OPP anti-rackets branch reviewing requests to investigate Ford government’s plan to develop Greenbelt
Premier Doug Ford and Housing Minister Steve Clark have denied accusations that the government tipped off developers in advance of a plan to open up protected land for building.
Thu., Jan. 5, 2023
Phot by Neuble cc
Investigators with the Ontario Provincial Police’s anti-rackets branch have begun making calls as they work to determine whether to open an investigation into the Ford government’s plan to allow development in parts of the Greenbelt.
The provincial government’s plan to open up sections of the Greenbelt — a long-protected swath of farmland, forests and wetlands that curves around Lake Ontario — to housing development has generated significant backlash from the public, many of whom want to see environmental protections kept in place.
Further questions about the financial implications were raised in November by a joint Toronto Star-Narwhal investigation that found that developers had been buying up parts of the Greenbelt. In one case, a prominent Ontario development company paid $80 million for two parcels of land that, at the time, could not be built on — only to see that land proposed for development just weeks later. If construction goes ahead, land values could skyrocket.
The timing of some deals has raised eyebrows over whether developers were tipped off ahead of time — or whether they just made a well-timed bet.
Among the groups that complained — and have now received a call from an investigator — was environmental advocacy group Environmental Defence, which lodged a complaint over what executive director Tim Gray says are concerns that private companies could be making money at the public’s expense.
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