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Agricultural industry

Ontario Land Tribunal Approves Modified Official Plan and Zoning By-law for Leamington Municipality

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

The Ontario Land Tribunal has issued a decision approving the modified Official Plan (OPA) and Zoning By-law (ZBA) for the Municipality of Leamington. The proposed plan and by-law amendments were put forth by the Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) to address concerns related to the provision of housing for farm workers. The tribunal's decision addresses key concerns raised by OGVG, including the requirement for pedestrian connections to off-site farm worker dwellings, definitions of housing typologies, and occupancy thresholds.

Key Takeaways:

  • The proposed modified OPA and amended ZBA aim to protect the agricultural resources within the province by ensuring an adequate provision of housing options in the Municipality of Leamington.
  • The modifications address the requirement for pedestrian connections to off-site farm worker dwellings by deleting the PCL requirement and recognizing that farm operators are required to provide transportation services to farm workers.
  • The proposed revisions increase the resident limit for Small Boarding Houses from six to seven persons and for Large Boarding Houses from seven to eight persons.
  • The tribunal accepts the opinion proffered by Mr. Kennedy that the proposed modifications to the OPA and ZBA have regard for matters of provincial interest set out in s. 2 of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended.
  • The tribunal finds that the proposed modified OPA and amended ZBA conform with the Provincial Policy Statement, 2020 (PPS), the County's Official Plan (COP), and the Leamington Official Plan (LOP).
  • The tribunal approves the proposed modified OPA and amended ZBA, finding that they represent good planning and are in the public interest.

Statistics:

  • 6: The number of persons permitted in a Small Boarding House under the current OPA.
  • 7: The proposed resident limit for a Small Boarding House under the modified OPA.
  • 8: The proposed resident limit for a Large Boarding House under the modified OPA.
  • 22: The section of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, under which the tribunal considered the appeal.

Sources:

  • Ontario Land Tribunal (2024-05-21): Ontario Land Tribunal ISSUE DATE: May 21, 2024 CASE NO(S.).: OLT-21-001104.
  • Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13.
  • Provincial Policy Statement, 2020.
  • County of Essex's Official Plan.
  • Leamington Official Plan.

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