range of uses
[1:16:07]
that are permitted on the lands and it's perhaps a bit premature
[1:16:12]
to fully understand as to what the development form would will be
[1:16:15]
on the property. Likely. However, it's likely
[1:16:19]
it'll be a warehouse product.
[1:16:23]
I did take note of some of the matters that the delegate had
[1:16:27]
identified because they were worthy concerns
[1:16:31]
and comments. And certainly staff would be looking
[1:16:35]
through the review of that site plan application to take those
[1:16:39]
matters into consideration. In particular, access onto
[1:16:43]
Abbott's side, some of the landscaping matters, urban design things.
[1:16:47]
It's premature probably at this point to comment as to how that may
[1:16:51]
actually play out. Site plan approval
[1:16:55]
is not a public process, so there is no announcement to
[1:16:59]
nearby residents that applications
[1:17:03]
are on file. But at the same time, members of the public are able to
[1:17:07]
view applications applications and speak with staff and understand what some of those
[1:17:10]
impacts will be and comment, et cetera. So that's
[1:17:15]
where we're at at this point. I just. I just really want to
[1:17:19]
go back to the truck turning because I'm pretty sure we had conversations with Broccolini
[1:17:22]
in the past. But just for Me, it would be pretty critical.
[1:17:26]
I can't see them going west and onto Kennedy and then trying to force onto
[1:17:30]
Mayfield. So I would hope that that will be somewhere in the process as
[1:17:33]
well. Is that whole piece right? Because that's. So that's been noted.
[1:17:37]
That's something our engineering and transportation staff would be
[1:17:41]
responsible for purposes of commenting on. Thank you.
[1:17:45]
Thanks.
[1:17:57]
Nothing at this time. Councillor Sheen, another question
[1:18:01]
I am going to come back to staff. It's really important to me that
[1:18:05]
truck traffic gets diverted away from Kennedy going forward.
[1:18:08]
And that was my understanding was that Kennedy would become a no
[1:18:13]
truck traffic route from Mayfield to Abbotside
[1:18:17]
when the warehousing came in along there. I don't know if it was. I wouldn't
[1:18:21]
say it was promised or guaranteed, but that was my understanding
[1:18:24]
was that truck traffic would be divided, diverted eastward,
[1:18:29]
which really is kind of critical to the neighborhood.
[1:18:32]
So I'll leave that with you. I don't know if you can answer. Maybe you
[1:18:34]
could answer. Maybe you could explain.
[1:18:38]
Sorry. Then what? Some of the challenges are around getting
[1:18:43]
there through you. Chair to
[1:18:47]
Councillor Sheen in full transparency. I don't have my head wrapped around
[1:18:51]
the issue at hand. I need to take that away and review it with
[1:18:54]
staff so I can commit to coming back to you with some of these
[1:18:58]
responses. But I don't have a position on it yet. Fair enough. Thank you.
[1:19:01]
And Councillor Sheen, to be fair, I think this is where the site plans,
[1:19:04]
process is. What all that will be distilled. But appreciate that
[1:19:08]
is an important issue to the community there. Not seeing
[1:19:12]
any other questions, I guess. The motion has
[1:19:16]
been read. Are there any other discussion
[1:19:20]
items on the motion? Then moving on
[1:19:23]
to the clerk for the vote, please.
[1:19:28]
Councillor DeBoer in favor.
[1:19:31]
Councilor early in favor. Councillor Kiernan
[1:19:36]
in favor. Councilor Mascal? In favor.
[1:19:40]
Councilor Napoli in favor. Councilor Rosa
[1:19:44]
in favor. Councilor Sheen in favor. Mayor Groves
[1:19:49]
in favor. Chair Russo in favor.
[1:19:52]
Through the chair. The motion carries. Thank you. We move on to Item
[1:19:56]
10.4, Staff Report 20250026
[1:19:59]
Proposed Traffic Safety advisory committee a
[1:20:03]
mover. Councillor Napoli.
[1:20:06]
Seconded by Councillor Rosa.
[1:20:11]
And I'll read out the motion that Bylaw 2025001
[1:20:16]
being a bylaw to establish a traffic safety advisory committee
[1:20:20]
and provide its terms of reference attached as schedule B to
[1:20:24]
Staff Report 20250026 be approved.
[1:20:28]
Any discussion on the motion?
[1:20:32]
Seeing none. Move. Oh, Councilor early,
[1:20:36]
sorry. Through you, I'm very good
[1:20:39]
with this. I just. I know the terms of reference are still being developed.
[1:20:43]
And I noticed on the research that many of the other
[1:20:47]
municipalities had a school trustee as part of the group.
[1:20:51]
And I'm just wondering, would that be part of the consideration? Because I
[1:20:54]
think we're still going back to look at the terms of reference. Right. And then
[1:20:57]
it will come back to us. So I just wanted to maybe somebody. Oh,
[1:21:01]
there comes Mr. Klingenberg. I believe
[1:21:04]
Mr. Klingberg is preparing to answer that.
[1:21:10]
Through the. Through the chair to Councilor
[1:21:13]
early. The school board chair as an appointee
[1:21:17]
on the committee was considered, and we determined
[1:21:21]
it would be most viable to have them as a point of
[1:21:25]
contact instead of an appointed member where they could
[1:21:28]
vote. But they are in the terms of reference,
[1:21:32]
from my vantage point. Sorry, from my.
[1:21:36]
Correct me if I'm wrong, but they can be in the terms
[1:21:40]
of reference as a point of contact, but not a voting member.
[1:21:43]
I think we should at least give some consideration. I know certainly
[1:21:46]
both the Catholic and the public has been of help in Councillor
[1:21:50]
Sheen's ward in Southfields on several occasions where we've had. And then we
[1:21:53]
worked with transportation to kind of correct some of the issues. I just thought it
[1:21:56]
was great when I saw that in other municipalities. So just for your consideration.
[1:21:59]
Okay, thank you. Thank you. Okay, thank you.
[1:22:03]
Any other questions to the motion?
[1:22:06]
Seeing none. Asking the clerk to call the vote,
[1:22:10]
please. Councillor De Boer.
[1:22:14]
In favor. Councilor Early? In favor.
[1:22:17]
Councilor Kiernan? In favor.
[1:22:21]
Councilor Mascal? In favor.
[1:22:24]
Councilor Napoli. In favor. Councilor Rosa?
[1:22:28]
In favor. Councilor Sheen? In favor.
[1:22:32]
Mayor Groves? In favor. Chair Russo?
