Two local governments request compensation from the Ontario government for their efforts related to the Greenbelt.
The City of Pickering and the Town of Grimsby claim they incurred expenses exceeding $400,000.
Two municipalities in Ontario are seeking reimbursement from the provincial government for costs exceeding $400,000 that they accrued while engaging in the now-reversed Greenbelt land removal efforts in their respective communities.
Premier Doug Ford publicly acknowledged last month that the decision made by his government in November 2022 to remove 15 parcels from the protected Greenbelt for housing development, a decision now under investigation by the RCMP, was an error. The new housing minister is now in the process of reinstating these parcels.
However, Pickering, Ontario, home to the largest parcel of land affected, and Grimsby, Ontario, where two other sites were initially earmarked for removal, argue that they invested substantial funds and staff resources in these plans and are now seeking compensation.
“While we appreciate the province’s reconsideration and commitment to preserving the integrity of the Greenbelt, we cannot overlook the significant amount of resources that have already been expended by our municipality in anticipation of housing development, sometimes at the direction of the province itself,” Pickering Mayor Kevin Ashe wrote in a letter to Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra.
City of Pickering officials have calculated a total of $360,135 in expenses, which they contend are now the responsibility of Pickering’s taxpayers. Approximately $90,000 of this amount is attributed to staff time, while the most substantial direct expense was a payment of over $178,000 to an economic consulting firm for conducting a financial impact analysis of the proposed Cherrywood development.
The Cherrywood development, situated within the Greenbelt, is owned by Silvio De Gasperis’ TACC Group and spans 4,262 acres, making it nearly two-and-a-half times larger than the next biggest among the 15 sites the government initially intended to remove.
In addition, Pickering allocated $90,000 toward external legal services and $930 for recruiting expenses for a new Cherrywood principal planner role.
Meanwhile, in Grimsby, the town council recently passed a unanimous motion urging the province to compensate their municipality for approximately $82,000 in expenses. These costs were accrued due to expenditures on legal and consulting services, as well as staff time, which resulted directly from the pressures exerted by the provincial government to negotiate with developers and make decisions regarding amendments to the Greenbelt Act, as stated in the town’s motion.
“This pressure included deadlines set by the minister of housing, which, if not met, would have resulted in decisions being made without the municipality’s involvement,” the motion said.
“The Town of Grimsby had initially anticipated that all costs incurred would be offset by fees associated with the developments affected by the changes to the Greenbelt.”
