Milton Mayor appeals to province over region’s freeze of urban area

After Halton Council voted to freeze the the region’s urban boundaries last week, Milton Mayor Gord Krantz has directly pitched his concerns to the province.

When the issue of urban boundary expansion came to the council last week, the southern portion of the council members overwhelmingly voted to lock it down.

Given the weight that the southern portion of Halton has on the council, it left the northern portion in Milton and Halton Hills feeling frozen out of decisions on their own land.

To that end, Krantz sent a letter to Steve Clark, Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, saying that without the urban expansion, his town will not be able to develop ability a land use policy that strategically mixes employment and residential lands.

The southern side of Halton greatly outnumbered its northern counterparts in the 15-9 vote as Oakville councillors voted 8-0 in favour of freezing the boundaries, Burlington voted 4-3 in favour while Milton councillors voted 4-1 against the freeze and Halton Hills voted 2-1 against it.

Halton must have its Official Plan into the province’s hands by July 1 and development of rural lands is considered to be a key part of any decisions.

Halton Council opted instead to follow Oakville Mayor Rob Burton’s motion to freeze the region’s urban boundaries until 2041 as he pointed out the official plans are updated and amended by provincial degree every five years regardless.

The original regional staff growth plan would have freed up an additional 5,200 acres of agricultural land in Milton and Halton Hills to potential development. The plan was heavily favoured by the northern councillors despite noisy opposition from residents claiming it would amount to little more than urban sprawl.