[1:22:36]
In favor. Through the chair. The motion carries. Thank you.
[1:22:39]
Moving on to. Are there any other notices of motion
[1:22:43]
to be presented at today's meeting?
[1:22:47]
Seeing none. Moving on to motions.
[1:22:51]
The next item on the agenda is motions. As I put
[1:22:55]
forward the motion on item 12.1 to
[1:22:58]
approve the draft plan of subdivision submitted
[1:23:02]
by Malone given Parsons to Brook Valley Development. I will vacate the
[1:23:05]
chair and have Councillor Rosa assume the chair.
[1:23:14]
It.
[1:23:39]
It.
[1:24:06]
The motion moved by Councillor Russo. Councillor Russo, do you
[1:24:09]
have anyone seconding this motion? Councillor Napoli.
[1:24:18]
All right, so the motion is, whereas an application for draft pan approval for the
[1:24:22]
above noted lands has been received by the town, and whereas council
[1:24:26]
has enacted an OPA for the said lands at its
[1:24:29]
council meeting held on December 17,
[1:24:31]
2024. And whereas the letter dated December 19,
[1:24:35]
2024, the draft plan of subdivision application was deemed
[1:24:38]
complete as of December 13, 2024 in
[1:24:42]
accordance with the Section 51.19.1 of the
[1:24:45]
Planning Act. And whereas notice of application was given on
[1:24:49]
01.02.2025 in the accordance of section 51.19.4
[1:24:53]
of the Planning act and whereas Council now considers it appropriate to
[1:24:57]
grant draft plan of subdivision approval to the above noted lands,
[1:25:00]
now therefore be it resolved that the approval is hereby given to
[1:25:04]
pursuant of section 5131 of the Plan to
[1:25:08]
the draft plan subvision prepared by Malone Given Parsons
[1:25:11]
dated March 28, 2024 revised to December
[1:25:15]
4, 2024, the Plan and a copy which is attached hereto
[1:25:19]
as Schedule A, the plan is approved subject to the draft
[1:25:23]
plan conditions attached here to the Schedule B. Approval of
[1:25:27]
plan shall lapse at the expiration the expiration
[1:25:30]
of five years from the date of approval of the plan.
[1:25:33]
Is there any discussion on this motion? Councillor Russo?
[1:25:40]
I prepared a little something so I'll just speak to that so that giving
[1:25:44]
some context, I also felt propelled
[1:25:49]
to ask or answer a couple of the questions that Mr.
[1:25:52]
Axworthy had brought forward.
[1:25:55]
The complete application pertains to the
[1:25:58]
checklist of items that staff have and the reports
[1:26:02]
that were provided. So that's the checklist that they are provided
[1:26:07]
that is delegated authority to staff and staff makes
[1:26:10]
the actual approval. So as I've
[1:26:14]
indicated, I prepared a little something, a preamble, an explanation
[1:26:19]
for my motion. It may be a bit long winded, but I
[1:26:22]
feel that the issue is important enough to spend a bit of extra time
[1:26:26]
on the matter. While I feel the merit definitely exists
[1:26:29]
on why I am putting forward this motion, I acknowledge
[1:26:32]
land use planning is complicated and often challenging for the average
[1:26:36]
resident to comprehend, so I hope this helps somewhat.
[1:26:41]
Rationale, History, Equity and Legacy Although this
[1:26:44]
application has been predominantly dealt with this
[1:26:48]
term of Council Mayfield West Phase 2 Stage 3 lands
[1:26:52]
the reality is these lands as a whole
[1:26:55]
Phase 2 lands have in fact a 25 year plus
[1:26:59]
legacy of planning and being on the books with the town of
[1:27:03]
Caledon. That said, for clarity, a brief chronology
[1:27:07]
is that this application was brought forward 10-17-2023
[1:27:12]
by the area councillors Sheen and Early to and I
[1:27:15]
believe unanimously supported by this Council to be accepted.
[1:27:19]
It has been circulated to all the appropriate agencies and
[1:27:23]
staff and a statutory public meeting has been
[1:27:27]
held on this. These lands have been rezoned by this
[1:27:30]
Council and further propelled by the future Caledon
[1:27:34]
OP process where this Council unanimously supported
[1:27:38]
these lands moving forward in the process and most
[1:27:42]
recently the secondary plan and OPA for these
[1:27:45]
lands were dealt with and again unanimously supported by
[1:27:49]
this council December 2024, leaving the remaining
[1:27:53]
process draft plan of subdivision outstanding and
[1:27:56]
this process is delegated to staff and not subject to
[1:28:00]
the public process. This would never even be before us at this
[1:28:03]
point in time. So I feel that that's why a
[1:28:07]
little bit of an explanation is required in
[1:28:10]
terms of equity. We are striving as a council to treat all applicants fairly
[1:28:15]
and equitable through staff and via the mayor and some
[1:28:18]
councillors. This applicant was persuaded several times not
[1:28:22]
to appeal their application and work through the town process.
[1:28:25]
This applicant now sees neighboring parcels that did
[1:28:29]
not choose to do so and did not choose to work through the process which
[1:28:33]
they are totally entitled to do and take the OLT route and
[1:28:37]
have their items dealt with in parallel and in their entirety
[1:28:41]
be approved via the OLT both secondary plan
[1:28:45]
and draft plan. This negated any application
[1:28:49]
fees collected by the town and in fact costed US
[1:28:53]
dollars negotiating via OLT settlement, not through the regular
[1:28:56]
process. So why get involved now?
[1:29:00]
I feel this application is unique enough and has so many variables that
[1:29:04]
makes it distinct enough to bring bring it forward immediately.
[1:29:08]
Particularly with all the other necessary approvals having
[1:29:13]
already been obtained via the regular planning process,
[1:29:17]
they are now complete. Also, let me be very clear
[1:29:21]
what this motion is seeking. With all the approvals now in place,
[1:29:25]
this process would typically, as indicated or as mentioned,
[1:29:29]
go into the purview of staff and respectfully,
[1:29:32]
the normal process is that this never is seen again from
[1:29:36]
the public or even this council, oftentimes until
[1:29:40]
it is either deemed approved or we will be waiting for some other
[1:29:43]
notification where the councilors,
[1:29:47]
if this is approved, get an email informing us the
[1:29:50]
process is complete. What I am seeking
[1:29:53]
from this council is that we approve the draft plan
[1:29:56]
in principle. But in principle isn't final,
[1:30:00]
it is with significant safeguards and conditions which
[1:30:04]
I will touch upon further and this process follows
[1:30:08]
the usual protocol. I dismiss the argument of
[1:30:12]
precedent, of precedent forming which does not exist
[1:30:16]
in land use planning regardless. But as mentioned,
[1:30:19]
we are trying to provide equity in time frames and not
[1:30:23]
penalize those that choose not to appeal to town and stay the course.
