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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPD 14-07 REPORT TO PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Report Number: PD 14-07 Date: May 7, 2007 From: Neil Carroll Director, Plannin!~ & Development ,... r) f"Ii' c.',j,j Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006 Bill 51 Recommendation: 1. That Pickering Council receive and endorse Report PD 14-07 on the Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006, Bill 51 ; 2. That Pickering Council direct City staff to proceed with the required administrative changes to the plannin!~ process, as set out in the Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006, Bill 51 ; 3. That Pickering Council direct City staff to report, through the recently initiated Official Plan Review, on the policy changes required to implement various new development controls made available to municipalities through the Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006, including complete applications, zoning with conditions, employment land redesignation, development permit system and external/sustainable design elements; 4. That Pickering Council enact a by-law to delegate to the Director, Planning & Development or his dE~signate, responsibility for determining whether certain Planning Act applications constitute complete applications, as set out in Appendix I to Report PD 14-07, and 5. Further, that the option to establish a Local Appeal Body for decisions of the Committee of Adjustm€~nt not be pursued at this time, due to the associated administrative and financial requirements. Executive Summary: The Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, (the Act) Bill ~)1, received Royal Assent on October 19, 2006, and was proclaimed on January 1, 2007. This Act introduces a number of changes to the Planning Act and certain aspects of the land use planning process, provides additional development control tools to municipalities, and sets out new rules related to Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) appeals. Further, a number of new and revised Regulations were filed on December 13, 2006, which provide greater detail on implementation of the Act. Other Regulations have yet to be finalized. The focus of the Act is to provide municipalities with greater control on the implementation of provincial policies and supports more sustainable development and intensification while making the planning process more open and transparent. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7, 2007 Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law r' '" ,..Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) ~,-' .:J \1 Page 2 Financial Implications: There may be additional costs associated with advertising/mailing procedures resulting from the Act and its associated Regulations. For privately initiated applications these additional advertising/mailing costs will be minor, if any. For City initiated Official Plan amendments and rezoning applications, additional cost will be incurred due to the requirement to host and advertise public information meetings. The immediate actions required by the Act and recommended in this report will not have significant financial implications on the City. However, some of the requirements of the Act will have financial implications on the City in the future. The requirement for the City to update all its zoning by-laws will have an impact on City financial and staffing resources as it is anticipated that a major zoning by-law review will be required. The establishment of a local appeal body for decisions of the Committee of Adjustment would also have major financial implications if implemented. However staff are not recommending that such action be pursed. Sustainability Implications: The Act provides new tools that will strengthen the ability of the City to promote sustainable development and supports the City's recent sustainability initiatives. The 113gislation enhances the principles of sustainability and is reflective of the Provincial policy to promote and achieve a more sustainable future. Background: 1.0 Introduction As part of the Province's planning reform initiative to improve the land use planning system and build strong communities, the Province has been introducing changes to different aspects of the planning system. The Act is intended to help municipalities to better address certain issues such as environmental protection, brownfield redevelopment, intensification, sustainable development and making the appeal process more effective. The Act represents the Province's second phase of planning reform. The first phase of planning reform was the introduction of the Strong Communities Act (Bill 26), the 2005 Provincial Policy Statements, and the Greenbelt Plan. The Act outlines several long awaited reforms to the municipal land use planning process, including some changes to the role of the OMB. A number of changes will directly affect the way development applications are submitted, processed by the City, approved by Council and appealed to the OMB. One of the goals of the new legislation is to provide municipalities with greater control over the development approval process. The Province has also reviewed the role of the OMB to ensure that Ontario has an open, fair and transparent land use planning appeal process. With the changes introduced through the Act, the planning process should become more transparent and accessible to the public. Report PD 14-07 Date: May 7,2007 Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) Page 3 !"'~ rj (.