Ontario Land Tribunal / Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: January 31, 2023
CASE NO(S).: OLT-22-003156
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(19) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Appellant: 2554281 Ontario Ltd.
Appellant: Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc.
Appellant: Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.)
Subject: By-law No. 2022-007
Description: To prohibit the use of land or the erection or use of buildings or structures unless adequate municipal water and wastewater services are available to service the land, buildings or structures
Reference Number: D14121
Property Address: Town Wide
Municipality/UT: Collingwood/Simcoe
OLT Case No.: OLT-22-003156
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-22-003156
OLT Case Name: 2554281 Ontario Ltd. v. Collingwood (Town)
Heard: September 8, 2022 by video hearing
APPEARANCES:
- 2554281 Ontario Ltd. — Did not appear
- Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc. — Patrick Harrington
- Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.) — Amber Stewart
- Town of Collingwood — Eric Davis and Steven O’Melia
- Consulate Developments (Ontario) Inc. — Scott Snider
- MacPherson Builders (Cranberry) Limited — Scott Snider
- 2737503 Ontario Inc. (Tokyo Smoke) — Jonathan Cheng
- Nova Cannabis Stores Limited Partnership — Andrew Jeanrie
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY S. BOBKA AND HUGH S. WILKINS ON September 8, 2022 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1This was the first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) with respect to an appeal under subsection 34(19) of the Planning Act by 2554281 Ontario Ltd., Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc. (“Crestpoint”) and Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.) (“Sunvale”) as a result of the Town of Collingwood’s (“Town”) decision to pass By-Law No. 2022-007 (“ZBL”).
2The ZBL is to prohibit the use of land or the erection or use of buildings or structures unless adequate municipal water and wastewater services are available to service the land, buildings or structures.
3Prior to the CMC, 2554281 Ontario Ltd. notified the Tribunal that it was withdrawing its appeal. It did not attend the CMC. The “Appellants” will refer to Crestpoint and Sunvale henceforth.
4The Tribunal marked as Exhibit 1 the Affidavit of Service of Nathan Wukasch, dated August 4, 2022, confirming that Notice of this CMC was properly given.
5Prior to and at the CMC, the Town made submissions requesting a second CMC to provide it with additional time to seek instructions from Council regarding the submitted requests for status. The Tribunal advised the Parties (and those requesting status) that it is its practice to hear requests for status at the first CMC and all should be prepared to address these requests.
REQUESTS FOR STATUS
6The Tribunal received the following requests for Party Status:
- Consulate Developments (Ontario) Inc. (“Consulate”), developer of Bridgewater on Georgian Bay;
- MacPherson Builders (Cranberry) Limited (“MacPherson”), developer of Blue Fairway at Cranberry Trail – Phase 5 and 6;
- 2737503 Ontario Inc. (Tokyo Smoke) (“Tokyo Smoke”), proposed cannabis store; and
- Nova Cannabis Stores Limited Partnership (“Nova Cannabis”), proposed cannabis store.
7The Appellants had no objections to any of the requests for status. The Town did not take a position regarding the requests by Consulate or MacPherson; however, it submitted that Tokyo Smoke and Nova Cannabis did not have issues specific to the ZBA, contending that their issues are site-specific in nature and relate to the continuation of an Interim Control By-Law (“ICBL”), which is not under appeal or before the Tribunal.
8It was the Tribunal’s determination that each requestor, including Tokyo Smoke and Nova Cannabis, would be impacted by the proceeding and would assist the Tribunal in coming to a decision. The Tribunal found that there are reasonable grounds (per s. 34(24.1) and (24.2) of the Planning Act) to add them as Parties. It granted Party status to each requestor.
9There was one request for Participant status from Huntingwood Trails (Collingwood) Ltd. (“Huntingwood”). The request was on consent of the Parties. The Tribunal granted it Participant status, as requested.