[1:30:27]
This mitigates potential litigation and adjudication that often
[1:30:30]
cost the municipality thousands upon thousands.
[1:30:33]
Further, these lands are the most probable and definitely
[1:30:37]
the most viable to continue to physically be built out in
[1:30:40]
the upcoming years. I checked with our building department.
[1:30:44]
Phase two, stage one and two lands made up almost a quarter of our permits
[1:30:48]
in 2024. In these unpredictable economic times,
[1:30:52]
these lands with servicing already in place are a
[1:30:55]
natural progression to complete the box and mapping set out
[1:30:59]
years ago. So with this, and in part, these are a few of
[1:31:02]
my whys. With this motion I obviously
[1:31:06]
make it apparent that I feel the matter is important enough to intervene.
[1:31:09]
However, I do acknowledge it is very seldom that we do so and
[1:31:13]
feel these instances instances should be the exception,
[1:31:17]
not the rule. However, I also do not prescribe to the
[1:31:20]
argument that we've never done this before. Well, frankly,
[1:31:23]
perhaps where instances there should have been some instances
[1:31:26]
that council should have. We as the board of directors should intervene
[1:31:30]
when we feel strongly enough about an issue. This council definitely
[1:31:34]
has the authority to do so and I argue should do so
[1:31:37]
when it feels it is in the best interest of its residents and businesses.
[1:31:43]
But I am not a planner, nor am I a lawyer. I did
[1:31:47]
however, spend years adjudicating over land use planning matters with
[1:31:50]
the LPAT and OLT and have a higher understanding and knowledge
[1:31:54]
than many. But I still do not profess to be an expert.
[1:31:58]
But I do use the assets before me, both planners and lawyers whom
[1:32:02]
are the experts and assist and assisted in assisted
[1:32:07]
to make sure the interests of the town are protected.
[1:32:10]
I believe we went above and beyond with a 40 plus page
[1:32:13]
and 170 plus draft condition. Draft conditions that were
[1:32:17]
written and vetted by our town staff,
[1:32:20]
TRCA staff and legal that need to be fulfilled
[1:32:23]
or cleared before final approval. So with all those
[1:32:27]
conditions, why approve? Draft plan of subdivisions are
[1:32:30]
frequently approved with numerous draft conditions. However,
[1:32:34]
in this case, perhaps even more than usual. So again I ask, with all
[1:32:37]
those conditions, why approve? Approval gives certainty to
[1:32:41]
the applicant that their application has been taken seriously. Timelines are
[1:32:45]
now in their hands and clarity is provided to what is needed for
[1:32:49]
the town. We too have certainty that conditions are our
[1:32:53]
conditions with no risk of an OLT adjudicator diminishing
[1:32:56]
the number of conditions or altering them in any manner not
[1:33:00]
favorable to the town, we cannot predict the future, nor should
[1:33:04]
we simply be averse to appeals. However, when the process is kept
[1:33:08]
within our purview and with all the set of settled conditions
[1:33:12]
being the towns, we thus set out our own parameters,
[1:33:16]
not a third party adjudicator sending out the preferred their preferred terms.
[1:33:20]
This is when the draft conditions can adequately protect
[1:33:24]
the interests of our Caledon residents. This is not
[1:33:28]
my opinion, but the opinion obtained by our staff and
[1:33:31]
our legal. So in closing, these are my whys and the rationale and justification
[1:33:36]
for the motion here before council. Thank you.
[1:33:40]
Thank you. Any other speakers to the motion?
[1:33:46]
Seeing none. Oh, sorry,
[1:33:49]
Councillor DeBoer. Thanks. I do have a
[1:33:53]
some concern over this and if staff have communicated.
[1:33:56]
I'm just curious as to why there isn't a staff
[1:34:00]
communication with regards to the support that
[1:34:03]
they have for the draft conditions. I understand the
[1:34:07]
process. When I look at the town website,
[1:34:10]
it's listed this application as first submission under review.
[1:34:15]
So from that I gather that staff are reviewing this
[1:34:19]
submission with these conditions, but have
[1:34:22]
yet to provide any comments, certainly no comments that are here that the public
[1:34:26]
can see. I think if it's the desire of council to bring
[1:34:31]
back the approval
[1:34:35]
of site plans, conditional site plans and eliminate
[1:34:39]
the staff's delegated authority,
[1:34:42]
then that's a separate item and we can do the same, same as what was
[1:34:46]
done just at the last meeting with the H, the holding symbol and we
[1:34:49]
can remove delegated authority from staff with
[1:34:53]
regards to approving draft plans.
[1:34:56]
It's been. And, and I tried to talk to staff to figure
[1:34:59]
out again a plan as to how far back it was that we made this
[1:35:03]
change. But it was council that initiated and delegated authority. So we still
[1:35:07]
have the authority to remove that delegated authority. If that's the
[1:35:10]
intent and the desire to get this back into where
[1:35:14]
there's public comment and a second final look if that's
[1:35:17]
part of the desire with this application. But I really do think that
[1:35:22]
not having had staff make comments and it be under
[1:35:25]
first submission under review as being what's current
[1:35:29]
status on the website, I really have concerns with
[1:35:32]
moving forward. The delegation mentioned even just road widths
[1:35:36]
and concerns about road widths within the application,
[1:35:39]
you know, and he picked up that as something that staff would actually be
[1:35:43]
commenting on to ensure there's some consistency and that
[1:35:46]
for example, transitways are incorporated within the plan.
[1:35:49]
So, you know, it leaves me with a lot more
[1:35:52]
concerns moving forward if
[1:35:57]
this was supported so that, you know,
[1:36:00]
I think there's other ways to do it if, if that's the desire of trying
[1:36:04]
to accomplish more transparency and I have no
[1:36:08]
problem with more transparency and
[1:36:12]
I would support removing the delegated authority, but I'm
[1:36:16]
not prepared to say that I'm going to support moving this
[1:36:20]
forward without at least a staff report ensuring that it meets with
[1:36:24]
the overall guidelines and intentions of,
[1:36:27]
of the development in that area. Thank you.
