Motions granted; urban boundary expansion applications deemed complete as City's additional study requirements were unreasonable.
The applicants brought motions under s. 22(6.2) of the Planning Act for directions to determine the completeness of their respective Official Plan Amendment applications seeking to expand the urban boundary.
The City of Ottawa had deemed the applications incomplete, citing the need for additional studies and reports under a newly enacted Development Application Study Policy By-law.
The Tribunal found that the City's Official Plan did not explicitly enumerate the additional requirements, failing the condition precedent in s. 22(5) of the Act.
Furthermore, the Tribunal held that the requested materials, including an Infrastructure Capacity Assessment to be completed by the City, were unreasonable requirements for the procedural step of deeming an application complete.
The Tribunal also applied the Clergy principle to find that the new requirements did not apply retroactively to the Caivan application.
Both motions were granted, and the applications were deemed complete as of their respective submission dates.
OLTOntario Land TribunalMay 8, 2025
