Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: May 08, 2026
CASE NO(S).: OLT-26-000114
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant: Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc.
Subject: Request to amend the Official Plan – Failure to adopt the requested amendment
Description: To permit the development of 680 residential units including single detached lots, low and medium density blocks, park and open space, and stormwater management ponds.
Reference Number: 2025-10
Property Address: 2590 Victoria Street North
Municipality/UT: Woolwich/Waterloo
OLT Case No.: OLT-26-000114
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-26-000114
OLT Case Name: Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc. v. Woolwich (Township)
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant: Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc.
Subject: Application to amend the Zoning By-law – Refusal or neglect to make a decision
Description: To permit the development of 680 residential units including single detached lots, low and medium density blocks, park and open space, and stormwater management ponds.
Reference Number: 2025-10
Property Address: 2590 Victoria Street North
Municipality/UT: Woolwich/Waterloo
OLT Case No.: OLT-26-000115
OLT Lead Case No.: OLT-26-000114
Heard: May 6, 2026, by video hearing
APPEARANCES:
| Parties | Counsel |
|---|---|
| Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc. ("Applicant") | Grace O’Brien John Alati |
| Township of Woolwich ("Township") | David Neligan |
| Thomasfield Homes Limited ("Thomasfield") | Peter Pickfield |
MEMORANDUM OF ORAL DECISION DELIVERED BY JEAN-PIERRE BLAIS ON MAY 6, 2026 AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
INTRODUCTION
1The Applicant seeks to develop a site municipally known as 2590 Victoria Street in the Township (“Subject Property”) to construct 193 single detached dwellings, 242 townhouse row dwellings, 145 lane townhouse dwellings and 100 medium density residential units. To this end, the Applicant filed an Official Plan Amendment (“OPA”) and a Zoning By-law Amendment (“ZBA”). The Appeals are brought pursuant to sections 22(7) and 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P. 13, as amended (“Act”), due to the Township’s failure to decide within the statutory timeframe.
2On May 6, 2026, the Tribunal held a Case Management Conference (“CMC”) to organize the appeal, address status requests and establish next steps in this proceeding.
NOTICE
3There were no issues raised with service of Notice of the CMC and as such, no further notice is required. The Tribunal was in receipt of the Affidavit of Service of Notice of the CMC affirmed on April 7, 2026, which was marked as Exhibit 1 to this CMC.
STATUS REQUEST
4The Tribunal received one Party status request from Thomasfield. It is a homebuilder and residential developer with landholdings which include properties adjacent to the Subject Property. Thomasfield submitted that it has a direct interest in the outcome of the appeals because the Applicant’s servicing strategy is based on inaccurate assumptions and does not fit with the Township’s proposed servicing strategy for the Bresleau Secondary Plan Area. Thomasfield intends to call expert planning and engineering evidence, which will not be duplicative. Neither the Applicant nor the Township objected to adding Thomasfield as a Party.
5Given Rule 8.2 of the Tribunal’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, the Tribunal found that it has reasonable grounds to add Thomasfield as a Party, and its presence is necessary to enable the Tribunal to adjudicate effectively and completely. Accordingly, the Tribunal directed Thomasfield Homes Limited be added as a Party.
6There were no Participant status requests.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR SETTLEMENT
7Counsel for the Parties advised that they are aware of Tribunal assisted mediation and will seek instructions from their clients.
8The Parties are directed to advise the Tribunal, as soon as possible, of any settlement, and are encouraged to narrow the issues.
NEXT STEPS
9A draft Procedural Order was provided to the Tribunal prior to the CMC. The Parties indicated that they had come to an agreement with respect to the content of the Procedural Order, including the Issues List.
10Parties submitted that the Tribunal should set a date for a 14-day Hearing given that 12 witnesses are expected to be called to provide evidence. The Tribunal directed that a 14-day Hearing be scheduled to proceed by video at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 8, 2027.
11The Parties undertook to file with the Tribunal by Tuesday, May 12, 2026 a draft Procedural Order, including an Issues List.
12Individuals are asked to log in to the event at least 15 minutes before the it begins to test their video and audio connections.
GoTo Meeting: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/914098901
Access code: 914-098-901
13Individuals 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.
14Individuals 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 in to an audio-only telephone line: +1-(647) 497-9373 or (toll-free) +1-888-299-1889. The access code is: 914-098-901.
15Individuals 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.
16As of March 30, 2026, all hearing events are governed by the Tribunal’s Artificial Intelligence Practice Direction. This Practice Direction requires a party, participant, or witness to include a declaration within each submitted document if generative AI was used to create or generate content.
ORDER
17THE TRIBUNAL ORDERS:
a. Its directions in this Decision; and
b. The Procedural Order appended as Attachment A hereto shall govern the future conduct of this proceeding.
