Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE:
January 11, 2022
CASE NO(S).:
PL190391
PL190392
MM200028
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd.
Subject:
Request to amend the Official Plan - Refusal of request by Township of Ramara
Existing Designation:
Rural
Proposed Designated:
Mineral Aggregate Extraction
Purpose:
To permit the expansion of the existing licensed quarry area
Property Address/Description:
7723 Rama Road
Municipality:
Township of Ramara
Approval Authority File No.:
OP-1/17
OLT Case No.:
PL190391
OLT File No.:
PL190391
OLT Case Name:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd. v. Ramara (Township)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd.
Subject:
Application amend Zoning By-law No. 2005-85 - Refusal of Application by Township of Ramara
Existing Zoning:
Rural (RU)
Proposed Zoning:
Mineral Aggregate Extraction (MAE)
Purpose:
To permit the expansion of the existing licensed quarry area
Property Address/Description:
7723 Rama Road
Municipality:
Township of Ramara
Municipality File No.:
Z-8/17
OLT Case No.:
PL190391
OLT File No.:
PL190392
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 11(5) of the Aggregate Resources Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. A.8, as amended
Referred by:
Katie O’Connell
Objector:
Greg Armstrong
Objector:
Marilyn Armstrong
Objector:
William Armstrong
Objector:
Gary Bennett; and others
Applicant:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd.
Subject:
Application for a Class A licence for the removal of aggregate
Property Address/Description:
Part Lot 40, Concession Broken Front
Municipality:
Township of Ramara
OLT Case No.:
PL190391
OLT File No.:
MM200028
Case Name: Fowler Construction Company Ltd. v. Ramara (Township)
BEFORE:
M. A. SILLS
Tuesday, the 11^th^
VICE-CHAIR
day of January, 2022
THE TRIBUNAL ORDERS that the Procedural Order, attached hereto as Appendix “1” shall be in force and effect for the purpose of governing the required procedures leading up to and including the hearing scheduled to commence on Tuesday, February 21, 2022 at 10 a.m. by Videoconference at https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/304369917. The length of the hearing will be 25 days. This order rescinds and replaces the previous procedural order issued by the Tribunal on December 16, 2021.
“Euken Lui”
EUKEN LUI
ACTING REGISTRAR
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.
APPENDIX 1
ISSUE DATE: January 11, 2022 CASE NO(S).: PL190391, PL190392 and MM200028
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd.
Subject:
Request to amend the Official Plan - Refusal or request by Township of Ramara
Existing Designation:
Rural
Proposed Designation:
Mineral Aggregate Extraction
Purpose:
To permit the expansion of the existing licensed quarry area
Property Address/Description:
7723 Rama Road
Municipality:
Township of Ramara
Approval Authority File No.:
OP-1/17
OLT Case No.:
PL190391
OLT File No.:
PL190391
OLT Case Name:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd. v. Ramara (Township)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd.
Subject:
Application to amend Zoning By-law No. 2005-85 - Refusal of Application by Township of Ramara
Existing Zoning:
Rural (RU)
Proposed Zoning:
Mineral Aggregate Extraction (MAE)
Purpose:
To permit the expansion of the existing licensed quarry area
Property Address/Description:
7723 Rama Road
Municipality:
Township of Ramara
Approval Authority File No.:
Z-8/17
OLT Case No.:
PL190391
OLT File No.:
PL190392
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 11(5) of the Aggregate Resources Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. A. 8, as amended
Referred by:
Katie O’Connell
Objector:
Greg Armstrong
Objector:
Marilyn Armstrong
Objector:
William Armstrong
Objector:
Gary Bennett; and others
Applicant:
Fowler Construction Company Ltd., James Gordon
Subject:
Application for a Class A licence for the removal of aggregate
Property Address/Description:
Part Lot 40, Concession Broken Front
Municipality:
Township of Ramara
OLT Case No.:
PL190391
OLT File No.:
MM200028
- The Tribunal may vary or add to these rules at any time, either on request or as it sees fit. It may alter this Order by an oral ruling, or by another written Order.
Organization of the Hearing
The video hearing will begin on February 22, 2022 at 10 a.m. at https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/304369917. The access code is 304-369-917.