-.1 C'\:) t The Act received Royal Assent on October 19, 2006, and was proclaimed on January 1, 2007. The purpose of the Act is to: · Provide new planning rules and planning tools to strengthen implementation of provincial policies and municipal priorities; · Provide new rules for information, materials and parties at OMB hearings and allow the option for municipalities to establish a local appeal board; and · Provide other technical amendments to the Planning Act that would improve administrative planning processes, and clarify existing provisions in the Planning Act and related regulations. 2.0 Discussion The main features of the Act are highlighted below for Council's information. Certain aspects of the Act are of significant interest to the City and will warrant more detailed investigation, which is proposed to be undertaken through the recently initiated Official Plan Review. 2.1 Updating Official Plan and Zoning By-laws The City is now required to update its planning documents (Official Plan and zoning by-laws) on a re!Jular basis to ensure that the most current provincial and municipal planning policy and objectives are incorporated into the planning documents. The City is required to revise its Official Plan at least every five years. The revised Official Plan must conform with Provincial plans, and be consistent with Provincial Policy Statements. The five year review shall also consider polices dealing with the removal of employment lands as these polices must be confirmed or amended. A review of the City's Official Plan has been initiated through Report PD 04-07 and the special meeting of Council is scheduled for May 22, 2007. To ensure the City's zoning by-laws conform to the Official Plan, the City is now required to update the zoning by-laws no later than three years after the Official Plan revisions come into effect. The update is to ensure the zoning by-law conforms to the updatEld official plan, thereby conforming to provincial plans, matters of provincial interest, and the Provincial Policy Statements. The need to update the City's zoning by-laws will require the City to undertake a complete comprehensiv,e zoning by-law review to bring the zoning by-laws up to date with the Official Plan. This would be a significant undertaking for the City that would impact staffs work program, demand allocation of significant staff resources, and impact the department workload and budget. The specific financial requirements to undertake a full update of the City's zoning by-laws requires further review. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7, 2007 Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law _. ,..,Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) ; 'Jd Page 4 2.2 Development Application Processing One of the intentions of the Act is to make the planning process more transparent and accessible. The requirement for updated official plans and zoning by-law will provide greater clarity for land use decisions. When a municipality is preparing municipally initiated official plan and zoning amendments, a public open house is now required in addition to the public information meeting, thereby providing an additional opportunity for participation and consultation by the public and stakeholders. Pre-consultation City Council has the opltion to pass a by-law, requiring applicants to consult with the City before the formal submission of development applications. This requirement is to ensure applicants are fully aware of minimum application requirements, City development objectives and other agencies that should be consulted in order to conduct an appropriate review of the application. Staff's current practice is to highly encourage applicants to pre-consult in order to identify potential issues and application requirements. This process is working well. The need for this requirement to be included as Official Plan policy, will be considered through the Official Plan Review. Staff will further review this issue and report to Council if our experience changes. Complete Application The City may also establish by means of Official Plan policies, what information is required to constitute a complete application. Currently the Planning Act only requires basic minimum information and does not require detailed technical information. The City now has the option to establish minimum requirements that need to be submitted with development applications prior to the formal commencement of the processing of the application. This will result in a more open process as all required information will be submitted and available for all to review at the front-end of the planning process. The establishment of 'complete application' requirements will be reviewed through the Official Plan Review. The Act now requires that Council determine if an application is complete within 30 days of submission of the application. It is recommended that this responsibility for this determination be delegated to staff to ensure that applications are processed in a timely matter and that Council is not burdened with application processing matters. It is recommended that the Director, Planning & Development, or his designate, be delegated the responsibility to determine if applications are complete and appropriate to commence processing. A draft by-law to delegate the authority of determining whether development submissions constitute 'complete applications' is provided as Appendix I to this report. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7, 2007 Subject: Plann;ng and ConservaUon Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) Page 5 n q."" ;.. .J.1 Complete Application Notice The City is required to give notice that an application is complete and to make all submitted information available to the public within 15 days of determining the application is complete. The notice of a complete application must be given in the same manner as notice of public meetings. The notice of a complete application may be given together with notice of a public meeting provided the public meeting can be scheduled within the required time frame. If it is determined that the public meeting cannot be scheduled at the time of giving notice of the complete application, then notice will be given separately. The notice will also state all the information that has been submitted and available for review. Applicabilitv of Provincial Policies and Plans All new planning applications must be considered on the basis of the Provincial plans and policies (i.e. Greenbelt Plan and Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe) in effect at the time of the decision, not those in place at the time of application. This applies to all applications submitted on or after the date the legislation came into effect, being January 1, 2007. Applications submitted prior to this date will still be considered by the previous standard, being the Provincial plans and polices in effe.ct at the time of the application submission. This means all new applications will be considered in accordance with the most up to date provincial plans and policies. All applications for subdivisions and amendments to the Official Plan and zoning by-law require a statement from the applicant whether the application is consistent with provincial polices and provincial plans. Further, if any of these applications are appealed to the OMB, a statement from City staff is required as to whether the Council decision is consistent with provincial policies and plans. Development Permit System The Act allows the option for municipalities to establish a Development Permit System (DPS), which is a development application review process that combines zoning, minor variance and site plan applications into one process. The intent is that a DPS would be used for very specific proposals that meet specific minimum requirements. In order to establish a DPS the City must adopt Official Plan polices related to the specific circumstance that would need to be met and adopt a Development Permit By-law. The DPS must describe the municipal goals, objectives and policies in the enabling Official Plan polices. A development permit by-law must set out and define the pl3rmitted uses and minimum and maximum development standards. While a DPS will provide a very specialized planning tool for unique land use considerations, its implementation would require significant upfront planning. The utilization of DPS will be investigated further through the Official Plan Review. At this time a DPS is not being recommended. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7,2007 Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law (, ,A "Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) '- '"J: v Page 6 2.3 Zoning with Conditions The City will be able to impose conditions when approving zoning applications. While the Act does not specify the nature of the conditions that can be imposed, it does allow the Province to pass regulations prescribing the type of conditions that can be imposed and the manner in which they can be imposed. The Province has not yet issued a regulation setting out the types of conditions that may be imposed. In order for the City to utilize conditional zoning it must first adopt Official Plan policies. The City may require an applicant to enter into an agreement related to the conditions of approval of a rezoning and may register the agreement on title. Further review will be undertaken upon receipt of regulations from the Province. 2.4 OMS Reform Appeal Period Currently, the Planning Act allows an indefinite appeal period for Official Plan and zoning by-law amendment applications that are refused by the City. This means applicants can appeal a municipality's decision to refuse an application anytime after the Council decision. The Act now establishes a fixed 20-day appeal period for thesH applications. This time period is consistent with the appeal permitted on other decisions of Council on similar development applications. Employment Lands The Act now allows the City to adopt Official Plan policies that restrict the redesignation of employment land for another use. If such polices are adopted, then there are no appeal rights related to the City's refusal of Official Plan amendment or zoning by-law amendment applications to convert employment lands to non-employment lands. Appeal Riqhts The Act provides clearer description as to who can file an appeal of a planning application to the OMB. The Act confirms that only persons or public bodies who made oral submissions at a public meeting or written submissions to Council, the applicant or the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing will be permitted to file an appeal or be a party to a hearing involving an official plan, zoning or subdivision matter. New provisions allow the OMB to add a person as a party to the hearing only if, in the Board's opinion, there are reasonable grounds to do so. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7,2007 Subject: Planning and ConsE~rvation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) Page 7 "4 c f . \. . .I.. Council Decision The Act includes a provision requiring the OMB and other approval authorities (i.e. the Region with respect to local Official Plan Amendments) to have regard to decisions made by municipal councils and approval authorities relating to the same planning matters. This means that Council's position on planning applications will carry more weight in the appeal deliberation by the OMB. OMB Process Other reforms to the OMB process include: · Requires that appeals be based on material/information that was available and before the municipal council at the time the council made its decision. · If new information/material is permitted to be presented at an OMB hearing due to special circumstances, the OMB will determine if this new information would have had an impact on the council decision, and if this is the case, the OMB may adjourn tine hearing and allow the municipal council an opportunity to review the new information/material and reconsider its decision. · Appeals to Ministers Zoning Orders may be restricted if the Minister is of the opinion that all or any part of the change adversely affects matters of provincial interest. · Allows the OMB to dismiss an appeal without a hearing if it is determined the appellant has persistently and without reasonable grounds commenced an appeal. · No appeals are allowed regarding Council's adoption of Official Plan policies or the passing of zoning by-laws permitting accessory dwelling units. · Allows municipalities the option to establish a local appeal body that could hear appeals related to decisions of the Committee of Adjustment. 2.5 Sustainable Development The Planning Act now includes sustainable development as a matter of Provincial interest that all approval bodies shall have regard to. The Act provides new planning rules and tools to facilitate intensification, brownfield redevelopment, sustainable development, and environmentally sound community/design features. The strengthening of the legislation related to sustainable development is welcomed, as it will enable municipalities to achieve increased levels of sustainable development. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7,2007 Subject: Planning and Cons€~rvation Land Statute Law C 4 ~mendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) Page 8 The Act provides clarity that municipalities may exercise control to regulate density and the character and scale of development while supporting intensification. This area of control relates to general urban design and built form. Prior to the Act, the City exercised control over minimum and maximum heights and density through some of its zoning by-laws. However, this legislative change provides clarity that controls may be imposed in these important areas, and will assist in the City's intensification initiatives. In dealing with applications for approval of plan of subdivisions the efficient use and conservation of energy is now part of the required considerations during the approval process. Also dealing with subdivision applications, the City can now require the dedication of land not only for roads, but also for transit rig ht-of-ways , pedestrian and bicycle pathways. Under the existing Planning Act the City has only limited control over the exterior design of buildings. The Act gives municipalities additional powers as part of the site plan approval process. The City will have the ability to comment on matters related to exterior design, including the character, scale, appearance and design features of buildings, and their sustainable design. In order to address exterior design the City must include related design elements in Official Plan polices. The exterior/sustainable design requirements must also be include in the Site Plan Control By-law. The legislation also provides clarification as part of the site plan approval process respecting facilities designed to have regard for accessibility for persons with disabilities. This change would allow the City greater control in the site plan approval process, upon the adoption by Council of Official Plan polices and revision to the Site Plan Control By-law that will outline the specific design requirements. This will permit the City to achieve a higher level of urban design. The objective to strive for a greater degree of sustainable design is aligned with current City initiatives. 2.6 Community ImprovemEmt Plans The Act makes changes to Community Improvement Plan (CIP) to include costs associated with energy efficient land use and buildings and for affordable housing. Municipalities are now able to offer grants and/or loans as part of CIP for development or redevelopment proposals that achieve these goals. The Act allows upper tier muniClipalities to participate in lower tier CIP and vice versa, through grants and loans. Certain administrative changes have been included in the legislation that improves the implementation of CIP. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7,2007 Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) Page 9 " If'" ~. ':t ...J 2.7 Local Appeal Body The Act allows municipalities to establish a local appeal body that would hear appeals to decisions of the Committee of Adjustment. Local appeal bodies must operate in the same manner as the OMB as they will have all the powers of the OMB in dealing with the appeals that they hear. The establishment of a local appeal body is not mandatory, but is optional. Although the establishment of a local appeal body would allow for more local decision making, the administration, functioning and cost of operating the local appeal body would be the responsibility of the City. This will place demands on the City's financial and staff resources to perform all the administrative duties required for a local appeal body. While a local appeal body may work well in very large municipalities, it is not recommended that the City take advantage of this option. If the City