“Jean-Pierre Blais”
JEAN-PIERRE BLAIS
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 A
Ontario Land Tribunal
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 22(7) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Appellant: Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc.
Subject: Request to amend the Official Plan – Failure to adopt the requested amendment
Description: To permit the development of 680 residential units including single detached lots, low and medium density blocks, park and open space, and stormwater management ponds.
Reference Number: 2025-10
Property Address: 2590 Victoria Street North
Municipality/UT: Woolwich/Waterloo
OLT Case No.: OLT-26-000114
OLT Case Name: OLT-26-000114
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Appellant: Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc.
Subject: Application to amend the Zoning By-law – Refusal or neglect to make a decision
Description: To permit the development of 680 residential units including single detached lots, low and medium density blocks, park and open space, and stormwater management ponds.
Reference Number: 2025-10
Property Address: 2590 Victoria Street North
Municipality/UT: Woolwich/Waterloo
OLT Case No.: OLT-26-000115
OLT Lead Case No: OLT-26-000114
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 video hearing will begin on Monday, March 8, 2027 at 10:00 am. No further notice shall be required.
The parties’ initial estimation for the length of the hearing is 14 days, scheduled to conclude on Thursday, March 25, 2027. 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 procedural order deadlines are found in Attachment 1.
The parties and participants identified at the case management conference are set out in Attachment 2.
The issues are set out in the Issues List attached as Attachment 3. 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 4 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.
A party, participant, or witness who intends to submit document(s) to the Tribunal must include a declaration within each submitted document if generative AI was used to create or generate content. A declaration is not required if AI was used to merely suggest changes, provide recommendations, or critique content already created by a human who then considered and manually implemented the changes.
Requirements Before the Hearing
If the applicant intends to seek approval of its appealed instruments at the hearing based on a revised proposal, or revised studies or reports, the applicant shall provide copies of the revised proposal, including all revised plans, drawings, proposed instruments, and copies of any revised or updated supporting documents, studies and reports, to the other parties on or before Monday, November 9, 2026.
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 Tuesday, December 8, 2026 and in accordance with paragraph 25 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 Wednesday, December 23, 2026, 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 Monday, January 11, 2027.
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 16 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 16 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 16 below.
On or before Friday, January 22, 2027, the parties shall provide copies of their expert witness statements to the other parties and to the OLT case co-ordinator and in accordance with paragraph 25 below.
On or before Friday, January 22, 2027, a participant shall provide copies of their written participant statement to the other parties in accordance with paragraph 25 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 Friday, February 12, 2027, parties may provide to all other parties and the OLT case co-ordinator a written response to any written evidence in accordance with paragraph 25 below.
On or before Tuesday, February 16, 2027, the parties shall confirm with the Tribunal if all the reserved hearing dates are still required.
On or before Tuesday, February 16, 2027, the parties shall provide copies of their visual evidence to all of the other parties in accordance with paragraph 25 below. If a model will be used, all parties must have a reasonable opportunity to view it before the hearing.
The parties shall cooperate to prepare a joint document book and a joint compendium of witness statements, bookmarked in PDF format with hyperlinks to all items listed in any table of contents, which shall be shared with the OLT case co-ordinator on or before Monday, February 22, 2027.
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 Monday, March 1, 2027 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 unless otherwise directed. 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.
Attachment 1 – Summary of Dates
| DATE | EVENT |
|---|---|
| Monday, November 9, 2026 | Revised submission, if any, to be circulated to all parties |
| Tuesday, December 8, 2026 | Exchange of witness lists (names, disciplines and order to be called) |
| Wednesday, December 23, 2026 | Experts meeting prior to this date |
| Monday, January 11, 2027 | Agreed statement of facts |
| Friday, January 22, 2027 | Exchange of Witness Statements and summoned witness outlines |
| Friday, February 12, 2027 | Exchange of Reply Witness Statements |
| Tuesday, February 16, 2027 | Confirm if reserved hearing dates still required |
| Tuesday, February 16, 2027 | Exchange of Visual Evidence |
| Monday, February 22, 2027 | Finalize Joint Document Book |
| Monday, March 1, 2027 | Hearing Plan filed with Tribunal |
| Monday, March 8, 2027 | Hearing commences |
| Thursday, March 25, 2027 | Hearing concludes |
Attachment 2 – Parties and Participants
Parties:
Township of Woolwich Aird & Berlis LLP Brookfield Place 181 Bay Street., Suite 1800 Toronto, Ontario M5J 2T9 David Neligan / Eileen Costello Tel: 416-865-7751 / 416-865-4740 Email: dneligan@airdberlis.com / ecostello@airdberlis.com
Cachet Homes (Victoria) Inc. Davies Howe LLP The Tenth Floor 425 Adelaide Street West, 10th Floor Toronto, Ontario M5V 3C1 John Alati / Grace O’Brien Tel: 416-263-4509 / 416-263-4507 Email: johna@davieshowe.com / graceo@davieshowe.com
Thomasfield Homes Limited Garrod Pickfield LLP 9 Norwich Street West Guelph, Ontario N1H 2G8 Peter Pickfield / Colin Leger Tel: 519-837-0500 Email: pickfield@garrodpickfield.ca / cleger@garrodpickfield.ca
Attachment 3 – Issues List
NOTE: The identification of an issue on the Issues List does not constitute an acknowledgement by the OLT or any party that such issue, or the manner in which the issue is expressed, is either appropriate or relevant to the determination of the OLT at the hearing. The extent to which these issues are appropriate or relevant to the determination of the OLT at the hearing will be a matter of evidence and argument at the hearing. The identification of an issue on this list by a party indicates that party’s intent to lead evidence or argue that the issue is relevant to the proceeding, for the purpose of fairly identifying to the other parties the case they need to meet and shall not be construed as the OLT having jurisdiction over such matters in each circumstance. Accordingly, no party shall advance an issue not identified on the Issues List without leave of the OLT.