[1:36:32]
Thank you. Councillor Sheen,
[1:36:36]
perhaps just speak to that briefly. No intentions to
[1:36:40]
remove the delegated authority. I feel that this, as indicated, is unique
[1:36:44]
enough that in this case it warrants delegated
[1:36:47]
authority being removed because of the history of the actual file
[1:36:51]
and the amount of work that's been put in. The work
[1:36:54]
that I actually put forward with staff was to
[1:36:58]
ask both TRCA staff, regional staff and legal,
[1:37:02]
how many, how can they be satisfied and this
[1:37:06]
is not a process that they are typically satisfied
[1:37:10]
with. The reality, though, is, when speaking to the fact
[1:37:14]
of reports, and I've heard that mentioned
[1:37:17]
frequently today, is we will never get a report in this case.
[1:37:21]
This would have now gone into the hands of staff, and I intend it
[1:37:24]
to go into the hands of staff. All I'm asking for is,
[1:37:28]
as indicated, is an approval in principle
[1:37:32]
with all the actual conditions
[1:37:35]
in place that protect our residents, protect the integrity
[1:37:39]
of the. Of the approval process, but give
[1:37:42]
the certainty, but to both the applicant and to the state into the town
[1:37:46]
that this remains in our own coffers and we are able to.
[1:37:49]
To be the. The actual approval
[1:37:52]
authority in this. In this case. So that's where I feel it's important.
[1:37:56]
I wouldn't want this to be delegated authority. As I indicated,
[1:37:59]
this is a unique case and this has been on the
[1:38:02]
books in Caledon for longer than I've
[1:38:05]
been around here. And I feel that it's important enough that we actually
[1:38:09]
intervene, actually ask for that approval in principle.
[1:38:13]
That's what I'm asking for. Thank you,
[1:38:17]
Councillor Sheen. Thank you, Chair.
[1:38:23]
I'm a little bit all over the map with my notes here, but first
[1:38:28]
I want to thank the delegate, Mr. Axworthy, for coming forward.
[1:38:32]
He articulated many of the same concerns that I
[1:38:35]
have.
[1:38:39]
Firstly, with respect to how this is. Appears to be inconsistent
[1:38:43]
with the town's recently approved official plan.
[1:38:47]
The Dougal Avenue issue is still an issue for me,
[1:38:52]
which Mr. Axworthy mentioned. And I spoke at
[1:38:56]
length about the concerns I have with Dougal and
[1:39:00]
the experience we had with Dougal in Mayfield Westphase 2.
[1:39:04]
No, sorry, phase one. And I
[1:39:08]
feel like we might be making the same assumptions or faulty assumptions
[1:39:11]
on the west side now of Highway 10, the bridge structures is
[1:39:15]
an issue, apparently or not appear apparently it
[1:39:19]
is an issue. As Mr. Axworthy brought up an
[1:39:22]
item, Dougal and the bridge structures kind of get
[1:39:26]
at the overall traffic impact analysis for all of Mayfield West.
[1:39:29]
Face phase two, which we had some discussion at
[1:39:33]
the December 17th meeting with the commissioner.
[1:39:39]
Not to put too fine of a point on it, but we have to look
[1:39:41]
at the big picture. And as I said on December 17,
[1:39:47]
the assumptions that are being made around traffic and whatnot, we need to make
[1:39:51]
sure those are valid assumptions. Because if we make
[1:39:54]
the same mistake we made in Mayfield West Phase 1, we're just
[1:39:59]
duplicating the problem we've created in Mayfield West 1.
[1:40:09]
Sorry, I'm just looking for my.
[1:40:12]
I don't want to bore people with a long submission.
[1:40:18]
Councillor Russo mentioned. I think he was trying to answer the question,
[1:40:21]
why proceed in this way. And I think the first thing he said was this
[1:40:25]
area has been in the process for about 25 years, which makes it a unique
[1:40:28]
case. And I think what he's referring to is that
[1:40:32]
Mayfield west in general was first
[1:40:35]
conceived of back in, I think about 25 years ago.
[1:40:40]
And as I understand it from the history speaking to
[1:40:43]
others, when certain
[1:40:47]
parts of Mayfield west were ready to go versus others, it's just a
[1:40:50]
function of people making the best decisions they could make at the
[1:40:54]
time. And that's right, some developers
[1:41:00]
went to the back of the line, so to speak. I don't think it was
[1:41:03]
done because there was any ill intent, but I think the explanation
[1:41:07]
I hear is that you can only do so much at once. The town
[1:41:11]
only has so much capacity to develop. So Mayfield west phase
[1:41:15]
one got approval and here we are 15,
[1:41:19]
20, 25 years later, about to. Well, not about
[1:41:22]
to. We're very much moved into Mayfield West Phase 2.
[1:41:26]
I drove through the neighborhood this morning. As I've mentioned a few times,
[1:41:29]
homes are going up over there. They're digging soil today.
[1:41:34]
It's unbelievable the amount of progress. I am anxious to see
[1:41:37]
the neighborhood finished. I'm interested to see the Brook Valley
[1:41:42]
development complete. But I'm struggling
[1:41:46]
with what feels like a step outside
[1:41:49]
the usual process.
[1:41:57]
Oh, and I guess my last important point is Councillor Russo said it a couple
[1:42:00]
of times in his submission that the draft plan
[1:42:03]
of subdivision is in principle. He said it a couple of times,
[1:42:07]
but the motion actually doesn't refer to it as in principle.
[1:42:11]
It just simply says that the draft plan of subdivision is approved.
[1:42:15]
So those
[1:42:18]
are my thoughts. I may have more because there may be some more discussion.
[1:42:22]
I'm not sure. Thank you. Thank you. Councillor Kiernan,
[1:42:26]
please.
[1:42:30]
Thank you. And through you, I too would like
[1:42:33]
to speak to the.
[1:42:37]
The aspect of transparency. Something that I tried to point
[1:42:41]
out last week that these complex,
[1:42:47]
eye catching, attention getting motions on
[1:42:51]
our agenda to the council, to the public with no
[1:42:55]
staff reports, and there
[1:42:59]
has been plenty of time between last month and
[1:43:02]
this and even the amendment to this motion, in my opinion,
[1:43:07]
to seek a staff report for full transparency.
