Paul M. DeMelo

The applicant appealed the City of Niagara Falls' failure to make a decision on Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment applications to permit a mixed-use residential community on lands partially identified by the City and Region for future employment uses.

The Tribunal found that the applications were not consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement's requirement to plan for and protect employment areas.

The Tribunal declined to apply the Clergy Principle, finding that the applicant's attempt to rely on older policies was premature and contrary to the public interest in securing necessary employment lands.

The appeals were dismissed and the amendments refused.

The appellants appealed an Engineer's Report for the Northland Estates Municipal Drain under section 48(1) of the Drainage Act, seeking to have the proposed drain moved 3 meters west to protect mature boundary trees on their property.

The Tribunal found that the Drainage Act authorizes the construction of drainage works and provides compensation for property and tree damage, superseding the Forestry Act's requirement for mutual consent to injure boundary trees.

The Tribunal accepted the engineer's evidence that the proposed location on the adjacent farmland was the least intrusive option that balanced the needs of the residential landowners and the agricultural property.

The appeal was dismissed.

The applicant appealed the failure of the Niagara Region and the City of Niagara Falls to make decisions on official plan and zoning by-law amendments to permit a mineral aggregate extraction operation.

At the second Case Management Conference, the parties requested time to finalize the issues list and engage in Tribunal-assisted mediation.

The Tribunal scheduled a third Case Management Conference and a 10-day merit hearing.

The appellant appealed the municipality's Community Benefits Charge By-law under section 37(17) of the Planning Act.

At the first Case Management Conference, the parties jointly requested an adjournment sine die to continue active settlement discussions.

The Tribunal granted the adjournment, directing the parties to advise if a settlement is reached or if a merits hearing needs to be scheduled.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a case management conference regarding appeals by the applicant against the municipality for failing to make decisions on applications for an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment, and a Plan of Subdivision to permit a 37-unit residential farm co-operative.

The Tribunal issued a procedural order setting a 10-day video hearing to commence on July 7, 2025, and established the procedural dates for the exchange of witness statements, expert meetings, and other pre-hearing requirements.

The applicants appealed the Township's non-decision regarding a zoning by-law amendment and draft plan of subdivision to facilitate a 40-unit residential development.

At the first Case Management Conference, the Tribunal granted participant status to two adjacent property owners.

The Tribunal directed the parties to submit a draft Procedural Order and scheduled a five-day video hearing.

The applicant appealed the City of North Bay's refusal of its draft plan of condominium to permit the conversion of 60 existing townhouses to condominium tenure.

At a second Case Management Conference, the parties advised they were nearing a settlement but requested the scheduling of a three-day merit hearing out of an abundance of caution.

The Tribunal scheduled the merit hearing for September 2025 and directed the parties to submit a draft Procedural Order and Issues List.

The applicants appealed the refusal of a zoning by-law amendment to construct a new detached dwelling.

Following a case management conference, the Tribunal issued a procedural order.

On consent of the parties, the Tribunal amended the procedural timelines leading up to the hearing scheduled for August 2025.

The applicants appealed the City of Niagara Falls' refusal of an application to amend the Zoning By-law to permit the construction of a new detached dwelling.

The Ontario Land Tribunal issued a procedural order on consent of the parties to govern the procedures leading up to a five-day video hearing scheduled to commence on August 11, 2025.

The City of Niagara Falls requested an adjournment of an upcoming hearing regarding 2023 planning instruments, arguing the proceeding may become moot due to a prior Tribunal decision that precluded the appellant's appeal of superseding 2025 planning instruments under Bill 185.

The appellant opposed the adjournment.

The Tribunal exercised its discretion to cancel the scheduled hearing to allow the appellant time to consider whether to seek a review or appeal of the prior decision, and to avoid potentially unnecessary proceedings.

The Tribunal ordered the parties to provide a status update within 60 days.

The City of Niagara Falls brought a motion for directions to determine whether Cytec Canada Inc. had standing to appeal three planning instruments under the Planning Act.