Township of Woolwich and Thomasfield Homes Limited
Do the proposed Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendment (the “Applications”) have regard for the matters of provincial interest set out in s. 2 of the Planning Act, including subsections 2(e), (f), (h), (j), (m), (n), (q), and (r)?
Are the Applications consistent with the Provincial Planning Statement, in particular policy 2.2.1 b) and c), 2.3.1, 3.1.1, 3.1.2, 3.6.1, 6.1.6, 6.1.7 and 6.1.8?
Do the Applications conform with the Region of Waterloo’s Official Plan, particularly Sections 1.5 (bullet 3, 5 and 6), 1.6.1, 2, 2.A, 2.A.2, 2.A.4, 2.A.5, 2.C.2.2, 2.E.1.2, 2.G.1.4 a), c) and d), 5.B.2 and 5.D.3?
Do the Applications conform with the Township’s Official Plan, as it existed on April 9, 2025, particularly Sections 2.3.1 c), , 4.1, 4.4.2, 4.4.4, 4.4.5, 5.4, 5.7.5, 7.6.5, 7.7 intro, 7.26.1.1 a) and b), 7.26.1.2 e), 7.26.1.3 principle 3 and principle 8, 7.26.2.2, 7.26.2.3, 7.26.5.1, 7.26.8.1, 7.26.8.2, 8.1.1 b), d), f), 8.1.2 b), 15.7, 16.2, 17.3, 17.4 b).
Are the Applications premature prior to the completion of the Township of Woolwich Official Plan/Breslau Secondary Plan Review, including the development of updated staging policies?
Can the subject lands be appropriately serviced including but not limited to sanitary, water and stormwater services?
a. Related to this, would the implementation of the Applications’ proposed servicing strategy ensure the orderly and appropriate staging and servicing of existing and planned development within the Breslau Settlement Area? If not, is it still appropriate to approve the Applications?1
Do the Applications appropriately address potential increases in traffic generated by the proposed development and any resulting impacts on the operation and efficiency of local and regional roads and the provincial highway system?
Are the proposed reductions to the 20m minimum right-of-way requirements for local roads appropriate?
Are the proposed redesignations of the subject lands from Prime Agricultural Area in the Township Official Plan to Low/Medium Density Residential, Medium/High Density Residential, Mixed Use and Open Space appropriate?
Are the proposed zoning categories, including the proposed reductions to the applicable regulations of the R-2, R-6 and R-7 zones in the current Township of Woolwich Zoning By-law No. 26-2024, including reductions to Minimum Lot Area, Minimum Front Yard, Minimum Lot Width of an Interior and Corner Lot, Minimum Building Line Setback, Minium Building line Setbacks of Front Porcher, Minimum Side Yard Setback, Minimum Outdoor Amenity Area, Minimum Width of an Attached Single Garage, Minimum Rear Yard, as well as increases to maximum permitted Building Height, Maximum Lot Coverage and Maximum Density appropriate?
Is it appropriate to seek approval of the Applications in the absence of approval of a draft plan of subdivision? If so, has the Applicant advanced its Draft Plan of Subdivision Application sufficiently to permit approval of the Applications?
Do the Applications represent good planning and are they in the public interest?
Attachment 4 – Order of Evidence
- Cachet Homes (Victoria) Ltd.
- Township of Woolwich
- Thomasfield Homes Limited
- Cachet Homes (Victoria) Ltd. Reply (if necessary)
Attachment 5 – Purpose of the Procedural Order and Meaning of Terms
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.