Steven O'Melia

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a Case Management Conference regarding numerous appeals of the new Official Plan for the Town of Collingwood.

The Tribunal directed the parties to prepare a draft Procedural Order and Issues List, and scheduled a further Case Management Conference to address procedural matters and a motion by the Town to bring unappealed portions of the Official Plan into force.

The appellant filed appeals regarding proposed residential developments.

A motion in writing was brought on consent to amend the A1 and M1 appeal forms to correct discrepancies in the statutory section references under the Planning Act.

The Tribunal allowed the motion, finding that correcting the forms to accurately reflect appeals under s. 17(24) and s. 51(39) of the Planning Act would offer the best opportunity for a fair, just, and expeditious resolution of the proceedings without causing prejudice to any party.

The Tribunal convened a Case Management Conference for four distinct appeals relating to proposed expansions of the Fergus Urban Centre boundary in the Township of Centre Wellington.

The parties agreed to a phased hearing approach, with Phase 1 addressing overarching population forecasts and land needs assessments, and Phase 2 addressing site-specific issues.

The Tribunal ordered the appeals to be heard together for Phase 1 and granted party status to several requesting entities, including the appellants in each other's appeals, adjacent landowners, and the local school board.

A 14-day hearing was scheduled for Phase 1.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a first Case Management Conference regarding appeals by Fergus South Inc. against the Township of Centre Wellington's failure to make decisions on official plan amendment, zoning by-law amendment, and draft plan of subdivision applications.

The applications propose a mixed-density residential development of up to 323 units.

The Tribunal granted party status to the Upper Grand District School Board, as an elementary school would be required if the applications are approved.

The parties expressed interest in mediation, and the Tribunal scheduled a second Case Management Conference for August 5, 2026, directing the parties to submit a draft Procedural Order and Issues List.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a first Case Management Conference regarding appeals against applications for a 667-unit residential development in the Township of Wilmot.

The Tribunal granted non-appellant party status to Stremma Developments, directed a motion in writing to correct a discrepancy in the appeal forms, and scheduled a 15-day hearing.

The Tribunal held a Case Management Conference to finalize the Procedural Order for appeals against the County of Simcoe's approval of the Town of Collingwood's new Official Plan.

Lorablue Developments Inc. requested an adjournment of its appeal, arguing it was site-specific and required ecological studies.

The Tribunal denied the adjournment, finding the appeal included broad policy issues that should be addressed at the scheduled hearing, though the parties could later agree to defer the issues if narrowed.

The Tribunal approved the Procedural Order and set the hearing dates.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a Case Management Conference regarding an appeal of the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority's refusal of permission for an existing single detached dwelling.

After the Conservation Authority failed to respond to multiple communications regarding the draft Procedural Order, the Tribunal issued the Procedural Order as filed by the appellant, setting a three-day hearing to commence on April 27, 2026.

A status Case Management Conference was held regarding the remaining appeals against the City of Toronto's comprehensive Zoning By-law No. 569-2013.

The City provided updates on settlement discussions concerning various issue-specific and site-specific appeals, including those related to propane storage, school boards, parking, cemeteries, and places of worship.

The Tribunal scheduled a further one-day CMC for December 3, 2025, and directed the City to provide a written status update and an updated tracking chart of remaining appeals by November 26, 2025.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a fourth Case Management Conference regarding appeals by Huntingwood Trails (Collingwood) Ltd. against the Town of Collingwood's refusal of applications for an official plan amendment, zoning by-law amendment, and draft plan of subdivision to permit a 69-unit residential development.

Following Tribunal-led mediation, the parties submitted a revised draft Procedural Order and Issues List.

The Tribunal approved the updated Procedural Order and scheduled a 30-day merits hearing to commence in January 2026.

The appellant appealed the Municipality of Chatham-Kent's Development Charges By-law No. 30-2024.

At the second Case Management Conference, the parties requested a third CMC to continue settlement discussions and obtain an expert's report.

The Tribunal granted the request, scheduled a third CMC, and directed the parties to submit a draft Procedural Order and Issues List or request a settlement hearing prior to the next date.

At a Case Management Conference regarding appeals for a 69-unit residential development, the Blue Mountain Watershed Trust Foundation requested party status to address flood plain protection issues.

