Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: October 01, 2024
CASE NO(S).: OLT-24-000605
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 42(4.9) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended.
Applicant/Appellant: Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD)
Applicant/Appellant: Distrikt Developments
Applicant/Appellant: Silwell Developments Limited
Subject: Appeal of Decision - Parkland Dedication
Description: BY LAW 2024-034 Parkland Dedication
Reference Number: By-Law 2024-034
Property Address: Town Wide
Municipality/UT: Oakville
OLT Case No: OLT-24-000605
OLT Lead Case No: OLT-24-000605
OLT Case Name: Building Industry and Land Development Association v Oakville (Town)
Heard: September 19, 2024 by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
| Parties | Counsel |
|---|---|
| Town of Oakville | Andrew Biggart, Nadia Chandra |
| Building Industry and Land Development Association | Ira Kagan (in absentia), Adrian Frank |
| Distrikt Developments | Calvin Lantz (in absentia), Jonathan Cheng |
| Silwell Developments Limited | Christopher Williams, Laura Dean |
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY S. Dixon ON September 19, 2024 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1This Decision and Order arises from the first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) pertaining to appeals by the Building Industry and Land Development Association (“BILD”), Distrikt Developments (“Distrikt”), and Silwell Developments Limited (“Silwell”; together, “Appellants”) pursuant to s. 42(4.9) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended (“Act”), concerning the passing of Parkland Dedication By-law No. 2024-034 (“New Parkland By-law”) by the Town of Oakville (“Town”).
2The New Parkland By-law repeals and replaces the Town’s former Parkland Dedication By-law No. 2022-108 in order to implement changes to the Act in relation to alternative requirements for parkland conveyances and payments-in-lieu of parkland in the Town.
NOTICE
3Notice of the CMC was given by the Tribunal in accordance with s. 42(4.14) of the Act. There were no concerns by any of the Parties with the Tribunal’s notice and, as such, no further notice is required in these proceedings.
SETTLEMENT OPPORTUNITIES
4Counsel for the Town advised the Tribunal that they have been engaged in settlement discussions with all three Appellants. With respect to Distrikt and Silwell, those discussions are ongoing and the relevant Parties are hopeful that they will be able to reach mutually agreeable resolutions of their respective issues. With respect to BILD, the relevant Parties do not believe they will be able to reach a settlement.
5Regarding the potential settlements with Distrikt and Silwell, counsel for the Town suggested that an update be provided to the Tribunal in late November 2024, providing the relevant Parties with time to consider any potential settlement opportunities.
JURISDICTIONAL ISSUE
6In advance of the CMC, counsel for BILD advised the Tribunal that their client’s issue with the New Parkland By-law relates to s. 4.2 of same, which addresses parkland credits. It is BILD’s position that parkland credit should be available in the following circumstances, which do not currently appear to be covered by the provisions of s. 4.2 of the New Parkland By-law:
a. Off-site parkland;
b. Strata parkland;
c. Dual use facilities (e.g., parkland above stormwater management facilities);
d. Privately Owned Publicly-Accessible Spaces; and
e. Otherwise, undevelopable lands which nevertheless provide open space and passive recreational opportunities.
7It is BILD’s position that expanding the parkland credits of the New Parkland By-law to include the above matters would be consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement, 2020 (which applies at the time of the CMC) and the Provincial Planning Statement, 2024 (which is currently set to take effect on October 20, 2024).
8The Town’s position is that the relief sought by BILD through its appeal is beyond the jurisdiction of the Tribunal to determine, which is a threshold issue that is best addressed by way of a motion to be heard prior to the scheduling of a hearing on the merits of the appeal.
9Accordingly, and on consent of all Parties, the Town and BILD requested that a motion hearing be scheduled by the Tribunal to consider the aforementioned threshold issue.
MOTION HEARING
10The Tribunal agreed with the proposed approach by the Parties and scheduled a one-day motion hearing to be held by Video Hearing on Thursday, November 28, 2024 at 10 a.m.
11In preparation for the Motion Hearing, the Town and BILD requested that a mutually agreeable schedule of dates for the exchange of motion materials be established to ensure that the Parties have ample time to consider same. Following the CMC, the Parties advised the Tribunal that they have agreed to the following procedural dates, which the Tribunal hereby approves and directs as follows:
a. The Town will file its Motion Record with the Tribunal and Parties by no later than Friday, October 18, 2024;
b. Responding Motion Record(s) are to be filed by no later than Friday, November 8, 2024; and
c. The Town’s Reply Motion Record(s), if any, is to be filed by no later than Monday, November 18, 2024.
12At the Town’s further request, the Tribunal directed that, should a settlement be reached between any of the Parties in advance of the November 28, 2024 Motion Hearing, the Tribunal may utilise same for the purposes of considering the merits of the settlement(s). Alternatively, the Parties may request a separate hearing date(s) for the Tribunal’s consideration of any settlement(s), either by way of Written or Video Hearing.
13Parties are asked to log in to 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/687587165
Access Code: 687-587-165
14Parties 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.
15Persons 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: +1 (647) 497-9373 or (Toll Free) 1-888-299-1889. The Access Code is as indicated above.
16Individuals 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 Video Hearing 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
17THE TRIBUNAL ORDERS that, pursuant to Rule 10 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Practice and Procedure:
a. A Notice of Motion addressing the Tribunal’s jurisdiction to rule on the issues raised by the Building Industry and Land Development Association be served by counsel for the Town of Oakville by no later than Friday, October 18, 2024;
b. A Notice of Response to Motion be served by counsel to the Building Industry and Land Development Association (and any other responding Party) by no later than Friday, November 8, 2024; and
c. Any Reply Submission(s) be served by counsel for the Town of Oakville by no later than Monday, November 18, 2024.
“S. Dixon”
S. DIXON
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.