Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: November 28, 2024
CASE NO(S).: OLT-24-000793
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 14 of the Development Charges Act, 1997, S.O. 1997, c. 27
Appellant: Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers
Description: Determination of the development charges
Reference Number: Bylaw 30-2024- Chatham-Kent Development Charges Bylaw
Property Address: City-wide
Municipality/UT: Chatham-Kent
OLT Case No.: OLT-24-000793
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-24-000793
OLT Case Name: Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers v. Chatham-Kent (Municipality)
Heard: November 12, 2024 by video hearing
APPEARANCES:
| Parties | Counsel |
|---|---|
| Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers | Steven O’Melia |
| Municipality of Chatham-Kent | David Taylor |
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY C. I. MOLINARI ON NOVEMBER 12, 2024 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1At the request of the Parties, the Tribunal had previously converted a merit hearing scheduled for this date to a Case Management Conference (“CMC”) with respect to an appeal filed pursuant to s. 14 of the Development Charges Act, 1997 by Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers against the approval by the Municipality of Chatham-Kent (“Municipality”) of Development Charges (“DCs”) By-law No. 30-2024 (“DC By-law”), being a new Development Charges By-law for the Municipality.
2The Appellant maintains that the DC By-law places a disproportionate share of the Municipality’s DCs on the greenhouse industry and that the DC By-law background study fails to properly allocate costs that benefit existing development.
NOTICE
3There were no concerns raised regarding the service of notice as served by the Tribunal, and the Tribunal was satisfied that proper notice of this CMC had been provided. In this regard, no further notice is required for the appeal.
PARTY / PARTICIPANT STATUS REQUESTS
4There were no requests for Party or Participant status either before or during the CMC.
UPDATE / NEXT STEPS
5The Tribunal was not in receipt of a draft Procedural Order (“DPO”) or Issues List (“IL”) as the Parties are currently engaging in settlement discussions. The Parties agreed that a second CMC would be required to allow for the settlement discussions to continue. As such, the Tribunal scheduled a second CMC as provided below.
6With agreement from the Parties, the Tribunal directed them to either request the second CMC be converted to a settlement hearing or submit a DPO and IL to the Case Coordinator by Tuesday, April 8, 2025, for finalization and approval at the second CMC.
HEARING EVENT
7The Tribunal scheduled a second CMC for Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at 10 a.m. by video hearing.
8The video hearing is scheduled to proceed as follows:
GoTo Meeting: https://meet.goto.com/558205565
Access code: 558-205-565
9Parties are asked to log in to the event at least 15 minutes before it begins to test their video and audio connections:
10Parties 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 GoTo Meeting or a web application is available at: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html
11Persons who experience technical difficulties accessing the GoToMeeting application or who only wish to listen to the event can connect to the event by calling in to the audio-only telephone line: +1 (647) 497-9373 or (Toll-Free) 1-888-299-1889. The access code is as indicated above.
12Individuals 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 event to ensure that they are properly connected at the correct time. Questions prior to the event may be directed to the Tribunal’s Case Coordinator.
MEDIATION
13The Tribunal advised the Parties of the option of Tribunal-led mediation and to contact the Case Coordinator to determine next steps if the need for mediation arises.
ORDER
14THE TRIBUNAL ORDERS that:
a) A second Case Management Conference will be held by video hearing as scheduled above; and
b) The Parties are to either request the second Case Management Conference be converted to a settlement hearing or submit the final draft Procedural Order with the final Issues List to the Tribunal for finalization and approval at the second Case Management Conference, as directed above.
15No further notice is required.
16The Member is not seized of this matter.
“C. I. Molinari”
C. I. MOLINARI
MEMBER
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.