Mistake Acknowledged: Doug Ford Abandons Proposal for Housing Development on Ontario’s Greenbelt Lands

Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced on Thursday his decision to reverse the previously proposed plan to allow housing development in the protected Greenbelt lands. This reversal comes after nearly a year of facing significant criticism over the decision, which resulted in the resignation of two cabinet ministers and two top staffers.

During a caucus retreat this week in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Ford mentioned that he had a discussion with caucus members who shared the feedback they’ve received from their respective communities regarding the Greenbelt. He emphasized his commitment to listening to these concerns.

“It was a mistake to open the Greenbelt. It was a mistake to establish a process that moved too fast. This process, it left too much room for some people to benefit over others. It caused people to question our motives. As a first step to earn back your trust, I’ll be reversing the changes we made and won’t make any changes to the Greenbelt in the future.”

In 2005, Ontario established the Greenbelt to safeguard agriculturally and environmentally valuable lands within the Greater Golden Horseshoe area from urban development.

However, last year, the province decided to remove approximately 7,400 acres of land across more than a dozen sections from the Greenbelt to make way for the construction of 50,000 homes, citing the housing crisis as the primary reason. This move by the government has been met with substantial opposition ever since.

Investigative reports from both the auditor general and the integrity commissioner revealed that the land selection process was hurried and appeared to favor specific developers.

“But let’s get real, because it never should have taken a series of scandals from this government for the premier to undo the damage that he’s done,” she said.

“It was clear from the beginning that this was the wrong decision and yet, Mr. Ford and the Conservative government pressed on. It was a calculated attempt by this government to benefit a few, a select few Conservative insiders, at the expense of everybody else.”

 

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner emphasized the need for Ontarians to remain vigilant and continue their opposition to Ford, as he is still proceeding with urban boundary expansions in certain regions of the province.

“We have to keep up the pressure in places like Waterloo Region and Halton, where Ford is imposing sprawl onto farmland, even though local councils have identified enough land for housing,” Schreiner said.

“We can’t let this reversal be a get-out-of-jail-free card for Premier Ford or his cabinet.”

Ford has argued that the land within the Greenbelt was essential to achieve the government’s ambitious target of constructing 1.5 million homes within a decade, by 2031. This claim, however, contrasts with the findings of his own housing affordability task force, which concluded that land availability was not a limiting factor in housing supply.

Simultaneously, the province introduced an additional 9,400 acres of land into the Greenbelt while announcing the removals. Nevertheless, the auditor general determined that 2,400 acres of this new land was already protected by existing policies.

It was revealed that over 90 percent of the Greenbelt land removals were concentrated in five specific sites that were connected to Ryan Amato, the chief of staff to then-housing minister Steve Clark. Amato had established contact with two developers he met at an industry event, as confirmed by the auditor.

The integrity commissioner, in his report from August, did not find direct evidence of developers receiving prior notice about the government’s Greenbelt removal intentions. However, he pointed out that Amato’s actions and interactions with developers had the effect of conveying such information. The commissioner also noted that Clark had failed to adequately supervise his staff member.

Both Clark and Amato have since stepped down from their positions.

This week, a second cabinet minister, Kaleed Rasheed, resigned amid news reports that raised questions about his associations with developer Shakir Rehmatullah and a trip to Las Vegas.

Rasheed, who was Ford’s principal secretary at the time, along with Amin Massoudi, and Jae Truesdell (who had been working in the private sector but later served as Ford’s director of housing policy from January 2022), reported to the integrity commissioner that they had traveled to Las Vegas in December 2019. During this trip, they briefly crossed paths with Rehmatullah.

On Thursday, Ford disclosed that Truesdell had also resigned, though he did not provide further details.

The RCMP is currently reviewing information to assess whether an investigation into the Greenbelt land exchange is warranted. Ford has expressed confidence that no criminal activity took place.

Ford confirmed that the Greenbelt review he had announced earlier this month will proceed as scheduled, as these reviews are required every 10 years.

When the review was initially announced, Paul Calandra, the newly appointed housing minister, suggested the possibility of further land removals. However, Ford clarified on Thursday that this will not be the case.