By Pepper Parr
October 18th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Following the proceedings at an Ontario Land Tribunal hearing is not for the faint of heart.
It seems to take forever to get to the point where a hearing actually takes place.
Actually getting to a hearing for development applications in Burlington is complicated by the fact that there are at times more than a dozen developers appealing a city decision or appealing for relief from the OLT because the city has not made a decision before the clock ran out.
Among the issues before the OLT at this time are the Interim Control By Law and the newest Official Plan that has been approved by City Council and Regional Council and awaits the signature of the Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs after which it becomes the law of the land.
Controversial from the very beginning, the long term care residence got caught up in the creation of an Interim Control Bylaw
The ICBL was holding up all kinds of development including the AMICA project that will rise on the Northshore Road and the ramp to the QEW.
At the OLT Case Management Conference last Thursday the Commissioner agreed with the lawyers (there were 20+ of them on the call) that the ICBL could be lifted except for several properties along Fairview between Brant and Drury Lane.
Some of the most valuable land in the city with some of the loosest zoning as well.
What did the ICBL accomplish? A multitude of developer appeals that ended up costing the taxpayers of Burlington a lot of money and resulted in the developers getting what they wanted.
Remember when the mayor thought that these appeals would not be heard because of the ICBL? I do.