[1:43:10]
Transparency seems to be a word we use a lot,
[1:43:14]
you know, but I'm not sure that that's. That's what's
[1:43:17]
going on. Without a staff report, the public are
[1:43:21]
not fully informed. And I think it's
[1:43:24]
our duty to make sure they're fully informed. Frankly,
[1:43:28]
I would not ever support taking
[1:43:32]
away or giving, giving staff delegated authority. I think these things
[1:43:35]
must come to council. That, that's for me. But I have to
[1:43:39]
say that there has been plenty of time to bring a staff report. It's not.
[1:43:43]
We have to make decisions as a body of council, as an entity,
[1:43:47]
and for one or each individual counselor to have had
[1:43:51]
conversations with staff and be satisfied with that outcome certainly
[1:43:55]
does not serve the rest of council fully.
[1:43:59]
We are not mind readers and I
[1:44:03]
think there's a gap here, quite frankly. So I have
[1:44:06]
a serious problem with this motion. My question is also because it's
[1:44:10]
been a head scratcher for me from the start and I haven't seen an answer.
[1:44:14]
I have. Public has asked it, letters have been sent,
[1:44:18]
why I've never seen this happen. And I've
[1:44:21]
asked other municipalities and they think it's massively,
[1:44:25]
massively unusual. I'm confused as
[1:44:28]
to why representative for wards
[1:44:33]
456 is bringing forward this motion without the
[1:44:37]
consultation of the councilors of the area. And that's another big
[1:44:41]
problem for me. I'm not sure that's a road we want to continue to go
[1:44:45]
down. I will not be supporting this motion.
[1:44:48]
I think this needs to be sent back to staff and I think it needs
[1:44:51]
to have a full, transparent staff report,
[1:44:55]
attach it and so that we can make, we talk about
[1:44:58]
it, informed decisions, data. We don't have that before us,
[1:45:02]
quite frankly. There's a lot of, there's a
[1:45:06]
lot of faith being asked for here and I don't think we want to plan
[1:45:09]
Kaladin on faith. So I need to see the data, I need to see
[1:45:13]
the documents, I need to see the information from staff. I would
[1:45:16]
hope we all feel that way. Thank you.
[1:45:21]
Thank you,
[1:45:24]
Mayor Grove.
[1:45:28]
Thank you, chair. And through you, I want to just go
[1:45:31]
back to transparency. Ms.
[1:45:34]
Brioche mentioned the MZO that was
[1:45:37]
voted on. There are several MZOs that I recall
[1:45:41]
that members of this council, previous council voted
[1:45:45]
on. I don't think MZOs are transparent.
[1:45:49]
I don't see staff reports accompanying MZOs.
[1:45:55]
And with respect to this application,
[1:45:58]
this has been going on probably, I'm going to say
[1:46:01]
25 years, a number of us,
[1:46:05]
and I remember attending the site,
[1:46:07]
having a groundbreaking ceremony on that site.
[1:46:11]
And so here we are several years later. This has
[1:46:15]
been dealt with at the Regent appeal. And when I
[1:46:19]
look at this, this is not a slam dunk
[1:46:23]
approval. There's a whole bunch of conditions that
[1:46:26]
I'm reading here, both from the town,
[1:46:30]
from the TRCA and from the region appeal.
[1:46:34]
This is not, let's approve this and it's done.
[1:46:38]
And I am certain that through this process,
[1:46:42]
staff will be addressing, with the Developer,
[1:46:45]
all of those conditions. Councillor Sheen, I certainly hear
[1:46:49]
your concern with respect to the infrastructure or the lack thereof.
[1:46:54]
But I'm going to remind folks, and I didn't see
[1:46:58]
many years ago when these things were happening and votes were
[1:47:01]
happening that anybody was standing up here, well,
[1:47:04]
maybe one or two was here when
[1:47:08]
all of this development was happening.
[1:47:11]
Southfields had a whole lot of discussion around
[1:47:15]
it. In fact, we had charrettes on
[1:47:19]
Southfields. Then we look at how Southfields
[1:47:23]
became and got developed. I think Mr. Hughes or Tim
[1:47:27]
Manley was, who was the planner at the time
[1:47:32]
on this area.
[1:47:35]
But a lot of things got changed with council
[1:47:41]
and then we ended up with Southfields the way we
[1:47:44]
did. Kennedy Road being one of them.
[1:47:47]
Development charges being set aside
[1:47:52]
for developers until they've built 1,001 units.
[1:47:57]
So I can go on and on with a list of things
[1:48:00]
that was lacking. Transparency.
[1:48:04]
So let's not throw the word transparency
[1:48:08]
when it suits us because there are a
[1:48:11]
number of things. I sat here for years and years and
[1:48:16]
a lot of things happened here where it was not transparent.
[1:48:20]
And I remember a motion coming in a public meeting by
[1:48:26]
members of council from Ward 2 through a public
[1:48:30]
meeting asking for an MZO. We want to talk about transparency,
[1:48:34]
let's talk about transparency. Not when
[1:48:37]
transparency suits us. This has been an
[1:48:41]
ongoing conversation, discussion. We did Mayfield
[1:48:45]
west phase one, stage one, stage two
[1:48:48]
and now we're at stage three. We should have
[1:48:52]
been looking at the entire area
[1:48:56]
and planning that entire area.
[1:49:00]
And because we did not do that, this is
[1:49:03]
the reason we're here today. This is the reason we have all these
[1:49:07]
issues with lack of infrastructure and all the other things.
[1:49:11]
Then to throw some of the other things in the mix,
[1:49:14]
the rerouting of Highway 410 and
[1:49:17]
all of those things. Here we are
[1:49:22]
many, many years later, two decades later, because why
[1:49:26]
we did not do our job here at this council,
[1:49:30]
we piecemealed planning and that is why we
[1:49:34]
are where we are. We are trying to correct that
[1:49:37]
by doing the right thing. And there are several conditions
[1:49:41]
when I look in here. So this is not a slam dunk.
[1:49:45]
This is saying your infrastructure must be built. Now we're
[1:49:49]
talking years later, infrastructure could have been a lot
[1:49:52]
cheaper, but now we're talking infrastructure that we're
[1:49:56]
going to be probably five, six,
[1:49:59]
maybe seven times the cost of what it would
[1:50:03]
have been back then. So I don't have a problem
[1:50:06]
moving this forward. And as I said, all of
[1:50:10]
this happened in 2022
[1:50:14]
at the region of Peel. Every member of Caledon
[1:50:19]
Council at the region of Peel, voted to put 11,000
[1:50:22]
acres in our urban boundaries. This is not staff's fault,
[1:50:27]
but these decisions were council decisions,
[1:50:31]
council directing staff, council passing motions.
