County OP proposed settlement package to councillors in June

New Tecumseth Free Press May 23, 2012

Simcoe County has been growing without a provincially approved Official Plan (OP) since November 2008 because the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing never got around to signing off on it as presented. The upper tier appealed that non-decision to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB).

It proved just as well for New Tecumseth because the Town had a list of outstanding differences with the County’s OP that were not incorporated into the final package, but several matters were resolved when a Ministerial order in Cabinet last January imposed a solution.

The Simcoe Sub-Area Amendment to its Places to Grow plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe rewrote much of the County’s 2008 draft OP, particularly as it related to population and employment land growth allocations.

Where Simcoe County’s plan spread the wealth widely to its 16 member municipalities, the provincial amendment created urban growth nodes: They are, Barrie, with the lion’s share of 210,000 population and 101,000 employment; New Tecumseth (Alliston), 56,000 population, and 26,500 employment; Innisfil (Alcona), 56,000 population and 13,100 employment; Bradford, 50,500 population and 18,000 employment; Orillia, 41,000 population and 21,000 employment; Collingwood, 33,400 population and 13,500 employment; and Midland-Penetanguishene, 33,500 (combined) and 19,800 employment (combined).

Alcona was added during the facilitator mediation process to appease Innisfil’s concerns, and a further 20,000 population on top of the 667,000 was added by the Ministry to address concerns from municipalities like Wasaga Beach, and Springwater, that were seeking more allocations to accommodate future growth. One of the internal fights going on in Simcoe County political circles is how that 20,000 will be allocated.

As well, four new employment areas have been confirmed: Bradford West Gwillimbury strategic settlement employment area and the Innisfil Heights strategic settlement employment area, both along Hwy 400 corridor; the Lake Simcoe Regional Airport economic employment district and the Rama Road economic employment district.

Now it’s back to Simcoe County which has been working on a deal to settle the outstanding OP approval with the Province. However, there are also proposed modifictions that New Tecumseth, Adjala-Tosorontio, and Essa Township, are threatening to appeal to the OMB without further consultations with the lower tiers. Among them would provide the upper tier with a greater role in water and wastewater jurisdictions that are currently exclusive to each municipality.

Simcoe County councillors are expected to receive a proposed settlement package at their end of June meeting, which will be delivered in camera.