chooses not to set up a local appeal body, then the OMB would continue to hear all appeals. Currently there are not frequent appeals of Committee of Adjustment decisions, and our experience has been that the OMB process works well and efficiently for these matters. Any benefits gained by local decision making are not considered sufficient to offset the costs associated with establishing a local appeal body. 2.8 Conservation Land Act Reform The changes to the Conservation Land Act enhance the usability of conservation easements to protect water quality and quantity, including the protection of drinking water sources and watershed protection and management and further purposes as may be added by provincial regulation. The provisions in the legislation enhance environmental conservation by improving the use of conservation easements as a tool to support the long-term stewardship and protection of agricultural lands, natural heritage areas and watershed features on private lands. A conservation easement is a restriction, registered on the title to a property, which protects important natural features on that property by limiting development and/or restricting certain land uses for the term of the easement. 3.0 Discussion The Act modifies some of the land use planning process and provides additional planning tools for the City to implement its Official Plan. The planning reforms will assist the City in achieving to a greater degree sustainable development, create a more transparent land use planning process, provide for more municipal control of the decision making process and to provide municipalities increased control over development design. Report PO 14-07 Date: May 7,2007 Subject: Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law (~4 /Amendment Act, 2006 (Bill 51) '- ":t Page 10 A number of the proposed reforms deal with issues/subject matters that are already being put into practice in Pickering. These include the requirement for a higher level of sustainable development, a more accessible planning process, pre-consultations with applicants and the desire for greater control over the decision making process. The overall vision and direction of the Act is supported. A number of the new planning tools and process reforms require some action by municipalities in order to be utilized. This is either the adoption of Official Plan policies such as defining the requirements for a complete application, regulating external/sustainable building design and/or the passing of by-laws to implement the requirement for pre-consultation. Appendix II is a chart that indicates if and what action is required in order for the City to utilize some of the provisions of the Act. APPENDICIE5: Appendix I: Draft Delegation By-law Appendix II: Planning Revisions Chart RO~~IP'~ Principal Planner - Development Review Approved I Endorsed By: Neil~ Director, Planning & Development Prepared By: RP:ld Copy: Chief Administrative Officer Recommended for the consideration of Pickering City C cil rf /I DRAFT DELEGATION BY-LAW APPENDIX I TO REPORT PD 14-07 "4 - , ~ . < v 1~"4G THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING BY-lAW NO. DIlAFT Being a By-law to delegate certain authority under the Planning Act to the Director, Planning & Development. WHEREAS Section 23.1 of the Municipal Act, S.D. 2001, c.25, as amended, a municipality has the authority to pass a by-law to delegate certain responsibilities; WHEREAS the Planning Act requires that Council within 30 days of the submission of certain applications for approval under the Planning Act to notify the applicant whether the application is complete; AND WHEREAS in order to obtain greater efficiency in the administration of processing certain applications for approval under the Planning Act, it is deemed expedient to delegate the determination and notification of complete applications to the Director, Planning & Development. NOW THEREFORE THE COUNCil OF THE CORPORATION OF THE CITY OF PICKERING HEREBY ENACTS AS FOllOWS: 1. The Director, Planning & Development is delegated all of the Council's authority under Sections 22 (6.1), 34 (10.4) and 51 (19.1) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13 as amended. 2. The authority delegated to the Director, Planning & Development under Section 1 of this By-law may be assigned by the Director to one or more designates in order to facilitate timely application processing. BY-lAW read a first, second, and third time and finally passed this _ day of May, 2007. David Ryan, MayO~~ ~~~ Debi A. Bentley, City Clerk APPENDIX II TO REPORT PD 14-07 PLANNING REVISIONS UNDER PLANNING AND CONSER VA TION LAND STA TUTE LAW AMENDMENT ACT, 2006 (~4 ~'" '- t C" 4 3 PLANNING REVISIONS UNDER PLANNING AND CONSER VA TION LAND STATUTE LAW AMENDMENT ACT, 2006 Requires to be met prior to implementation New Provision Effective Official Plan Implementing Up to Date Immediately Policies By-law Official Plan and ZoninQ By-law Establishment of Local ~ ~ ~ Appeal Body for Minor Variance Appeals Limiting the appeal rights ~ for parties and public bod ies Limiting party status at ~ hearings Allowing municipal councils to make ~ recommendations where new information is presented at hearings Defining the requirements ~ of a complete application Establishing the requirement for pre- ~ consultation prior to application submission Implement a Development ~ ~ Permit System Implementing zoning with ~ conditions Limiting appeal rights ~ regarding accessory dwelling units Limiting appeal rights ~ regarding employment land conversions Regulating design of buildings for external ~ sustainable design features Regulating minimum ~ height and density