[1:50:34]
And staff are left to deal with all
[1:50:38]
the inadequacies, all the motions that were
[1:50:42]
put forward. MZOs, they don't bring with them
[1:50:46]
any financial analysis. They don't talk about infrastructure.
[1:50:50]
They don't talk about anything. They are just carte blanche
[1:50:54]
approvals. And let's go. No staff report accompanying it.
[1:50:59]
And so I have no issues in supporting
[1:51:02]
this because, again, it is not a slam dunk.
[1:51:07]
When I look at the conditions that's in here, it addresses
[1:51:10]
a number of things. TRCA's concerns,
[1:51:14]
all of those environmental impacts are in here.
[1:51:17]
And until TRCA is satisfied or staff are satisfied,
[1:51:21]
or the region is satisfied by, this is not going to happen.
[1:51:26]
So I.
[1:51:31]
And again, you know, I did not see
[1:51:35]
residents showing up at meetings when MZOs
[1:51:39]
are proposing or were being proposed.
[1:51:43]
So those are my comments.
[1:51:47]
And again, it is
[1:51:51]
a matter of moving this through a process that
[1:51:56]
should have happened a long time ago and a process
[1:52:00]
that should have been a more holistic and a more comprehensive
[1:52:04]
process. And that is why we are in
[1:52:08]
the situation we're in. And that's why Bolton is in the
[1:52:12]
situation. It's in the lack of planning,
[1:52:16]
proper planning, holistic planning,
[1:52:20]
comprehensive planning. Because through all those things,
[1:52:24]
you address all the concerns that I'm hearing being raised here
[1:52:28]
today. So thank you. Thank you,
[1:52:31]
Councillor Mascal, please.
[1:52:34]
Thank you. And through you, Chair, and it's all great for us to
[1:52:38]
talk amongst ourselves here as counselors, but I'm going to ask a couple
[1:52:42]
of questions to some of the experts that we have on our
[1:52:45]
staff here. I have two questions. One is for Commissioner
[1:52:51]
Lucc, and I'm just
[1:52:54]
going to read the question out here.
[1:52:57]
What Councillor Russo is asking is unorthodox,
[1:53:01]
something I have not seen brought before this council.
[1:53:05]
In your experience, Commissioner Lucik,
[1:53:09]
have you seen this practice applied before?
[1:53:13]
And in your professional opinion, does it in any
[1:53:16]
way undermine the integrity or efficacy
[1:53:20]
of the planning process through
[1:53:26]
the chair to the counselor? Well, this might be unorthodox
[1:53:30]
for how things have been done in Caledon. It's actually fairly common
[1:53:33]
in other municipalities. I looked to the city of Mississauga, where it worked before,
[1:53:37]
and you'd have a standard condition saying, yeah, you know,
[1:53:40]
the general content or idea of development's approved,
[1:53:44]
and it's subject to draft and condition work that comes along at
[1:53:47]
a later date. So it's actually fairly common. It's just not something we've
[1:53:51]
typically done here. What we felt is, you know,
[1:53:54]
while staff have delegated authority here, we wanted to ensure council was aware
[1:53:58]
of. Of what was being discussed. And that's why we asked that, you know,
[1:54:01]
be put to council to. To do this. And. And as Councillor Deborah
[1:54:04]
said, you could take delegated authority away from staff, I would discourage you
[1:54:08]
typically, from doing that because that slows the process down. And a lot of these
[1:54:12]
things are technical elements. I anticipate,
[1:54:15]
ultimately, we're still going to be able to get what we need as a town
[1:54:18]
through the conditions I note specifically, even condition number
[1:54:22]
one, where it really allows for the. The town to revise
[1:54:26]
or adjust as necessary to ensure we get what we need just
[1:54:30]
to follow up. So does that undermine the planning process in any way?
[1:54:35]
No, it does not. Okay, thank you. I have my second
[1:54:38]
question that I'd like to address to Commissioner Dixon.
[1:54:43]
Commissioner Dixon, do you believe that. That if this
[1:54:47]
council does not approve the plan outlined by Councilor Russo,
[1:54:51]
that this application will end up at the olt?
[1:54:54]
And then secondly. And do you believe that the conditions outlined in
[1:54:58]
this motion are materially better than those we could
[1:55:02]
expect from an OLT ruling?
[1:55:05]
Thanks for the question through the chair. Although I can't predict
[1:55:08]
whether this matter would proceed to olt,
[1:55:12]
there's a strong likelihood that it would proceed if the.
[1:55:16]
If we can't work with the developers to move this forward,
[1:55:18]
certainly OLT is an option. I think
[1:55:22]
we've heard from a delegate on a other development nearby
[1:55:26]
that's gone through the oot. It's very expensive in
[1:55:30]
terms of our draft plan conditions, they're very comprehensive in
[1:55:35]
favor of the town and our agencies. I don't believe
[1:55:39]
the owner will appeal the conditions of their past today. I believe the
[1:55:42]
owner does not get it.
[1:55:46]
The developer may appeal. And of
[1:55:49]
course, if it gets appealed, the tribunal may wish to
[1:55:53]
see the scope of the conditions narrowed and could
[1:55:56]
very well eliminate some of the conditions. And approving the motion today
[1:56:01]
helps mitigate that risk and help keep the conditions intact.
[1:56:06]
Thank you very much.
[1:56:10]
Thank you. Councillor Kiernan, please.
[1:56:17]
Sorry, Chair. That was up from before.
[1:56:21]
Oh, that's from before. Okay. Thank you, Councillor Kiernan. We'll move on to Councillor Sheen.
[1:56:28]
Thank you, Chair. Rosa, I have
[1:56:31]
a question for staff then. What will happen if this motion does not
[1:56:35]
pass today? In other words, will it continue through
[1:56:38]
the process with planning and the planning and development staff?
[1:56:41]
Is what's the downside of not approving this motion
[1:56:45]
today through
[1:56:49]
the chair to the councilor? It would continue with planning staff. It would
[1:56:52]
effectively follow a parallel path to what's being proposed today.
[1:56:57]
So what is the advantage to approving this motion today?
[1:57:01]
Approving? Not the motion approving the draft plan of subdivision.
[1:57:04]
There's really. It's. It's. It's one way or the other.
[1:57:08]
It's really more. That's. That's not so much a staff answer.
[1:57:12]
So. So there's an argument here that we should approve
[1:57:16]
it, but there's really no advantage to approving it, is what I'm hearing.