The parties’ initial estimation for the length of the hearing is 25 days. The parties are expected to cooperate to reduce the length of the hearing by eliminating redundant evidence and attempting to reach settlements on issues where possible.
The parties and participants identified at the case management conference are set out in Attachment 1.
The Issues are set out in the Issues List attached as Attachment 2. There will be no changes to this list unless the Tribunal permits, and a party who asks for changes may have costs awarded against it.
The order of evidence shall be as set out in Attachment 3 to this Order. The Tribunal may limit the amount of time allocated for opening statements, evidence in chief (including the qualification of witnesses), cross-examination, evidence in reply and final argument. The length of written argument, if any, may be limited either on consent or by Order of the Tribunal.
Any person intending to participate in the hearing should provide a mailing address, email address and a telephone number to the Tribunal as soon as possible – ideally before the case management conference. Any person who will be retaining a representative should advise the other parties and the Tribunal of the representative’s name, address, email address and the phone number as soon as possible.
Any person who intends to participate in the hearing, including parties, counsel and witnesses, is expected to review the Tribunal’s Video Hearing Guide, available on the Tribunal’s website (https://olt.gov.on.ca/tribunals/lpat/).
Requirements Before the Hearing
A party who intends to call witnesses, whether by summons or not, shall provide to the Tribunal, the other parties and to the municipal clerk a list of the witnesses and the order in which they will be called. This list must be delivered on or before November 24, 2021 and in accordance with paragraph 22 below. A party who intends to call an expert witness must include a copy of the witness’ Curriculum Vitae and the area of expertise in which the witness is prepared to be qualified.
Expert witnesses in the same field shall have a meeting on or before January 24, 2022 and use best efforts to try to resolve or reduce the issues for the hearing. Following the experts’ meeting the parties must prepare and file a Statement of Agreed Facts and Issues with the OLT case co-ordinator on or before February 2, 2022.
An expert witness shall prepare an expert witness statement, which shall list any reports prepared by the expert, or any other reports or documents to be relied on at the hearing. Copies of this must be provided as in paragraph 13 below. Instead of a witness statement, the expert may file his or her entire report if it contains the required information. If this is not done, the Tribunal may refuse to hear the expert’s testimony.
Expert witnesses who are under summons but not paid to produce a report do not have to file an expert witness statement; but the party calling them must file a brief outline of the expert’s evidence as in paragraph 13 below. A party who intends to call a witness who is not an expert must file a brief outline of the witness’ evidence, as in paragraph 13 below.
On or before January 14, 2022, the parties shall provide copies of their [witness and] expert witness statements to the other parties and to the municipal Clerk of the Township of Ramara and the County of Simcoe and to the OLT case co-ordinator and in accordance with paragraph 23 below.
On or before January 10, 2022, a participant shall provide copies of their written participant statement to the other parties in accordance with paragraph 23 below. A participant cannot present oral submissions at the hearing on the content of their written statement, unless ordered by the Tribunal.
On or before January 3, 2022, an objector shall provide a copy of their written statement to the other parties in accordance with paragraph 23 below.
On or before February 8, 2022, the parties shall provide copies of their visual evidence to all of the other parties. If a model will be used, all parties must have a reasonable opportunity to view it before the hearing.
Parties may provide to all other parties and the OLT case co-ordinator a written response to any written evidence on or before January 24, 2022.
The parties shall cooperate to prepare a joint document book which shall be shared with the OLT case co-ordinator, on or before February 7, 2022.
Any documents which may be used by a party in cross examination of an opposing party’s witness shall be password protected and only be accessible to the Tribunal and the other parties if it is introduced as evidence at the hearing, pursuant to the directions provided by the OLT case co-ordinator, on or before February 17, 2022.
A person wishing to change written evidence, including witness statements, must make a written motion to the Tribunal. See Rule 10 of the Tribunal’s Rules with respect to Motions, which requires that the moving party provide copies of the motion to all other parties 15 days before the Tribunal hears the motion.
A party who provides written evidence of a witness to the other parties must have the witness attend the hearing to give oral evidence, unless the party notifies the Tribunal at least 7 days before the hearing that the written evidence is not part of their record.
