Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: April 04, 2025
CASE NO(S).: OLT-24-001189
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended.
Applicant/Appellant: RCG Upper James Hamilton Inc. and Pure Upper James Street Holdings ULC Subject: Failure of Approval Authority to announce a decision respecting a Proposed Official Plan Amendment Description: To permit the development of two industrial buildings, parking, and loading bays. Reference Number: UHOPA-22-014 Property Address: 2876 Upper James Street Municipality/UT: Hamilton OLT Case No: OLT-24-001189 OLT Lead Case No: OLT-24-001189 OLT Case Name: RCG Upper James Hamilton Inc. et al. v. Hamilton (City)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended.
Applicant/Appellant: RCG Upper James Hamilton Inc. and Pure Upper James Street Holdings ULC Subject: Application to amend the Zoning By-law – Refusal or neglect to make a decision Description: To permit the development of two industrial buildings, parking, and loading bays. Reference Number: ZAC-22-027 Property Address: 2876 Upper James Street Municipality/UT: Hamilton/Hamilton OLT Case No: OLT-24-001190 OLT Lead Case No: OLT-24-001189
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER section 51(34) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended.
Applicant/Appellant: RCG Upper James Hamilton Inc. and Pure Upper James Street Holdings ULC Subject: Proposed Plan of Subdivision – Failure of Approval Authority to make a decision Description: To permit the development of two industrial buildings, parking, and loading bays. Reference Number: 25T-202204 Property Address: 2876 Upper James Street Municipality/UT: Hamilton/Hamilton OLT Case No: OLT-24-001191 OLT Lead Case No: OLT-24-001189
Heard: April 01, 2025 by Video Hearing
APPEARANCES:
Parties RCG Upper James Hamilton Inc. and Pure Upper James Street Holdings ULC
Counsel I.T. Kagan S. Kagan
City of Hamilton R. McVean M. Benedict
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY S. BRAUN ON APRIL 1, 2025 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1This was the first Case Management Conference (“CMC”) held to organize appeals by RCG Upper James Hamilton Inc. and Pure Upper James Street Holdings ULC. (“Appellant”) against the failure of the City of Hamilton to make decisions on applications for an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment, and Draft Plan of Subdivision in relation to the property located at 2876 Upper James Street (“Subject Property”). The Appellant seeks to develop the Subject Property with two industrial buildings totalling approximately 80,919 square metres, with parking spaces for 260 cars, 35 bicycles, 127 trailers, and 144 loading bays.
2The Tribunal received an Affidavit of Service affirmed on March 14, 2025, confirming that the Notice of this CMC was properly given and, as such, no further notice will be required.
STATUS REQUESTS
3In response to the Notice, the Tribunal received no requests for Party status and one written request for Participant status in advance of the CMC. St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Mount Hope, through its authorized representative, John Stephenson, sought Participant status, raising safety concerns in relation to access to both the Church and the proposed development. The Tribunal granted the request with no objection from the Parties.
4Residents of 2826 Upper James Street (Carla Chattley and Mark Forde) attended the CMC and inquired about being granted status of some sort, indicating they have concerns with potential impacts of the proposed development on their property. Following a brief explanation of the differences between Party and Participant status, and a short break during which Mr. Forde and Ms. Chattley were directed to review Rule 8.1 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Practice and Procedure to further familiarize themselves with the roles and obligations of a Party, the Tribunal was advised that Ms. Chattley wished to be granted status as a Participant.
5The Tribunal granted the request, with no objections from the Parties, and directed Ms. Chattley to complete and submit a Participant Status Request Form to the assigned Case Coordinator, copying counsel for the Parties.
NEXT STEPS
6The Parties requested nine days be set aside for a hearing in October 2025. They provided the Tribunal with the number and disciplines of witnesses they anticipate calling. The Tribunal was also provided with a draft Procedural Order (“PO”) and Issues List (“IL”), with the Parties clearly noting the draft IL would require further refinement and finalization following a City Council meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 7, 2025. On the strength of the foregoing, the Tribunal scheduled a nine-day video hearing commencing on Monday, October 20, 2025, at 10 a.m. and directed the Parties to submit, on consent, a finalized PO and IL for the Tribunal’s review and approval no later than Monday, May 12, 2025.
7Parties 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://meet.goto.com/943363669
Access Code: 943-363-669
8Parties 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: https://app.gotomeeting.com/home.html
9Persons who experience technical difficulties accessing the GoTo Meeting 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.
10Individuals 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.
11Finally, acknowledging the early stage of these proceedings, the Tribunal canvassed the Parties with respect to opportunities for settlement. Counsel advised that, should they wish to avail themselves of Tribunal-assisted mediation at some point in the future, they are aware that they may request a mediation assessment through the assigned Case Coordinator.
ORDER
12The case management directives outlined above are so ordered.
13There will be no further notice. The Member is not seized but may be available for further case management, if necessary, subject to availability in the Tribunal’s calendar.
“S. Braun”
S. Braun
VICE-CHAIR
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.