[1:57:21]
Nothing's going to change. It's going to follow the process. Whether it's a. Whether the
[1:57:25]
draft plan of subdivision is approved today or not.
[1:57:29]
What it would really do is just. It would be how staff would communicate on
[1:57:32]
various reports or otherwise. We have draft plan conditions. We'd work
[1:57:36]
through those. It's. It's a little. It's hard to say.
[1:57:39]
I defer to more to this. As much isn't a
[1:57:43]
staff answer as much. It would be a up to the person
[1:57:47]
that put motion forward, the council. I'm just trying to understand because there's
[1:57:50]
a lot of concern that somehow we're deviating from the problem process, and the process
[1:57:54]
is there to ensure that due process is followed
[1:57:58]
and that input is obtained along the
[1:58:01]
usual process. And so there's a concern that we're deviating from the process.
[1:58:04]
So I want to make sure that there's no penalty
[1:58:08]
to the developer because, like I said, I want to see this neighborhood get finished,
[1:58:11]
but I also want to stick to the process as much as possible. That's my
[1:58:15]
first question. I appreciate what Mayor
[1:58:18]
Groves said about South Fields. I know she on council when it was being developed
[1:58:22]
many, many years ago. And I
[1:58:27]
think that council back then probably made the best decisions they
[1:58:31]
could with what they knew. But I think hindsight
[1:58:35]
may not be 2020, but it's closer to 2020.
[1:58:39]
When I think about some of the things that I think have impacted
[1:58:42]
Southfields that could not have been anticipated by our council 20
[1:58:46]
years ago. As we know,
[1:58:50]
there are many more basement apartments in the neighborhood than I think anyone would
[1:58:54]
have guessed, which brings more cars and more people,
[1:58:57]
which puts more strain on our schools and our parks
[1:59:01]
and our roads and parking and traffic.
[1:59:05]
And also more recently, which not many people are talking about, is the
[1:59:08]
new right of homeowners if they have sufficient land in their backyards
[1:59:13]
to put in these auxiliary units,
[1:59:16]
which the town has no right of refusal on. All we
[1:59:19]
can do is issue building permits if they have the right criteria.
[1:59:25]
I think that's something that could not have been anticipated 15 or 20 years ago
[1:59:28]
when South Fields was being envisioned.
[1:59:34]
But those are the realities of today. And I guess what I'm hoping is
[1:59:38]
that we don't, as I keep saying, that we don't keep making the same mistakes
[1:59:41]
because we anticipate that the neighborhood can be
[1:59:45]
built. Well, actually, we know that the neighborhood is being designed with a higher people
[1:59:49]
density than Mayfield West Phase 1 and Mayfield West
[1:59:53]
Phase 2, Phase or Stage 1 and
[1:59:57]
2. I think as we go further north, closer to Old
[2:00:00]
School Road, the density is getting higher. I think it was missing brioche that asked
[2:00:04]
the question. It's not quite 100, I don't believe, but it's.
[2:00:07]
I think it's around 75. Is the targeted density for Mayfield
[2:00:11]
West Phase 2, Stage 3.
[2:00:15]
Anyway, I'm not criticizing the previous councils. I think Southfields
[2:00:19]
Village is what it is. In many ways, it's a great neighborhood. In other ways,
[2:00:24]
there's some lessons to be learned. And if there's
[2:00:27]
no advantage, no material advantage to approving this draft
[2:00:31]
plan of subdivision today, then I struggle with
[2:00:35]
the motion. Thank you. Thank you.
[2:00:38]
Councillor early, please. Thank you. Through you, Chair,
[2:00:43]
listen, so much has been said tonight. First of all, I'm going to say that
[2:00:46]
past councils, I think, did probably try
[2:00:49]
their best. You were a smaller municipality. You never had the intensification that
[2:00:53]
South Kis was going to be and that Southfield is now small intensification
[2:00:57]
on what we're building out. My problem with this motion has been the same
[2:01:01]
right from the start. And that's the process piece. We put
[2:01:04]
the OPA, a staff report on the OPA on the last council
[2:01:08]
meeting of the year in 2024, not on a planning meeting, but on a council
[2:01:12]
meeting. We didn't allow the public to have time to
[2:01:15]
even digest it. There were a significant amount of agency comments on
[2:01:19]
that. Opaque. That will allow the applicant to work with staff to
[2:01:23]
get through those agency comments. And we had this motion sitting
[2:01:27]
on that same council meeting in December. So we were going to
[2:01:31]
just fast track everything. Councillor Russo decided to refer it
[2:01:34]
to this planning meeting in January. But the process hasn't changed.
[2:01:38]
We're still working through agency comments, we're still working through the issues on the opa.
[2:01:43]
And I don't see any reason to have to fast track this. It has nothing
[2:01:46]
to do with. With the applicant. They're good applicants, they're good
[2:01:50]
business owners. What it does have for me, though, we talked about
[2:01:53]
past councils. We're going to 300,000 people
[2:01:57]
from 80,000 people. We're going to build houses like there's no tomorrows and
[2:02:00]
build communities. And if we start usurping processes, then we're
[2:02:04]
going to have every guy lined up at the door to say, I want to
[2:02:07]
do that, too. And I just can't support something like that. So it
[2:02:11]
has nothing to do with the applicant or completing that community or
[2:02:14]
making things happen, and I'm hoping we can expedite this. I'm not
[2:02:17]
sure how I feel about taking away delegated authority
[2:02:21]
from staff. Maybe it's a conversation, though, Council should have one day,
[2:02:25]
given that we are growing so quickly. Maybe not this evening,
[2:02:28]
but I, I, I, I, I understand
[2:02:31]
Council Russo, and I know he wants to get things done and he wants to
[2:02:34]
fix things and make things happen, but I can't
[2:02:37]
support this. And, and truthfully,
[2:02:41]
not concerned, but certainly a little disingenuous that
[2:02:45]
this would have occurred without discussions with both myself and Councillor Sheen.
[2:02:48]
But that's a decision that everyone has their opportunity to make. So thank you very
[2:02:52]
much. I won't be supporting the motion. Thank you.
[2:02:55]
Any additional. Yes, Councillor Maskell, please.
[2:03:01]
Thank you very much. And through you, Chair Rosa and I
[2:03:05]
just, you know, I'm just sitting here listening to
[2:03:08]
people talk about, you know, doing things outside
[2:03:12]
our purview or outside the norm, and just brings
[2:03:15]
me back to, you know, we had our, Our policy around
[2:03:19]
the naming of town
[2:03:23]
sites after people, and we had a policy was put in place,
[2:03:26]
and council unanimously supported the everything.
