Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: March 01, 2023
CASE NO(S).: OLT-22-004390
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 25(8) of the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. N.2
Appellant: See Appendix 1 - Appellant List
Applicant: John Slocombe
Respondent: Niagara Escarpment Commission
Subject: Conditions of Approval of a Development Permit Application
Description: Relocate existing North Shore Road at Barrow Bay, construct access to private property, construct retaining wall, place culverts and riprap, establish drainage easements, and construct parking pads
Reference Number: B/T/2022-2023/55
Property Address: 42 North Shore Road
Municipality/Upper Tier: Northern Bruce Peninsula, County of Bruce
OLT Lead Case No: OLT-22-004390
OLT Case No: OLT-22-004390
OLT Case Name: Levesque v. Ontario (Niagara Escarpment Commission)
Heard: January 9, 2023 by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
Parties
Counsel*/Representative
John Levesque
Nicholas Lovell*
Adam Best
Self-represented
Diane Boal
Brian Boal
Elaine Levesque
Self-represented
Leslie McBeth
Self-represented
Odin Cappello
Self-represented
Kathy Davey
Self-represented
Sheila McBeth
Self-represented
Jeff Rolph
Self-represented
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY JENNIFER CAMPBELL ON JANUARY 9, 2023 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
1This Decision arises from a Case Management Conference (“CMC”) brought before the Ontario Land Tribunal (the “Tribunal”) regarding the appeal brought by the Appellants of a decision of the Niagara Escarpment Commission (the “NEC” or the “Respondent”) dated August 26, 2022, granting conditional approval for a development permit (the “Development Permit”) to (i) relocate a portion of North Shore Road located in Northern Bruce Peninsula, Ontario, onto an existing municipal right-of-way; (ii) construct access through Lot 14; (iii) construct a retaining wall and culverts; (iv) construct parking pads; and (v) conduct other associated work.
Party and Participant Matters
2The Respondent advised the Tribunal, prior to the commencement of the CMC, that it would not be participating in these proceedings, as it was of the view that the appeal relates to objections concerning the portion of North Shore Road which is located outside of the “area of development control” over which the NEC has jurisdiction pursuant to the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act (the “Act”) and to which the Development Permit relates.
3Prior to the CMC, the Tribunal received Participant Status requests from Michael Hutchinson, Dave Melchin, Scott and Cathy Zimmer, William Jason and Kirstin Lee Austen, Judith Maguire, Christopher Bigness, Helen Greig, Joanne Brouwer and Derek and Sherri Seibel (collectively, the “Participant Applicants”). Each of the Participant Applicants owns property on North Shore Road in the vicinity of the proposed work to be undertaken pursuant to the Development Permit, and all of their respective participant applications were on consent. The Hearing Office found that there are reasonable grounds to add each of the Participant Applicants as Participants in the proceeding, and granted each of them Participant status, as requested.
Issues and Related Matters
4A Procedural Order (“PO”) was not filed prior to the CMC, and no Issues List had been prepared by the Parties. With the assistance of the Tribunal, the Parties reviewed a map delineating that portion of North Shore Road to which the Development Permit relates, which falls under the jurisdiction of the NEC as an area of development control (the “Subject Area”). Several of the Parties expressed concerns relating to proposed development on the portion of North Shore Road which is located east of the Subject Area, over which the NEC does not have jurisdiction and which is not the subject of the Development Permit. After further discussion, it remained unclear whether any of the Parties’ concerns related to issues located within the Subject Area and which would be the appropriate subject of an appeal to the Tribunal in this matter.
5Due to the number of Parties involved, the Tribunal recommended that a single representative be appointed for efficiency purposes. Furthermore, it was agreed that a further CMC would be scheduled to allow time for the Parties to meet and determine if they wished to pursue the current appeal, and if so, to frame their issues appropriately with respect to the applicable legislation and its application to the Development Permit and Subject Area.
Opportunities for Settlement Discussions
6The Parties discussed the possibility of resolving their concerns by engaging in further discussions with the municipality concerning proposed development on the portion of North Shore Road located to the east of the Subject Area, which the Hearing Office encouraged.
Scheduling of a further CMC
7The Hearing Office directed that a further CMC will be held on March 16, 2023. The Hearing Office ordered that the Appellants’ report back to the Hearing Office prior to March 16, 2023, should they determine to withdraw their appeal in this matter. In the event that the Appellants determine not to withdraw their appeal prior to the March 16, 2023 CMC, the Hearing Office orders that a draft PO and Issues List be filed with the Hearing Office at least one day prior to the next CMC.
ORDER
8The Hearing Office orders that a further CMC will be held by video hearing on Thursday, March 16, 2023, commencing at 10 a.m.
9The Tribunal directs that a PO and Issues List be filed by the Parties by March 15, 2023.
10Parties 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/692665589
Access Code: 692-665-589
11Parties 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
12Persons 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 as indicated above.
13Individuals 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.
14There will be no further notice.
15This Hearing Officer is not seized.
“Jennifer Campbell”
jennifer campbell
HEARING OFFICER
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
Appellant List
Appellant Name
File No.
Joel Levesque
006799
Adam Best
006800
David Hosken
006801
Diane Boal
006802
Ed Scharlach
006803
Elaine Levesque
006804
Ena McMillan
006805
Henrietta Mason
006806
Leslie McBeth and Odin Cappello
006807
Linda Galbraith
006808
Maurice Levesque
006809
Michael Flick
006810
Kathy Davey and Sheila McBeth
006811
Jeff Rolph
006815