Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: November 17, 2022
CASE NO(S).: OLT-22-004090
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended
Applicant/Appellant: Markham Main Street RR. Inc. c/o SmartCentres Inc.
Subject: Request to amend the Official Plan – Failure to adopt the requested amendment
Description: To permit a six storey, 308 unit retirement residence
Reference Number: PLAN 20 136386
Property Address/Description: 134, 136, 140, 144, and 152 Main Street North and 12 Wilson Street
Municipality/UT: Markham/York
OLT Case No.: OLT-22-004090
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-22-004090
OLT Case Name: Markham Main Street RR Inc. v. Markham (City)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended
Applicant/Appellant: Markham Main Street RR. Inc. c/o SmartCentres Inc.
Subject: Application to amend the Zoning By-law – Refusal or neglect to make a decision
Description: To permit a six storey, 308 unit retirement residence
Reference Number: PLAN 20 136386
Property Address/Description: 134, 136, 140, 144, and 152 Main Street North and 12 Wilson Street
Municipality/UT: Markham/York
OLT Case No.: OLT-22-004091
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-22-004090
Heard: October 11, 2022 by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
| Parties | Counsel |
|---|---|
| Markham Main Street RR Inc. c/o SmartCentres Inc. | Jason Park |
| City of Markham | Maggie Cheung-Madar |
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY S. BOBKA ON OCTOBER 11, 2022 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
1This was the first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) regarding an appeal pursuant to s. 22(7) and 34(11) of the Planning Act ("Act") by Markham Main Street RR Inc. c/o SmartCentres Inc. ("Appellant") against the City of Markham ("City") for failure to make decisions within the statutory timeframes on applications for an Official Plan Amendment ("OPA") and Zoning By-law Amendment ("ZBA") for the properties municipally known as 134, 136, 140, 144 and 152 Main Street Markham North, and 12 Wilson Street ("Subject Lands").
2The OPA and ZBA are required to permit the proposed six storey retirement residence comprised of 308 units and 162 parking spaces (120 underground).
3The Tribunal confirmed that proper Notice was given and marked the Affidavit of Service as Exhibit 1.
REQUESTS FOR STATUS
4Prior to the CMC, the Tribunal received two written requests for Participant status from Simon Chan and Winnie Tsang. The Tribunal granted these requests with no objections from the Parties. No other requests for status were received, and as such, the appeal will proceed with the involvement only of the Appellant, the City and the two Participants.
MEDIATION AND SETTLEMENT
5The Tribunal inquired as to any opportunities for settlement, including the use of Tribunal-led mediation. All Parties were open to settlement discussions in one form or another. Mr. Park indicated that the Appellant was interested and would be applying for formal mediation through the Tribunal. Ms. Cheung-Madar advised that while she had not yet received instructions from Council, the City was open to both formal and informal negotiations.
PROCEDURAL ORDER/ISSUES LIST
6The Appellant and the City submitted a draft Procedural Order ("PO") and Issues List ("IL") in advance of the CMC. The IL contained the issues from the City, which Ms. Cheung-Madar advised were preliminary issues, as she had not yet received instructions from Council. She advised that instructions would be available after the December 13, 2022 Council meeting, following which, the IL might be further refined. The Tribunal directed the Parties to complete and submit the finalized PO and IL on or before December 20, 2022.
HEARING
7The Tribunal canvassed the Parties regarding the number of witnesses and the amount of time required for the hearing of the merits. Given the number of Parties and issues, the Tribunal determined that a six (6) day hearing was required and scheduled a video hearing which will commence at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 6, 2023 for six (6) days.
8Parties and Participants are asked to log into the video hearing at least 15 minutes before the start of the event to test their video and audio connections:
https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/660145013
Access code: 660-145-013
9Parties and participants are asked to access and set up the application well in advance of the event to avoid unnecessary delay. The desktop application can be downloaded at GoToMeeting or a web application is available: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html
10Persons who experience technical difficulties accessing the GoToMeeting application or who only wish to listen to the event can connect to the event by calling into an audio-only telephone line: (Toll Free) 1-888-299-1889 or +1(647) 497-9373. The access code is 660-145-013.
11Individuals are directed to connect to the event on the assigned date at the correct time. It is the responsibility of the persons participating in the hearing by video to ensure that they are properly connected to the event at the correct time. Questions prior to the hearing event may be directed to the Tribunal’s Case Coordinator having carriage of this case.
ORDER
12The Tribunal orders that:
a. Simon Chan and Winnie Tsang are each granted Participant status;
b. The Parties will submit a revised Procedural Order including Issues List for the Tribunal's review and approval on or before December 20, 2022;
c. A six (6) day hearing will begin at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 6, 2023;
d. There will be no further notice and the Member is not seized.
“S. Bobka”
S. BOBKa
MEMBER
Ontario Land Tribunal
Website: olt.gov.on.ca Telephone: 416-212-6349 Toll Free: 1-866-448-2248
The Conservation Review Board, the Environmental Review Tribunal, the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal and the Mining and Lands Tribunal are amalgamated and continued as the Ontario Land Tribunal (“Tribunal”). Any reference to the preceding tribunals or the former Ontario Municipal Board is deemed to be a reference to the Tribunal.