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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPLN 32-24Report to Council Report Number: PLN 32-24 Date: December 2, 2024 From: Kyle Bentley Director, City Development & CBO Subject: Removal of Land Use Planning Responsibilities from Durham Region and Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act - File: L-1100-066 Recommendation: 1. That Report PLN 32-24 of the Director, City Development & CBO, regarding the removal of land use planning responsibilities from the Region of Durham, and proposed amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97, to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act, be received for information. Executive Summary: The purpose of this report is twofold. The first is to inform Council of the Province’s intent to remove the land use planning responsibilities of the Regional Municipality of Durham on January 1, 2025, and discuss the implications thereof for the City. The second is to inform Council of proposed amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act and discuss the implications thereof for the City following the removal of the Region’s planning responsibilities. Relationship to the Pickering Strategic Plan: The recommendations in this report respond to the Pickering Strategic Plan Priorities of Advance Innovation & Responsible Planning to Support a Connected, Well-Serviced Community; and Foster an Engaged & Informed Community. Financial Implications: The City is currently reviewing its Official Plan, and the staff needs to consider whether it would be appropriate to consolidate the Regional Official Plan with the Pickering Official Plan as part of the Pickering Forward process, or as a separate process in the future. Funding was included in 2024 and is proposed in the 2025 Mayor’s Budget, to support Pickering Forward. Once the City has made further progress on the City’s Official Plan review, we will be in a better position to recommend (in a future budget submission) required funding to address Regional Official Plan matters. Staff have been advised by the Region of Durham that, effective January 1, 2025, commenting on specific matters of Provincial interest (previously a Regional responsibility, refer to Section 2.1 below) would now be the responsibility of area municipalities. This will require additional staff training, and the establishment of a roster of consultants to undertake peer PLN 32-24 December 2, 2024 Subject: Removal of Land Use Planning Responsibilities from Durham Region and Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act Page 2 reviews of consultants' reports submitted in support of applications. Based on the limited available information, and projections for 2025 development applications that would be subject to consideration of these specific matters of Provincial interest, staff will be recommending the following amounts, that were included in the General Government section of the 2025 Mayor’s Budget: Consulting and related costs: $300,000.00 Staff resources and training: $250,000.00 Total: $550,000.00 As Members of Council are aware, these recent changes as it applies to Regional Planning have not provided staff sufficient time to prepare a detailed budget. However, it is staff’s goal to provide additional information as part of the Treasurer’s 2025 Budget Housekeeping report that will be presented for Council’s consideration early in the year. Any costs associated for this program will have zero financial impact to the Pickering taxpayer. The financing strategy will be based on cost recovery for consulting engagements, charging of fees and where required, cost reductions in the City Development Budget. Discussion: The purpose of this report is twofold. The first is to inform Council of the Province’s intent to remove the land use planning responsibilities of the Regional Municipality of Durham on January 1, 2025, and discuss the implications thereof for the City. The second is to inform Council of proposed amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act and discuss the implications thereof for the City following the removal of the Region’s planning responsibilities. 1.Proposal to remove land use planning responsibilities from the Durham Regionas of January 1, 2025 On November 5, 2024, the City received a letter from the Minister of Municipal Affairsand Housing, advising that, subject to government decision making, the land useplanning responsibilities of the Regional Municipality of Durham will be removedeffective January 1, 2025. Decisions on land division, consent applications, and plans ofsubdivision, would automatically be assigned to lower tier municipalities, following the removal of the upper-tier’s land use planning responsibility. To support the removal of the Region’s land use planning responsibilities, the letter alsooutlined that the Minister is proposing to amend Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exemptcertain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act. Theproposed amendment has been posted for comments on the Regulatory Registry for 30 days, until December 5, 2024 (see Letter from the Minster of Municipal Affairs andHousing, Attachment 1). PLN 32-24 December 2, 2024 Subject: Removal of Land Use Planning Responsibilities from Durham Region and Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act Page 3 Staff do not intend to submit a response to the Minister given the tight deadline. Further, given the proposed January 1, 2025 date for removal of planning responsibilities from Durham Region, staff from the area municipalities and Durham Region Planning have already set up a process to be ready for the transition. 