Old model of growth-by-development-charges no longer applies By Christopher Hume Toronto Star January 19 2012 Hazel McCallion may still be the mayor of Mississauga, but it’s the end of an era in the city over which she has presided for more than 30 years. The suburban dream of high lifestyle and low ...

More land is being eaten up by development,SCIENCE MATTERS by David Suzuki jANUARY 20 2012n early November, 70 Harvard University students walked out of their introductory economics class. They wrote professor Gregory Mankiw, saying the biased nature of his course “perpetuates problematic and ineffic...

By Laurie Watt Barrie Advance Jan 20, 2012 SIMCOE COUNTY — Simcoe County developers have a clearer vision about how the region will grow over the next 20 years. Ontario has stuck to its 667,000-population cap for Simcoe County in 2031, but developers are saying that shouldn’t be a hardship, thanks to...

Province eyeing county By CHERYL BROWNE BARRIE EXAMINER January 20 2012 It’s either much ado about nothing or the most important thing that’s happened to Simcoe County in decades. However, until all levels of city and county staff, as well as all area municipal councils have a good hard l...

Province eases restrictions on municipalitiesBy Kate Harries AWARE Simcoe January 19 2012The Ontario government has bowed to local municipal  pressure by easing restrictions on how much growth can take place in Simcoe County. Flexibility is being touted as the hallmark of Amendment 1, new provincial ...

Midhurst ratepayers bracing for a battle if plan to build 10,000 homes goes ahead By CHERYL BROWNE – Barrie Examiner January 19 2012 SPRINGWATER TWP. — The hamlet of Midhurst has been shaken to its very foundations after hearing its growing by 30,000 new neighbours. Read more ...

Letter to the Packet and Times January 18 2012 Re: ‘Give us back our rights’ (Jan. 17) The complaints of some of our local leaders against the province controlling growth make me wonder who they are working for, the local residents or the developers. Let’s hope Ontario Infrastructur...

By ROBERTA BELL, The Packet & Times January 17 2012 Municipal leaders hope the province keeps its hands out of local decision making after this week’s announcement about Simcoe County’s official plan. “Ideally, I wish they’d just give us back our rights as a county and a ...

Midhurst plan a warning shot across the province’s bow  Barrie Examiner editorial January 13 2012 It is pretty late to be changing how Barrie will grow according to provincial planning policies. This city has already been identified as the primary urban node, and the city’s downtown is th...

County councillors have nothing to sayBy Kate Harries AWARE Simcoe January 12 2012Members of a Simcoe county council committee took no action on a request from AWARE Simcoe that they revisit a decision made at the last meeting of council to appoint a London consultant, rather than the Ontario Ombudsm...