MEDIATION AND SETTLEMENT DISCUSSIONS
10The Tribunal inquired as to opportunities for settlement discussions, including the use of Tribunal-led mediation. All Parties were open to settlement discussions in one form or another and were advised to contact the case coordinator should they wish to pursue formal mediation through the Tribunal.
PROCEDURAL ORDER/ISSUES LIST
11The Town and the Appellants submitted a draft Procedural Order and Issues List in advance of the CMC, however, they advised that the Issues List had not yet been finalized. With the addition of the new Parties, all Parties agreed that the Issues List would be further refined, including the identification of the issues under which the non-Appellant Parties would be sheltering. They agreed to file a finalized draft Procedural Order and Issues List promptly.
12After significant delay, a final draft Procedural Order and Issues List was filed by the Parties on consent on January 14, 2023. The Tribunal has reviewed these documents and approves them in the form attached as Attachment 1 to this Order and Decision.
HEARING
13At the CMC, the Tribunal canvassed the Parties regarding the number of witnesses and the amount of time required for the hearing of this matter. Given the number of Parties and issues, the Tribunal determined that a nine (9) day hearing was required. A video hearing will commence at 10 a.m. on Monday, July 31, 2023 until Friday, August 11, 2023 for nine (9) days.
14Parties 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:
GoTo Meeting: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/344779885
Access code: 344-779-885
15Parties 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 at: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html
16Persons 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: Audio-only telephone line:+1 (647) 497-9373 or (Toll-Free) 1(888) 299-1889. The access code is 344-779-885.
17Individuals 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.
OTHER MATTERS
18The Tribunal inquired whether there were any additional matters to be addressed that might assist in the fair and efficient resolution of this matter. The Parties indicated there were none.
ORDER
19The Tribunal Orders:
i. Consulate Developments (Ontario) Inc., MacPherson Builders (Cranberry) Limited, 2737503 Ontario Inc. and Nova Cannabis Stores Limited Partnership are Parties in this proceeding;
ii. Huntingwood Trails (Collingwood) Ltd. is a Participant in this proceeding;
iii. A 9-day hearing will begin at 10 a.m. on Monday, July 31, 2023;
20There will be no further notice and this Panel is not seized.
“S. Bobka”
s. bobka
MEMBER
“Hugh S. Wilkins”
HUGH S. WILKINS
VICE-CHAIR
Ontario Land Tribunal
Website: www.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.
ATTACHMENT 1
CASE NO(S).: OLT-22-003156
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(19) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Appellant: 2554281 Ontario Ltd.
Appellant: Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc.
Appellant: Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.)
Subject: By-law No. 2022-007
Description: To prohibit the use of land or the erection or use of buildings or structures unless adequate municipal water and wastewater services are available to service the land, buildings or structures
Reference Number: D14121
Property Address: Town Wide
Municipality/UT: Collingwood/Simcoe
OLT Case No.:: OLT-22-003156
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-22-003156
OLT Case Name: 2554281 Ontario Ltd. v. Collingwood (Town)
PROCEDURAL ORDER
- The Tribunal may vary or add to the directions in this procedural order at any time by an oral ruling or by another written order, either on the parties’ request or its own motion.
Organization of the Hearing
The nine (9) day video hearing will begin on Monday, July 31, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. at a link to be provided.
The parties’ initial estimation for the length of the hearing is nine (9) 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 (see the sample procedural order for the meaning of these terms).
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 the parties’ consent, subject to the Tribunal’s approval, 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.
Requirements Before the Hearing
A party who intends to call witnesses, whether by summons or not, shall provide to the Tribunal and the other parties a list of the witnesses and the order in which they will be called. This list must be delivered on or before March 3, 2023 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 March 31, 2023, 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 May 2, 2023.
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 June 1, 2023, the parties shall provide copies of their witness and expert witness statements to the other parties and to the OLT case co-ordinator and in accordance with paragraph 22 below.
