[All] ROP Amendments Pass Today including SW Corner ProtectedCountryside!

[Ginny Quinn]

Kevin and Deb     Bless you both for being there.  I thought that there 
would be nothing else until next Monday nite at Kit. Council meet.  I was 
going to write to the Editor when I read the Record report today, but my 
talk with Chris Gosselin earlier re meeting today assured me that the 
majority Regional Council voted AGAINST Carl Zehr's and Tom's Pleas to "keep 
it open for the next 5 years "   and our dear Paul Britton, planner for 
Activa      'baffled' how 2 Engineering firms could study and be "so far 
apart " in their conclusion."   Hello    !!!!   One of the firms works FOR 
ACTIVA the developer  and Britton the planner.     And the other firm works 
, hopefully, for the city nand region and the benefit of the population and 
the viable  'future 'of this community.  See you Monday night in Kitchener 
Chambers.  For the future of our next generations.   Ginny
 Have to go now, but I really want to be there .
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kevin Thomason" <kevinthomason at mac.com>
To: <all at gren.ca>
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2010 5:30 PM
Subject: [All] ROP Amendments Pass Today including SW Corner 
ProtectedCountryside!


> GREN Folks,
>
> In an emotionally charged and fascinatingly insightful meeting today the 
> Regional Planning and Works Committee (consisting of every Mayor and 
> Regional Councillor in Waterloo Region) approved the Regional Official 
> Plan (ROP) and new amendments including extending the Countryside Line and 
> the Protected Countryside into the SouthWest Corner of Kitchener despite 
> the pleas and protests of Carl Zehr, Jim Wideman, and Tom Galloway who 
> tried repeatedly to propose yet another motion to defer protection of this 
> critical groundwater aquifer recharge area and leave the door open to 
> future development.
>
> The meeting lasted several hours and included presentations by all the 
> usual large developers and area planners trying to get exceptions for 
> their lands and/or arguing against the Region's science and the 
> environmental sensitivity of the SouthWest Corner.  Following the 
> developer delegations there was a lengthy and fiery debate by Councillors 
> with some such as Jane Mitchell, Jean Haalboom, Jane Brewer, Claudette 
> Millar, and Brenda Halloran arguing that it is time to complete the ROP 
> process and pass it in full, that positive feedback had been received from 
> the province and that the minor changes being proposed by Regional Staff 
> dealt with the outstanding Provincial issues, that there had now been a 
> full year of consultation, public meetings, open houses, etc. on the 
> Protected Countryside, the Countryside Line and the Regional Recharge 
> Mapping, that the water studies and traffic studies had been completed 
> that clearly showed development in the SouthWest Corner was not feasible, 
> affordable, or advisable, and it was time to take a stand as Council and 
> move forward.
>
> Tom Galloway tried to put forward a motion that for a while looked like it 
> might get enough support that proposed to approve everything but the 
> SouthWest Corner of Kitchener - similar to the motion passed by Carl Zehr 
> in his Kitchener Council Chamber last night to defer any decision on the 
> SouthWest Corner for five years until better information was available and 
> development needs were better understood.
>
> Kudo's to the Councillors who stood up to Carl Zehr, Tom Galloway, and Jim 
> Wideman and argued that there was already conclusive studies that the area 
> was not at all appropriate for urban development, the costs of 
> infrastructure including significant new roadways would be incredibly 
> prohibitive, it would never be feasible to service the area with effective 
> transit, and that by the wording of Galloway's motion it would remove all 
> protection and there would actually be no environmental or water 
> protection over most of the SouthWest Corner area (with the exception of 
> the wellhead perimeters) for the next five years.  Jean Haalboom also 
> brought up the point of the Provincially Significant Wetland and the ESPA 
> Forest that have already mysteriously disappeared from Activa Lands in 
> this area this year and that the SouthWest Corner is an area that needed 
> more protection and not less.
>
> Finally, in a series of 12 to 3 votes the Regional Recharge Area Mapping 
> including the SW Corner was approved, the complete Protected Countryside 
> Plan was approved including the SW Corner, and then finally in a 15 to 0 
> vote the rest of the Regional Official Plan and provincial amendments were 
> approved.
>
> It was certainly a dramatic meeting and kudo's to those Councillors who 
> took a strong stand and argued passionately for the environment, our 
> groundwater, and for protection of the critical natural areas throughout 
> Region. In addition to the Protected Countryside, Countryside Line, and 
> detailed Groundwater Recharge Area mapping that prevents any development 
> in these areas, this Official Plan also includes two new massive ESL's 
> (Environmentally Sensitive Landscape areas), stronger protection from in 
> appropriate aggregate extraction, support for public transit, green 
> energy, reduced urban sprawl, increased intensification in the core areas, 
> and numerous other progressive initiatives.
>
> The ROP will now move from the Planning and Works Committee to full 
> Regional Council next week (Wednesday, June 30th).  It is anticipated 
> given the support today of 13 Councillors that it will pass next week as 
> well.  The ROP will then return to the Province for a final approval.
>
> Upon the Minister's final approval anyone will have 20 days to appeal the 
> final decision or aspects of it.  It is anticipated that some of the 
> aggregate policies, SW corner issues, and minor mapping issues around the 
> Breslau airport will be appealled.  The Region had a full legal team there 
> today to prepare for any possible challenges though the strong endorsement 
> by the majority of Council as well as all of the supporting research, 
> studies, and years of work by Regional Staff should provide a very strong 
> case for any challenger to try to overturn.
>
> Please let either myself or Deb Swidrovich who was also in attendance know 
> any questions.  I did a couple of short interviews after the meeting on 
> behalf of GREN with Rogers TV following up a piece they had done a few 
> months ago on the Protected Countryside and also with some of the 
> newspapers looking for comments.
>
> Overall, the ROP is an amazing blueprint for the future and today's 
> decision to approve it in its entirety and immediately protect the 
> SouthWest Corner from significant future development will positively 
> impact the quality of life for everyone in Waterloo Region for generations 
> to come.
>
> Kevin.
>
> -------------------------------------
>
> Kevin Thomason
>
> 1115 Cedar Grove Road
> Waterloo, Ontario Canada  N2J 3Z4
>
> Phone: (519) 888-0519
> Mobile Phone: (519) 240-1648
> E-mail: kevinthomason at mac.com
>
> -----------------------------------------
>
>
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