2.Implications The proposed removal of the Region’s land use planning responsibilities forms one of anumber of sweeping changes to various pieces of legislation, including the Planning Act, through Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022, that was passed onNovember 28, 2022. The City provided comments on Bill 23 through Report PLN 49-22, and staff comments in this regard remain the same. 2.1 Commenting on Provincial Interests will be delegated to Area Municipalities In 1997, the Province delegated the responsibility to provide planning application comments on seven matters of Provincial interest to the Region. These seven matters included: 1.archaeological site assessments; 2.soil and groundwater assessments;3.noise impact studies;4.land use compatibility assessments;5.site screening questionnaires; 6.environmental impact assessments; and 7.minimum distance separation in relation to agricultural operations. The Region provided these comments through the use of specially trained staff, or a roster of consultants preparing peer review reports. The announced legislative changes would now make commenting on Provincial interests the responsibility of area municipalities. This will require additional staff training, and the establishment of a roster of consultants to undertake peer reviews of consultants' reports submitted in support of applications. 2.2 Official Plans and Amendments are uploaded to the Province for Approval The proposed amendment to Ontario Regulation 525/97 removes the Region from approving official plan amendments and exempts most local official plan amendments from the Minister’s approval. The only official plan amendments that would require approval from the Province would include the following: •new official plans; •official plan amendments adopted in accordance with Section 26 of the Planning Act(such as comprehensive reviews of local official plans); and PLN 32-24 December 2, 2024 Subject: Removal of Land Use Planning Responsibilities from Durham Region and Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act Page 4 • official plan amendments adopting policies required in connection with lands identified as a Protected Major Transit Station Area. Staff’s experience is that the Region exempted most site-specific, or minor amendments from Regional approval. Thus, the regulation is of no effect in this regard. However, the uploading of major official plan amendments, and new official plans to the Province is likely to result in longer approval times. 2.3 Remaining Pickering Land Division/Consent Files will be transferred to the City The authority for decisions on land division, consent applications, and plans of subdivision will be automatically assigned to the eight area municipalities after the Region’s land use planning responsibilities have been removed. On a positive note, the City assumed responsibility of plans of subdivision decisions approximately 25 years ago and has successfully taken carriage of the authority regarding decisions on land division and consent applications since January 1, 2024, through powers Council delegated to the Committee of Adjustment. However, Regional staff advise that land division and consent files that were ‘in process’, and retained by the Region to finalize, will now be transferred to the City. 2.4 The Durham Regional Official Plan will become the Official Plan for Pickering Envision Durham will become an official plan for each of the lower-tier municipalities. As the City is currently reviewing its Official Plan, the staff needs to consider whether it would be appropriate to consolidate the Regional Official Plan with the Pickering Official Plan as part of the Pickering Forward process, or as a separate process in the future. 2.5 Durham Region will provide planning comments protecting Regional interests The Region of Durham’s planning function will become that of a commenting agency for land use applications, including official plan amendments and reviews, secondary plans, zoning by-law amendments, land divisions, site plans, and subdivisions. The comments will be on matters to protect the Region’s interests related to infrastructure, Regional transportation, social housing services, public health, and Regionally owned land. The Region prepared Report #2024-P-16 on Bill 23 Proclamation Update: Upper-Tier Planning Responsibilities. That Report provides a more fulsome description of over 20 of the Region’s functions related to planning, grouped under the headings of: Broader Regional Initiatives; Development Advisory