Following amendments by the Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes Act, 2024, appeals are restricted to 'specified persons'.

Cytec argued it qualified as an environmental compliance approval (ECA) holder.

The Tribunal found that the plain language of subsection 1(1)(l) of the Planning Act requires the ECA activity to be undertaken on lands within 300 metres of the planning area.

Because Cytec's ECA applied to lands further away, and not to its 'Beechwood Lands' within the 300-metre radius, it did not meet the definition.

The Tribunal ordered that Cytec's appeals were precluded.

The appellant appealed the conditions of approval for a draft plan of condominium proposing 20 resort commercial units, specifically challenging the requirement for 20 weeks of mandatory rental availability.

Prior to the hearing, the parties reached a settlement to reduce the mandatory rental period to 10 weeks, with two weeks required during the summer season.

Based on uncontroverted expert planning evidence, the Tribunal found the revised condition was consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement and conformed to the applicable official plans.

The appeal was allowed in part to amend the condition accordingly.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a first Case Management Conference regarding appeals by Walker Aggregates Inc. against the Niagara Region and the City of Niagara Falls for failing to make decisions on official plan and zoning by-law amendments to permit a mineral aggregate extraction operation.

The Tribunal consolidated the appeals, granted Party status to two neighbouring landowners with residential development proposals, and granted Participant status to four local residents.

A second Case Management Conference was scheduled to address a forthcoming Aggregate Resources Act license application and the Procedural Order.

The Tribunal held a third Case Management Conference regarding appeals of the City of Richmond Hill's Official Plan Amendment No. 18.6.

Several appellants withdrew their appeals.

The remaining appellants, Harry and Pamela Harakh, consented to scoping their appeal to specific lands.

The Tribunal ordered that OPA 18.6 comes into effect, except for the policies and schedules applying to the scoped lands, and scheduled a motion hearing regarding jurisdiction.

At a Case Management Conference regarding appeals for a proposed mixed-use development, a neighbouring industrial company requested party status.

The applicant objected, arguing that a stand-alone motion was required and that the company's involvement would duplicate issues raised by other industrial parties.

The Tribunal found that a stand-alone motion was unnecessary and granted the company party status, noting its unique interests as a neighbouring industry and the need for its presence to adjudicate the issues effectively.

The applicant appealed the City of North Bay's refusal of its draft plan of condominium to permit the conversion of 60 existing townhouses.

At the first Case Management Conference, the parties advised that settlement discussions were ongoing and requested a second CMC.

The Tribunal scheduled a second CMC and directed the parties to provide a draft procedural order and issues list beforehand.

The Tribunal issued a Procedural Order to govern the upcoming 10-day hearing scheduled to commence on April 7, 2025.

The hearing concerns appeals related to the City of Niagara Falls' Employment Lands Strategy, a residential plan of subdivision, and associated official plan and zoning by-law amendments.

The order establishes the issues list, order of evidence, and deadlines for the exchange of witness statements and other materials.

The applicant appealed the City's failure to make a decision on applications for an Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment, and Draft Plan of Subdivision to permit a mixed-use development.

At the first Case Management Conference, the Tribunal granted participant and party status to several individuals and entities, deferred one party status request, and scheduled a second Case Management Conference and a 15-day merit hearing.

The appellant appealed the City's passage of a Zoning By-law Amendment, supporting the approval of its high-density residential development but objecting to a three-year sunset clause.

At the first Case Management Conference, the parties requested an adjournment to facilitate settlement discussions and to potentially consolidate the matter with a related appeal.

The Tribunal granted the request and scheduled a second Case Management Conference for June 2025.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a second Case Management Conference regarding site-specific appeals of Official Plan Amendment No. 18.8 for the Oak Ridges Local Centre in the City of Richmond Hill.

The Tribunal scheduled two separate five-day hearings for the appeals and issued the corresponding Procedural Orders.

The Tribunal also acknowledged that OPA 18.8 is in force and effect on a plan-wide basis, save for the site-specific appeals.