The parties shall prepare and file a preliminary hearing plan with the Tribunal on or before February 7, 2022 with a proposed schedule for the hearing that identifies, as a minimum, the parties participating in the hearing, the preliminary matters (if any to be addressed), the anticipated order of evidence, the date each witness is expected to attend, the anticipated length of time for evidence to be presented by each witness in chief, cross-examination and re-examination (if any) and the expected length of time for final submissions. The parties are expected to ensure that the hearing proceeds in an efficient manner and in accordance with the hearing plan. The Tribunal may, at its discretion, change or alter the hearing plan at any time in the course of the hearing.
All filing shall be electronic and in hard copy. Electronic copies may be filed by email, an electronic file sharing service for documents that exceed 10MB in size, or as otherwise directed by the Tribunal. The delivery of documents email shall be governed by Rule 7. No adjournments or delays will be granted before or during the hearing except for serious hardship or illness. The Tribunal’s Rule 17 applies to such requests.
This Member is [not] seized.
So orders the Tribunal.
BEFORE:
Name of Member: Date:
____________________________
TRIBUNAL REGISTRAR
ATTACHMENT 1 - PARTIES AND PARTICIPANTS
PARTIES
Party Name
Contact Information
Fowler Construction Company Ltd.
Counsel - Kim Mullin/Monica Poremba
Wood, Bull LLP
65 Queen Street West, Suite 1400
Toronto, ON M5H 2M5
Tel: (416) 203-5633/416-203-7589
E-mail: kmullin@woodbull.ca/
Township of Ramara
Counsel - John Ewart
Ewart O, Dwyer
311 George Street North
Peterborough, ON K9J 3H3
Tel: (705) 874-0404
E-mail: jewart@ewartodwyer.com
The Corporation of the County of Simcoe
Counsel - E. Marshall Green
1110 Highway 26
Midhurst, ON L9X 1N6
Tel: (705) 726-9300 ext. 1657
E-mail: marshall.green@simcoe.ca
Ramara Legacy Alliance
Counsel - David Donnelly/Morgan Fletcher
Donnelly Law, Barrister and Solicitor
276 Carlaw Avenue, Suite 203
Toronto, ON M4M 3L1
Tel: (416) 572-0464
E-mail: david@donnellylaw.ca/
ATTACHMENT 2 - ISSUES LIST
Note: The identification of an issue does not mean that all parties agree that such issue, or the manner in which the issue is expressed, is appropriate or relevant to the determination of the Tribunal at the hearing. The extent to which these issues are appropriate or relevant to the determination of the Tribunal at the hearing will be a matter of evidence and argument at the hearing.
Do the applications to amend the Township of Ramara Official Plan and the Township of Ramara Zoning By-law (“Proposed Amendments”) have appropriate regard for the matters of provincial interest set out in Section 2 of the Planning Act, in particular, subsections 2(a), 2(c), 2(h) and 2(o)?
Are the Proposed Amendments consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement, 2020 in particular, sections 1.1.1, 1.1.4.1, 1.1.5.2, 1.1.5.8, 1.2.6, 1.6.7.1, 1.7.1, 2.2.1, 2.2.2, 2.5.1, 2.5.2.1, 2.5.2.2, 2.5.2.3, 2.5.3.1 and 2.5.3.2?
Do the Proposed Amendments conform or not conflict with A Place to Grow: Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2019, in particular sections 4.2.8.2.b.iii, 4.2.8.2.c, 4.2.8.3, 4.2.8.5.a, 4.2.8.5.b, 4.2.8.6 and 4.2.8.7?
Do the Proposed Amendments conform with the County of Simcoe Official Plan, in particular sections 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 3.3.16, 3.3.21, 3.3.22, 3.7.10, 3.8.13, 4.4.1, 4.4.6, 4.4.7, 4.4.8, 4.4.10, 4.5.1, 4.5.2 and 4.5.4.2A?
Does the application to amend the Township of Ramara Zoning By-law conform with the Township of Ramara Official Plan, in particular sections 3.2, 3.3.1, 3.3.9, 3.3.10, 5.3.4.11, 5.3.5.2, 9.11.2, 9.11.3, 9.11.4, 9.11.5 and 9.11.8?