Services; Growth Management Services; Transportation Planning; and Housing Planning and Implementation (see Regional Report #2024-P-16, Attachment 2). PLN 32-24 December 2, 2024 Subject: Removal of Land Use Planning Responsibilities from Durham Region and Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to exempt certain Official Plan matters from Provincial approval under the Planning Act Page 5 3.Next Steps Staff from City Development Department are continuing discussions with Regional staffabout the establishment of any transitional agreements that may be required, before theRegion’s planning responsibility ceases, to address matters, such as sharing of anyproprietary information, mapping and other data/information, (including peer review rosters, records of environmental assessments reviews underway, etc.). Any further proposed legislative and/or regulatory announcements associated with this matter willbe monitored and reported back to Council where needed. Staff recommend this report be received for information. Attachments: 1.Letter from Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing2.Regional Report #2024-P-16 Prepared By: Original Signed By Catherine Rose, MCIP, RPP Chief Planner Approved/Endorsed By: Original Signed By Kyle Bentley. P.Eng. Director, City Development & CBO Original Signed By Stan Karwowski Director, Finance & Treasurer CR:ld Recommended for the consideration of Pickering City Council Original Signed By Marisa Carpino, M.A. Chief Administrative Officer Attachment 1 to Report PLN 32-24 Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing Office of the Minister 777 Bay Street, 17th Floor Toronto ON M7A 2J3 Tel.: 416 585-7000 Ministère des Affaires municipales et du Logement Bureau du ministre 777, rue Bay, 17e étage Toronto (Ontario) M7A 2J3 Tél. : 416 585-7000 234-2024-4549 November 5, 2024 Mayor Kevin Ashe City of Pickering mayor@pickering.ca;kashe@pickering.ca Subject: Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to Exempt Certain Official Plan Matters from Approval under the Planning Act Dear Mayor Kevin Ashe I am writing to advise you that subject to government decision making, January 1, 2025 is the proposed date for removal of the land use planning responsibilities for Durham and Waterloo Regions and March 31, 2025 is the proposed date for the removal of the land use planning responsibilities from Niagara Region. Following the successful removal of upper-tier planning responsibilities in York, Halton, and Peel Region on July 1, 2024, the removal of upper-tier responsibilities for Durham and Waterloo Regions on January 1, 2025 and for Niagara Region on March 31, 2025 would help to remove duplication and support efficient land use planning decision- making. To support this change, I am also proposing to amend Ontario Regulation 525/97 under the Planning Act. To help inform decision-making, there is a posting on the Regulatory Registry for public input which outlines proposed amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97. These amendments would exempt most official plan matters of lower-tier municipalities in Durham and Waterloo Regions as of January 1, 2025 and Niagara Region as of March 31, 2025 from the need for provincial approval. The Ministry is aware that there are many lower-tier official plan amendments, particularly ones that are site-specific in nature, that the Regions have exempted from the need for its approval. These matters would continue to be reviewed and adopted by the relevant lower-tier municipality without an additional level of approval. …/2 -2- As proposed, amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 would mean that the only official plan matters that would require provincial approval in lower-tier municipalities in the Regions of Durham and Waterloo as of January 1, 2025 and lower-tier municipalities in the Region of Niagara as of March 31, 2025, would be: 1. New official plans; 2. Official plan amendments adopted in accordance with section 26 of the Planning Act; and 3. Official plan amendments establishing, amending, or revoking any policies required as part of a protected major transit station area in accordance subsections 16 (15) or (16) of the Planning Act. However, the province will retain the authority under the Planning Act to intervene where necessary in order to ensure exempt official plan amendments are in accordance with provincial policy. In addition, decisions on land division, including both consents and plans of subdivision, are automatically assigned to lower-tier municipalities in the Regions of Durham, Waterloo, and Niagara following removal of the upper-tier municipality’s land use planning responsibilities (see subsections 50 (1) and 51 (5.1) of the Planning Act, as revised by Bill 23). To the extent the Regions were responsible for land division matters prior to the removal of their planning responsibilities, subsections 70.13 (8) and (9) of the Planning Act (also added by Bill 23) assign ongoing matters to the relevant lower- tier municipality as well. Request for Feedback The Ministry is currently seeking feedback on proposed amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to take effect on January 1, 2025 and March 31, 2025. The proposed amendments have been posted on the Regulatory Registry for 30 days, until December 5, 2024. Comments can be sent through the Regulatory Registry postings or by email to mmahofficialplans@ontario.ca More information on the legislative proposal can be found on the Regulatory Registry at: • Proposed Amendments to Ontario Regulation 525/97 to Exempt Certain Official Plan Matters from Approval under the Planning Act …/3 -3- I look forward to receiving your feedback on this proposal. Sincerely, Hon. Paul Calandra Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing cc. CAO, Marisa Carpino Regional Chair, John Henry Regional CAO, Elaine Baxter-Trahair Laurie Miller, Regional Director – Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing Attachment 2 to Report PLN 32-24 If this information is required in an accessible format, please contact 1-800-372-1102 ext. 2564 The Regional Municipality of Durham Report To: Planning and Economic Development Committee From: Commissioner of Planning and Economic Development Report:#2024-P-16 Date: November 5, 2024 Subject: Bill 23 Proclamation Update: Upper-Tier Planning Responsibilities Recommendation: That the Planning and Economic Development Committee recommends: That this report be received for information. Report: 1.Purpose 1.1 At the October 1, 2024, Planning and Economic Development Committee meeting, questions were asked of staff about the anticipated timing and impact of Bill 23’s proclamation relative to the future of Durham Region’s upper tier land use planning function. Staff stated it is not known at present when proclamation for Durham will occur; a date has not been announced by the province. This report provides additional information on the status of Bill 23 proclamation to what was provided at the Committee meeting. 2.Background 2.1 Over two years ago, on October 25, 2022, the province tabled Bill 23 which introduced fundamental changes to the land use planning system in Ontario through legislative amendments to the Planning Act, the Conservation Authorities Act, the Development Charges Act and other pieces of legislation. The Bill introduced the “More Homes, Built Faster: Ontario’s Housing Supply Action Plan 2022-2023”, Report #2024-P-16 Page 2 of 7 which was intended to advance the government’s goal of getting 1.5 million new homes built in Ontario by 2031. 2.2 The majority of Bill 23 received Royal Assent on November 28, 2022. However, the parts of Bill 23 that proposed to make changes to the upper tier planning responsibilities do not come into effect until a specified future date, generally known as the “proclamation date”, or “date of proclamation”. Another bill, Bill 185 was subsequently released in early 2024 and included a proclamation date of July 1, 2024 for the Regions of Halton, Peel and York. A proclamation date for the remaining three regions, namely Durham, Niagara and Waterloo, has not yet been announced by the province. 2.3 The absence of a proclamation date for the past two years has been disruptive to the operation of the Region’s Planning Division. A number of planners have left the Region and it has been a challenge to recruit new staff due to the uncertain planning environment. Given the current shortage of qualified land use planners within the Region’s Planning Division, an outside firm has recently been engaged to provide professional support to the Department on an as-need basis to ensure the needs of our area municipal partners and private sector clients will continue to be met. 3. Current Planning Responsibilities 3.1 Bill 23 proposes to remove the existing planning approval responsibilities from all the upper-tier regions. However, it may be noted that Durham delegated its statutory approval authority for subdivisions, condominiums, and part-lot control exemption by-laws to Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa and Clarington almost 25 years ago. At present, the Region is the approval authority for subdivisions, condominiums and part-lot control exemption by-law for the Townships of Brock, Scugog and Uxbridge. Following proclamation of Bill 23, the Townships of Brock, Scugog and Uxbridge would have to assume this approval authority. 3.2 As of the end of 2023, the Region delegated its approval responsibilities for Land Division/Consents to enable further streamlining. There are no other approval responsibilities to be delegated to the five lakeshore municipalities. The main impact of proclamation in terms of additional work will be to the three northern townships. 