The applicant opposed the request, arguing it would duplicate efforts, while the Town and County supported it.

The Tribunal granted party status to the Foundation, finding it had key interests and its intended expert evidence was necessary.

Participant status was also granted on consent to three individuals.

A further Case Management Conference was scheduled to finalize the Procedural Order and Issues List.

This was the first Case Management Conference for an appeal concerning the municipality's refusal of a zoning by-law amendment to permit a 19-unit townhome development.

The Tribunal granted participant status to two individuals.

The Tribunal also ordered that this appeal be heard together with a related official plan amendment appeal at a settlement hearing scheduled for March 12, 2025.

The parties sought direction from the Tribunal regarding unresolved issues in implementing a previous decision that partially approved draft plans of subdivision and zoning by-law amendments.

The Tribunal clarified that its previous decision did not deny all potential development of Block 5, Stage 4, and therefore the existing Zone Change (ZC) zoning should remain.

The Tribunal also approved the appellants' broader wording for an easement over Block 6, Stage 4, and confirmed that the conditions of approval should not compel the appellants to reach a specific agreement with the City regarding the conveyance of lands for infrastructure.

The Ontario Land Tribunal held a case management conference to receive status updates on multiple remaining appeals against the City of Toronto's comprehensive Zoning By-law No. 569-2013.

The Tribunal received updates on various site-specific and topic-specific appeals, noted several withdrawals and ongoing settlement discussions, and scheduled a further case management conference for May 2025.

The Town of Collingwood brought a motion to dismiss appeals filed by Huntingwood Trails (Collingwood) Ltd. regarding a proposed 69-unit residential development.

The Town argued the appeals had no reasonable prospect of success due to a potential Ministry of Transportation bypass and concerns from the local conservation authority regarding a proposed watercourse crossing.

The Tribunal found that the potential bypass was not a 'planned corridor' under the Provincial Planning Statement and that the conservation authority's concerns did not render the appeals hopeless.

The Tribunal also denied the Town's alternative request to phase the hearing, finding that a single comprehensive hearing would be more efficient.

The motion to dismiss was denied.

The appellant appealed the municipality's development charges by-law, arguing it places a disproportionate share of charges on the greenhouse industry.

At the request of the parties, the scheduled merit hearing was converted to a case management conference to facilitate ongoing settlement discussions.

The Tribunal scheduled a second case management conference and directed the parties to submit a draft procedural order and issues list if a settlement is not reached.

The applicants appealed the Municipality of Shuniah's refusal of an Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law Amendment, and its failure to make a decision on Consent applications, to permit the creation of two new lots and the development of a wellness retreat centre.

The Tribunal allowed the appeals, finding that the proposed development has regard for provincial interests, is consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement, and conforms to the Growth Plan for Northern Ontario and the municipal Official Plan.

The Tribunal was satisfied that the proposed use is compatible with the surrounding rural and shoreline residential area and that environmental features would be appropriately protected through a 30-metre buffer.

The appellants appealed under section 58(5) of the Drainage Act, alleging that the respondent municipality failed to proceed with reasonable dispatch with the construction of the Zettler Municipal Drain after passing the provisional by-law.

The Tribunal found that the municipality's engineer had submitted the report and the municipality had tendered the project prematurely, before obtaining necessary environmental permits from the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

The Tribunal ordered the municipality to apply for the required permits without delay and to amend the engineer's report if required by the conservation authority.

The applicant appealed the Township of Woolwich Committee of Adjustment's refusal of consent and minor variance applications to create a new residential lot.

The parties reached a settlement that included an easement for a septic attenuation zone and emergency access due to flood line concerns.

The Tribunal accepted uncontested expert planning evidence that the revised proposal respects environmental features and heritage attributes, and allowed the appeal, authorizing the variances and granting provisional consent.

The applicant appealed the Town of Collingwood's refusal of applications for an official plan amendment, zoning by-law amendment, and plan of subdivision to permit a 69-unit residential development.

At the first Case Management Conference, the applicant requested a six-week hearing be scheduled.

The Tribunal found that there were too many indeterminate matters, including a proposed bypass that may affect the development, and instead scheduled a second Case Management Conference to update the status of the appeals and finalize the procedural order.