[2:03:31]
And then when it came time, someone comes forward and says,
[2:03:34]
you know, can we switch this? And, you know, Council says, oh, yeah, that's within
[2:03:38]
our, our purview to do that. And we can do that. We're going to
[2:03:41]
override policy. So, you know, here we are,
[2:03:44]
you know, in a situation where, you know, we've. We've done,
[2:03:49]
you know, there are counselors who are saying we have to follow process, but,
[2:03:52]
you know, a couple months ago, there was no following process. Just, yeah,
[2:03:56]
we'll exercise our authority and just override whatever we need
[2:03:59]
to. So I just think it's incredibly ironic.
[2:04:03]
Thank you, Councillor Kiernan.
[2:04:09]
Thank you, Chair. And this will be brief and final. So I find that a
[2:04:13]
little. A little odd. Sometimes when new information
[2:04:16]
comes forward, it is upon us to make different decisions,
[2:04:21]
you know, and that wasn't against our opa.
[2:04:25]
That was a policy that we put in place as recommended by a staff
[2:04:28]
report that we did all support at
[2:04:31]
that time, because the staff report. And I go back to the staff report
[2:04:35]
justified it. Did we know that There were people in the community. Had there been.
[2:04:39]
Obviously not. There were people in the community who felt otherwise,
[2:04:43]
then we had the opportunity to have those people come forward and
[2:04:46]
say, hold on a minute now. Now that we've seen this,
[2:04:49]
we have a problem with this. And as councillors, I think
[2:04:52]
it's our duty to listen when that happens. I don't think the comparison is
[2:04:56]
fair, quite frankly. Thank you. Thank you.
[2:05:00]
Any other speakers to the motion?
[2:05:03]
Seeing none, I will ask the clerk to call the vote.
[2:05:10]
Councillor DeBoer. Opposed.
[2:05:13]
Councillor Early. Opposed.
[2:05:16]
Councillor Kiernan. Opposed.
[2:05:21]
Councillor Mascal? In favor.
[2:05:25]
Councilor Napoli? In favor.
[2:05:29]
Councilor Russo? In favor.
[2:05:34]
Councilor Sheen. Opposed.
[2:05:38]
Mayor Groves? In favor. Chair Rosa?
[2:05:42]
In favor. Through the chair. The motion carries.
[2:05:47]
Having concluded item 12.1, I will
[2:05:51]
now return the chair to Councillor Russo. Thank you.
[2:06:12]
Thank you. So we move on to correspondence.
[2:06:17]
Are there any comments or items that require action in correspondence
[2:06:21]
package? I see. Councillor Kiernan,
[2:06:24]
you've added one item of correspondence to this agenda.
[2:06:27]
Would you like action on them? Thank you.
[2:06:31]
Through you, Chair, just as we do with all correspondence,
[2:06:35]
there is a motion put together just in support of what the municipality
[2:06:39]
of coast lynch has put forward. I will draw your attention
[2:06:43]
to the fact that they mistakenly used the
[2:06:46]
wrong title for Minister Calandra. So we will also be
[2:06:50]
correcting that in the. In the interim. In the. At the meantime.
[2:06:54]
So would you like to bring forward a motion or just as direction,
[2:06:58]
I guess. What would you like us to do right now? I think
[2:07:02]
that the clerk has a motion prepared. Clerk,
[2:07:05]
is there something prepared? And I guess this is moved by councer Kieran
[2:07:10]
and I guess maybe seconded by Count. Mayor Groves,
[2:07:15]
thank you. And it's before us right now on the screen.
[2:07:19]
Thank you.
[2:07:27]
That the. So I'll just read it out. That the.
[2:07:30]
Okay, I was just gonna say, I just wanted to let everyone know that this
[2:07:33]
was actually brought to my attention by a community member. So good
[2:07:37]
catch on their point. Asked me to bring this forward and.
[2:07:41]
And that's why we're here today. But it's the right thing to do. Okay,
[2:07:46]
thank you. I'll read it out for. I guess anyone
[2:07:49]
that doesn't see it on the screen, that the town of Caledon support The
[2:07:53]
resolution dated November 21, 2024,
[2:07:56]
as passed by the township of Pucilich regarding the protection of agricultural
[2:08:00]
lands and sustainable excess soil management practices in
[2:08:04]
Ontario. And that a copy of this resolution be sent
[2:08:07]
to the township of Pusillage and the Ministry of Environment,
[2:08:11]
Conservation and Parks, Ontario Ministry
[2:08:14]
of Food and Agricultural and Rural affairs and the Premier of
[2:08:18]
Ontario, the Association. And the association of Municipalities
[2:08:22]
of Ontario. Aml.
[2:08:26]
Councilor Sheen.
[2:08:29]
Thank you, Chair Russo. I just want to double check that the
[2:08:32]
motion intends to send a copy of this to the Ministry of
[2:08:37]
Environment, Conservation and Parks,
[2:08:40]
because that's the title that was mistakenly attached to Minister Calandra.
[2:08:45]
I just want to make sure that that was. I read the. The Ministry of
[2:08:48]
Environment, Conservation and Parks. That's accurate. Yeah.
[2:08:51]
Okay.
[2:08:53]
MECP or. Yeah,
[2:08:58]
but we're also correcting Minister Calandra's title to make sure that that's.
[2:09:06]
I'm just. I just want to make sure that we're. Whether we're sending it to
[2:09:09]
Calandra. Okay. Yeah. I believe. Clerk says confirmed, and I believe the mover
[2:09:13]
is. You're okay with that, Councillor Kieran?
[2:09:18]
Thank you. Yes, I am. Okay. If there are
[2:09:21]
no further questions, moving on to the clerks,
[2:09:25]
for the. For the vote.
[2:09:28]
Councillor DeBoer? In favor.
[2:09:31]
Councilor Early. In favor. Councilor Kiernan?
[2:09:37]
In favor. Councilor Matabel.
[2:09:41]
In favor. Councilor Napoli.
[2:09:45]
In favor. Councilor Rosa?
[2:09:48]
In favor. Councilor Sheen?
[2:09:52]
In favor. Mayor Groves?
[2:09:55]
In favor. Chair Russo? In favor. Through the chair.
[2:09:59]
The motion carries. Thank you. This concludes
[2:10:02]
the January 14, 2025 Planning and Development Committee meeting.
[2:10:06]
I declare this meeting adjourned. Thank you.