3.3 The Region undertakes plan review responsibilities on behalf of the province for matters such as noise impacts, site contamination, archaeology, for all eight area municipalities. These provincial plan review responsibilities were assigned to the Region through a Memorandum of Understanding with the province in 1996. It remains unclear if the Region will be requested by the province to continue these review responsibilities. Report #2024-P-16 Page 3 of 7 4. Following Proclamation 4.1 Upon proclamation, the following will occur: a. The Regional Official Plan would become the official plan for the lower-tier municipalities who could repeal or amend it. The new Regional Official Plan (“Envision Durham”) was approved by the province on September 3, 2024. The Final Decision is not subject to appeal. Area municipalities are currently working on updating their official plans to conform to Envision Durham, while considering how the new Provincial Planning Statement (2024) that came into effect on October 20, 2024, can be implemented; b. Area municipalities will assume approval authority for all Planning Act decisions, except official plans and official plan amendments (including secondary plans), which will need to be approved by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing; and c. All eight area municipalities will have approval authority over subdivisions. condominiums, land division, and part lot control exemption by-laws. Commenting responsibilities on all land use planning applications and related matters will continue to be performed by the Region to protect Regional interests related to infrastructure, services and Regionally-owned land. 4.2 A draft Planning Services Agreement was prepared last year that could allow an area municipality to request development related planning advice, assistance, services or expertise from the Region. Regional planning staff could then be contracted to provide support similar to the way other Regional supports are provided in areas of human resources, IT and legal. It is expected that the northern townships may require Regional planning support, more so than the southern municipalities, depending on the future volumes of planning and development activity. 5. The term “Upper tier municipality without planning responsibilities” does not mean the elimination of the upper tier planning function 5.1 Bill 23 introduced a new definition into the Planning Act called “Upper tier municipalities without planning responsibilities”. This new term is unfortunate because it has created confusion among some of our stakeholders regarding the future of the upper tier planning function. While Bill 23 has proposed to remove certain planning approval responsibilities from the upper tiers, there are still a host of important regional planning functions that need to continue post-proclamation. The Region’s role in infrastructure and service planning is to ensure that growth- related infrastructure is planned, prioritized, funded and in place to support new Report #2024-P-16 Page 4 of 7 development. Decisions to invest in infrastructure and services are based on the coordination of planning permissions, an integrated approach to long range infrastructure planning, and capital financing so that required water, sewer, roads and other infrastructure and services will be available to enable new housing construction. 5.2 The new Regional Official Plan provides the policies and designations to guide the near doubling of Regional growth to a population of 1.3 million residents and 460,000 jobs by 2051. Accelerated levels of growth will occur through intensification and infill, transit-oriented development, on vacant urban area lands, redevelopment and within new communities within the Region’s eight area municipalities. Also through Bill 23, the Region’s five lakeshore municipalities were identified as “Large and Fast Growing Municipalities” and have adopted housing pledges that support accelerated growth in keeping with provincial housing objectives. 5.3 The new ROP will remain a guiding document for Regional Council to make infrastructure and service decisions, despite proclamation, as directed by Regional Council upon adoption of the new ROP in the spring of 2023. 5.4 Listed below is an overview of activities currently being undertaken by the Regional Planning Division that could be expected to continue following proclamation: Broader Regional Initiatives a. Coordination and provision of subject matter expertise for Regional Advisory Committees, including Durham Environment and Climate Change Advisory Committee, Durham Active Transportation Committee and the Durham Agricultural Advisory Committee. b. Planning-related expertise for portfolios such as sustainability, energy, Community Safety and Well-Being, Indigenous Engagement and other projects. c. Involvement with each of the region’s conservation authorities MOUs, annual budgets and workplans. d. Support of the work of the Economic Development and Tourism Division through data collection, policy development, reporting, mapping and measures that continue to preserve and support the agricultural land base. e. Responding to internal processes, including comments on the sale of surplus lands from the Region or municipalities, processing of MFIPPA requests, and requests under the Retail Holiday Business Act for changes to hours of operation. Report #2024-P-16 Page 5 of 7 f. Providing evidence/materials for OLT Hearings or other Tribunals for planning related hearings, presentations at Committees and Council for development related planning matters that involve a Regional