On or before June 1, 2023, a participant shall provide copies of their written participant statement to the other parties in accordance with paragraph 22 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 June 1, 2023, the parties shall confirm with the Tribunal if all the reserved hearing dates are still required.
On or before June 1, 2023, the parties shall provide copies of their visual evidence to all of the other parties in accordance with paragraph 22 below. 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 June 12, 2023 in accordance with paragraph 22 below.
The parties shall cooperate to prepare a joint document book which shall be shared with the OLT case co-ordinator on or before July 17, 2023.
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 July 17, 2023 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 filings shall be submitted electronically 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 by email shall be governed by the 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 Members are not seized. So orders the Tribunal.
SUMMARY OF DATES
| DATE | EVENT |
|---|---|
| March 3, 2023 | Exchange List of Proposed Witnesses (para. 9) |
| March 31, 2023 | Deadline for Expert Witness Meeting (para. 10) |
| May 2, 2023 | Deadline for Statement of Agreed Facts and Issues (para. 10) |
| June 1, 2023 | Deadline for Witness Statements, Expert Witness Statements, Participant Statements and Visual Evidence (paras. 13 to 16) |
| June 12, 2023 | Deadline for Written Responses (para. 17) |
| July 17, 2023 | Deadline for Joint Document Book / Hearing Plan (paras. 18 and 20) |
ATTACHMENT 1
LIST OF PARTIES
1. Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc. Appellant
Aird & Berlis LLP Brookfield Place, 181 Bay Street, Suite 1800 Toronto, ON M5J 2T9 Patrick Harrington Email: pharrington@airdberlis.com Tel: 416.865.3424
2. Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.) Appellant
Amber Stewart Law 70 Plunkett Road, Unit 6 Toronto, ON M9L 2J5 Amber Stewart Email: amber@amberstewartlaw.com Tel: 416.436.8355
3. Town of Collingwood Municipality
Miller Thomson LLP 295 Hagey Boulevard, Suite 300 Waterloo, ON N2L 6R5 Steven O’Melia Email: somelia@millerthomson.com Tel: 519.593.3289 Thomas Sanderson Email: tsanderson@millerthomson.com Tel: 519.593.2432
4. Consulate Developments (Ontario) Inc. Non-Appellant Party
Turkstra Mazza Associates 15 Bold Street Hamilton, ON L8P 1T3 Shelley Kaufman Email: skaufman@tmalaw.ca Tel: 519.434.3684 Scott Snider Email: ssnider@tmalaw.ca Tel: 905.529.3476
5. MacPherson Builders (Cranberry) Limited Non-Appellant Party
Turkstra Mazza Associates 15 Bold Street Hamilton, ON L8P 1T3 Shelley Kaufman Email: skaufman@tmalaw.ca Tel: 519.434.3684 Scott Snider Email: ssnider@tmalaw.ca Tel: 905.529.3476
6. 2737503 Ontario Inc. (o/a Tokyo Smoke) Non-Appellant Party
Stikeman Elliott LLP 5300 Commerce Court West 199 Bay Street Toronto, ON M5L 1B9 Jonathan Cheng Email: jcheng@stikeman.com Tel: 416.869.6807
7. Nova Cannabis Stores Limited Partnership Non-Appellant Party
Bennett Jones LLP 100 King Street W., Suite 3400 Toronto, ON M5X 1A4 Andrew Jeanrie E-mail: jeanriea@bennettjones.com Tel: 416.777.4814
8. Huntingwood Trails (Collingwood) Ltd. Participant
Davies Howe LLP The Tenth Floor 425 Adelaide Street West Toronto, Ontario M5V 3C1 Susan Rosenthal Email: susanr@davieshowe.com Tel: 416.263.4518 Andrew Valela Email: andrewv@davieshowe.com Tel: 416.263.4516
ATTACHMENT 2
ISSUES LIST
The identification of an issue on this list does not mean that all parties agree that the issue, or the manner in which it is expressed, is appropriate for or relevant to the proper determination of the appeals. The extent of the appropriateness and/or relevance of the issue may be a matter of evidence and/or argument at the hearing.
Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc.
- Is the requirement in section 4.15.3 to demonstrate “adequate municipal water and wastewater services” a lawful and appropriate means of
(a) imposing the Town’s Servicing Capacity Allocation Framework as a zoning regulation?
(b) determining the issuance of building permits pursuant to section 8 of the Building Code Act, 1992?
(c) providing for water and sewage public utilities pursuant to the Municipal Act, 2001?
Should proposed section 4.15.4 recognize the same exemptions that Town Council provided from Interim Control By-law No. 2021-024?
Should proposed section 4.15.4 include an exemption addressing changes in tenancies within existing commercial/retail/employment developments?
In what circumstances should the Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) inc. (“Blue Mountain Centre”) be required to prove that “adequate municipal water and wastewater services are available” for the use of its existing buildings and structures?
Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.)
Is By-law 2022-007, and particularly the use of the term “adequate” in describing the availability of municipal water and stormwater services, appropriate and sufficiently descriptive?
Is By-law 2022-007 within the scope of authority set out in s. 34(5) of the Planning Act?
Given that By-law 2022-007 is one aspect of the Town’s Servicing Capacity Allocation Framework, is the adoption of By-law 2022-007 appropriate and in the public interest, and does it represent good land use planning? In particular:
(a) Is By-law 2022-007 premature, pending the adoption of an Official Plan Amendment related to servicing allocation in the Town?
(b) Is By-law 2022-007 premature, pending the outcome of any application to quash the Servicing Capacity Allocation Policy, adopted by By-law 2022-025 on March 28, 2022? [*Issue will only be maintained if an application is filed by any party.]
(c) Is By-law 2022-007 appropriate and sufficiently clear, given that it must be read in conjunction with the Servicing Capacity Allocation Policy? In particular:
(i) Do these two By-laws, read together, provide for a transparent, fair, and predictable approach to allocating servicing within the Town?
(ii) Do these two By-laws, read together, violate s. 86(1) of the Municipal Act, which requires a municipality to supply a building with a water or sewage public utility when enumerated criteria are met?
(iii) Do these two By-laws, read together, provide discretion to Council to prioritize servicing capacity allocation for development, and to prevent other developments from proceeding? Is this an appropriate effect of a Zoning By-law?
(d) Is it appropriate for By-law 2022-007 to effectively continue on a permanent basis the restrictions imposed by the Interim Control By-law No. 2021-024?
- As a result of the foregoing issues, does By-law 2022-007 conform with applicable legislation and policy documents, including:
(a) Section 2(e), (f), (h), (j), (l), (n), and (p) of the Planning Act;
(b) Policies in the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2020, including s. 2.2.1, 2.2.2, 2.2.6, and policies that support the provision of sufficient infrastructure capacity, including s. 3.2.1, 3.2.6, 3.2.8;
(c) Policies in the Provincial Policy Statement, 2020, which provide the building blocks for strong and healthy communities, including policies 1.1.1, 1.1.3, 1.4, 1.6.6,1.6.10, 1.7;
(d) Policies of the County of Simcoe Official Plan, which direct planning for sewage and water services to be integrated with land use considerations at all stages of the planning process, including policies 3.2.14, 3.5.8, and the policies in section 4.7;
(e) Policies of the Town of Collingwood Official Plan, including policies that anticipate that new development may proceed when services are available, including policies 3.5.1, 3.5.2, 3.5.3, 3.6.1, 4.3.1, 4.3.2.
- Is it appropriate for By-law 2022-007 to apply to the lands owned by John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd. (Blocks 181 and 183 on Plan 51M-945), given the approvals for draft plan of subdivision, Official Plan Amendment, and Zoning By-law Amendment, and the Minutes of Settlement executed with the Town on February 24, 2020?
ATTACHMENT 3
ORDER OF EVIDENCE
- Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc.
- Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.)
- Consulate Developments (Ontario) Inc.
- MacPherson Builders (Cranberry) Limited
- Nova Cannabis Stores Limited Partnership
- 2737503 Ontario Inc. (o/a Tokyo Smoke)
- Town of Collingwood
- Reply of Crestpoint Real Estate (Blue Mountain) Inc., Sunvale Homes (John Welton Custom Homebuilding Ltd.), if any
ATTACHMENT 4
Meaning of terms used in the Procedural Order:
A party is an individual or corporation permitted by the Tribunal to participate fully in the hearing by receiving copies of written evidence, presenting witnesses, cross-examining the witnesses of the other parties, and making submissions on all of the evidence. An unincorporated group cannot be a party and it must appoint one person to speak for it, and that person must accept the other responsibilities of a party as set out in the Order. Parties do not have to be represented by a lawyer and may have an agent speak for them. The agent must have written authorisation from the party.
NOTE that a person who wishes to become a party before or at the hearing, and who did not request this at the case management conference (CMC), must ask the Tribunal to permit this.
A participant is an individual or corporation, whether represented by a lawyer or not, who may make a written submission to the Tribunal. A participant cannot make an oral submission to the Tribunal or present oral evidence (testify in-person) at the hearing (only a party may do so). Section 17 of the Ontario Land Tribunal Act states that a person who is not a party to a proceeding may only make a submission to the Tribunal in writing. The Tribunal may direct a participant to attend a hearing to answer questions from the Tribunal on the content of their written submission, should that be found necessary by the Tribunal. A participant may also be asked questions by the parties should the Tribunal direct a participant to attend a hearing to answer questions on the content of their written submission.
A participant must be identified and be accorded participant status by the Tribunal at the CMC. A participant will not receive notice of conference calls on procedural issues that may be scheduled prior to the hearing, nor receive notice of mediation. A participant cannot ask for costs, or review of a decision, as a participant does not have the rights of a party to make such requests of the Tribunal.
Written evidence includes all written material, reports, studies, documents, letters and witness statements which a party or participant intends to present as evidence at the hearing. These must have pages numbered consecutively throughout the entire document, even if there are tabs or dividers in the material.
Visual evidence includes photographs, maps, videos, models, and overlays which a party or participant intends to present as evidence at the hearing.
A witness statement is a short written outline of the person’s background, experience and interest in the matter; a list of the issues which he or she will discuss; and a list of reports or materials that the witness will rely on at the hearing.
An expert witness statement should include his or her (1) name and address, (2) qualifications, (3) a list of the issues he or she will address, (4) the witness’ opinions on those issues and the complete reasons supporting their opinions and conclusions and (5) a list of reports or materials that the witness will rely on at the hearing. An expert witness statement must be accompanied by an acknowledgement of expert’s duty.
A participant statement is a short written outline of the person’s or group’s background, experience and interest in the matter; a statement of the participant’s position on the appeal; a list of the issues which the participant wishes to address and the submissions of the participant on those issues; and a list of reports or materials, if any, which the participant wishes to refer to in their statement.
Additional Information
A summons may compel the appearance of a person before the Tribunal who has not agreed to appear as a witness. A party must ask a Tribunal Member or the senior staff of the Tribunal to issue a summons through a request. (See Rule 13 on the summons procedure.) The request should indicate how the witness’ evidence is relevant to the hearing. If the Tribunal is not satisfied from the information provided in the request that the evidence is relevant, necessary or admissible, the party requesting the summons may provide a further request with more detail or bring a motion in accordance with the Rules.
The order of examination of witnesses is usually direct examination, cross-examination and re-examination in the following way:
- direct examination by the party presenting the witness;
- direct examination by any party of similar interest, in the manner determined by the Tribunal;
- cross-examination by parties of opposite interest;
- re-examination by the party presenting the witness; or
- another order of examination mutually agreed among the parties or directed by the Tribunal.

