Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: November 22, 2021
CASE NO(S).: PL210288
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant: Angus Glen Landowners’ Group Inc.
Subject: Request to amend the Official Plan - Failure of the City of Markham to adopt the requested amendment
Existing Designation: “Future Neighbourhood Area” and “Greenway”
Proposed Designation: To establish the Angus Glen Secondary Plan
Purpose: To establish the Angus Glen Secondary Plan for the purpose of guiding the development of a proposed master-planned community to consist of 6,000 housing units with a population of 18,900 and to also provide policy direction with respect to matters related to the Greenway System, including direction with respect to road linkages and the location of parks and stormwater management facilities
Property Address/Description: 411 hectares (1,015.6 acres) of land bounded by Major Mackenzie Drive to the south, Elgin Mills Road to the north, Warden Avenue to the west and Kennedy Road to the east
Municipality: City of Markham
Approval Authority File No.: OP-17-130159
OLT Case No.: PL210288
OLT File No.: PL210288
OLT Case Name: Angus Glen Landowners’ Group Inc. v. Markham (City)
Heard: November 9, 2021 by video hearing
APPEARANCES:
Parties
Counsel
City of Markham
Francesco Santaguida Victoria Chai
Angus Glen Landowners Group Inc.
Ira T. Kagan Kristie Jennings
Regional Municipality of York
Bola Ogunmefun Mercedes Mueller
York Region District School Board York Catholic District School Board
Buck Sully
Conseil scolaire Viamonde
Aaron Platt Samantha Lampert Amylee Hu-Fouye
Toronto Region Conservation Authority
Barbara Montgomery
Romandale Farms Ltd.
Rodney Northey Meaghan McDermid
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY BRYAN W. TUCKEY ON NOVEMBER 9, 2021 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
1This is the second Case Management Conference (“CMC”) respecting an appeal by the Angus Glen Landowners Group Inc. (“Angus Glen”) pursuant to s. 22 (7) of the Planning Act against the failure of the City of Markham (“City”) to make a decision within the statutory time frame regarding an Official Plan Amendment (“OPA”) which has the objective of establishing the Angus Glen Secondary Plan (“Secondary Plan”).
2The purpose of this second CMC is to review a draft Procedural Order (“PO”) which will include an Issues List from all parties, discuss a preliminary list of witnesses to assist in determining the length of a hearing, and schedule a hearing of the merits. Romandale Farms Ltd. (“Romandale”) had requested at the first CMC to have the scheduling of a hearing delayed as it is premature to do so before the outcome of court proceedings. Romandale was instructed to bring forward a Notice of Motion should they deem it necessary. Late Monday, November 8, 2021 the Tribunal received a “DRAFT Proposed Notice of Motion by Romandale Farms Limited”.
3The lands subject to the proposed OPA are bounded by Major Mackenzie Drive to the south, Elgin Mills Road to the north, Warden Avenue to the west and Kennedy Road to the east. The subject lands are approximately 411 hectares (1,015.6 acres).in area. There are several current uses including the Angus Glen Golf Club, the Angus Glen Community Centre, agricultural, greenway and rural uses.
4All parties are represented by counsel and one participant, Mandy Chan attended the CMC. There are also several observers present who have interest in this matter.
5Mr. Kagan on behalf of Angus Glen provided an update for the benefit of the Tribunal. He advised that a draft PO with a comprehensive Issues List was provided for the Tribunal’s consideration and preliminary witness lists have been circulated to assist in determining the length of a hearing. He requested that the Tribunal schedule a hearing of the merits and noted the only party opposing a hearing being scheduled is Romandale. There are issues remaining with the content of the PO. First, with Conseil scolaire Viamonde requesting that any modifications to the proposed secondary plan are completed and circulated prior to the date when witness statements are to be submitted. Mr. Kagan is in agreement with this request. Secondly, there are two requests from Romandale which are described later in this decision.
PROPOSED NOTICE OF MOTION BY ROMANDALE (“Motion”)
6Mr. Northey on behalf of Romandale spoke to the proposed Notice of Motion received on November 8, 2021. The proposed Motion stated: “Setting a hearing date is premature and should be deferred…” Reasons given are:
- Angus Glen has not completed the on-going Environmental Assessment (“EA”) that applies to the proposed road system that