interest. Development Advisory Services g. Coordination of street naming, in consultation with Durham Regional Police Services in order to avoid the use of similar sounding street names to reduce confusion for emergency services. h. Updating and administering of the Region’s Woodland By-law enforcement consultant, including reviewing and approval of Good Forestry Practices and Clear-Cutting Permit requests under the Regional Woodland By-law. i. One window review/commenting on development applications, area municipal plans and studies, area municipal official plans, official plan amendments and secondary plans, proposals from external agencies and initiatives from other levels of government that affect the Region’s interest in land, development, services or infrastructure. j. Commenting on various plans/initiatives/studies or applications for neighbouring municipalities, land use compatibility with Regional facilities/infrastructure, third party infrastructure proposals, provincial Environmental Certificate of Approval applications, and aggregates licensing. Growth Management/Data Analytics k. Ongoing monitoring, analysis, forecasting and reporting on region-wide development, land use, transportation and demographic trends to inform decisions on infrastructure needs to expand growth management and data analytic capabilities. l. Planning related GIS capabilities and geographic data to enable reporting on development and land related geographic information to enable informed decision making by internal departments, area municipalities, businesses, stakeholders and the public in a variety of land use related fields. m. Support, develop and advance reporting on planning related data, including key performance indicators within the Strategic Plan, and public facing interactive GIS mapping tools, dashboards, viewers and data aggregation. n. Conducting and ensuring accuracy of the Region’s Annual Business Count. o. Producing mapping, graphics, and data products used by the Department, other Regional Departments, external stakeholders, agencies, area municipalities and the public. Report #2024-P-16 Page 6 of 7 Transportation Planning p. Work to support long-term transportation planning to ready the Region for forecasted levels of growth through transportation modelling, impact analysis and through an update to the Transportation Master Plan. Key transportation initiatives are currently underway in support of the GO East extension, active and sustainable mobility initiatives, high frequency rail, freight and goods movement and transit-oriented development initiatives. q. Elevating the importance of active transportation, promote reducing car dependency and advance active and sustainable modes of travel advancing initiatives under Smart Mobility Durham (Smart Commute Durham, Cycle Durham, Active and Sustainable School Travel Plans, and Carpool Lots/Small Urban and Rural Carpool Lots). Housing Planning Policy and Implementation r. Assistance for Social Services Affordable Housing Development and Renewal to expedite new development on Regionally owned sites and the provision of planning expertise, as required. s. Support Regional redevelopment/regeneration initiatives for new affordable and supportive housing. 6. Next Steps 6.1 Regional staff will continue to monitor how Halton, Peel and York are dealing with their transition processes so we can have the benefit of lessons learned should a proclamation date be announced for Durham Region. 6.2 Through the development of a Memorandum of Understanding with the province, and our area municipalities, the division of responsibilities will continue to be further refined. 7. Previous Reports and Decisions 7.1 The implications of Bill 23 on the Region of Durham was first presented through Report #2022-COW-33 in December of 2022. 7.2 The delegation of Durham Region’s Land Division responsibilities and an update on Bill 23 was provided through Report #2023-P-22 in September of 2023. Report #2024-P-16 Page 7 of 7 8. Relationship to Strategic Plan 8.1 This report aligns with the Strategic Goal of Service Excellence in the Durham Region Strategic Plan and the following priorities: a. 5.1: Optimizing resources and partnerships to deliver exceptional quality services and value: by ensuring capacity and training are provided and available for consent applications; and b. 5.2 Collaborating for a seamless service experience: by ensuring that training, materials, time and communication are provided so that existing and future land division applicants are aware of process changes. 9. Conclusion 9.1 Staff will report on any Bill 23 related matters and any progress related to the creation of Memoranda of Understanding with the province or our area municipalities as information becomes available or progress is made. 9.2 A copy of this report will be shared with Durham’s area municipalities and conservation authorities. Respectfully submitted, Original signed by Brian Bridgeman, MCIP, RPP, PLE Commissioner of Planning and Economic Development Recommended for Presentation to Committee Original signed by Elaine C. Baxter-Trahair Chief Administrative Officer