Do the Proposed Amendments conform with the Mineral Aggregate Extraction Area policies in the Township of Ramara Official Plan that have been adopted but not approved, namely sections 9.11.2, 9.11.3.1, 9.11.4.2, 9.11.4.3, 9.11.4.5, 9.11.5.1(e)(ii) an 9.11.5.1(f)(vi), and what weight should be applied to those policies?
With respect to potential noise impacts:
a. Will the proposed quarry result in any unacceptable noise impacts to nearby noise sensitive uses?
b. Is the proposed monitoring and mitigation adequate to ensure compliance with applicable Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) guidelines/standards?
c. If the answer to (b) is negative, what additional monitoring and mitigation requirements could be put in place to ensure that MECP guidelines/standards are met?
- With respect to potential air quality impacts:
a. Will the proposed quarry result in any unacceptable air quality impacts to nearby sensitive uses?
b. Is the proposed monitoring and mitigation adequate to ensure compliance with applicable MECP guidelines/standards?
c. If the answer to (b) is negative, what additional monitoring and mitigation requirements could be put in place to ensure that MECP guidelines/standards are met?
- With respect to potential blasting impacts:
a. Will the proposed blasting activities result in any unacceptable impacts?
b. Should the applications be approved, what if any mitigation measures should be imposed to address blasting impacts?
- With respect to potential hydrogeological impacts:
a. Will the proposed quarry operations result in any unacceptable hydrogeological impacts?
b. Should the applications be approved, what if any mitigation and monitoring measures should be imposed to address hydrogeological impacts?
Do the proposed site plan drawings and license conditions include adequate monitoring and contingency measures to ensure that the proposed quarry will not have any adverse impacts on private drinking water wells in the vicinity of the proposed quarry?
Under the proposed Mineral Aggregate Extraction (MEA) Zone what, if any, accessory uses and ancillary uses should be permitted?
In the event that the Tribunal allows the appeal in whole or in part, should a “H” symbol or holding provision be incorporated into the zoning for the subject lands and if so, what conditions should be included in such a holding provision?
Is the Aggregate Resources Act licence application, including its Site Plan (“ARA Application”), consistent with the "matters to be considered" under section 12 of the Aggregate Resources Act, in particular sections 12(b), (d), €, (f), (h), (i) and (j) and the Aggregate Resources of Ontario: Provincial Standards (Category 2)?
Will appropriate mitigation be in place to minimize any adverse impacts arising from the proposed quarry extension on the surrounding residences, commercial uses and natural features?
Do the Proposed Amendments appropriately implement the ARA Application?
Has the applicant addressed the mitigation of impacts on Switch Road and has the applicant demonstrated that the proposal will not result in unacceptable traffic operations or safety impacts at the intersection of Rama Road (County Road 44) and Switch Road and along the Rama Road haul route?
Do the applications comprehensively address the potential adverse impacts on the local community within the Township of Ramara?
Have the impacts on specific land uses within the community been adequately identified and has the applicant proposed sufficient mitigation measures?
Are the proposed Site Plan Notes comprehensive and do they represent longer term commitments by the proponent to operate and manage the Quarry to Township standards/policies and do they provide certainty that monitoring and mitigation measures will address foreseen and unforeseen impacts in the community?
Has the applicant carries out progressive rehabilitation in compliance with the licence requirements for the existing quarry?
Should the Site Plan Notes limit extraction to a depth of 1.5 m above the established (seasonally high) groundwater table on all lands within the proposed licence proposed for above-water extraction?
Does the proposal give rise to an undue impact on the surrounding area and its character?
If the Tribunal does approve the proposal, what is the appropriate form of the zoning bylaw and site plans and what conditions of the Tribunal’s approval are appropriate?
Are one or more agreements required between the Township and the applicant and, if so, what are the appropriate terms of any such agreement(s)?
Does the proposal represent good planning, and is it in the public interest?
ATTACHMENT 3 - ORDER OF EVIDENCE
Fowler Construction Company Ltd
Township of Ramara
Ramara Legacy Alliance
Other objectors
Fowler Construction Company Ltd. (Reply)