Zoning by-law amendment repealed as proposed residential lots failed to meet agricultural minimum distance separation setbacks.
The appellant, an area livestock farmer, appealed a municipal decision approving a Zoning By-law Amendment that permitted three new residential lots on a former gravel extraction site.
The central issue was whether the proposed development constituted a Type A or Type B land use under the Minimum Distance Separation (MDS) I guidelines, which would determine the required setback from the appellant's livestock barns.
The Tribunal preferred the evidence of the appellant's summoned expert from OMAFRA, finding that the proposed use constituted a Type B use because the lots remained in immediate proximity to existing non-agricultural uses, despite the introduction of an open space buffer.
As a Type B use, the development fell within the required 637-metre setback, rendering the amendment inconsistent with the Provincial Policy Statement and non-conformant with the Growth Plan and municipal official plans.
The appeal was allowed and the by-law repealed.
OLTOntario Land TribunalJul 4, 2023
