[All] a qu re Places to Grow Act

[Louisette Lanteigne]

Hi folks

The Places to grow act started about 30 years back with a Liberal scheme to build Waterloo into a big city because the aggregate was easy to get. The closer to the city the gravel is, the cheaper to build. Of course that vast amounts of gravel also provides our local water supply so along with that  a pipeline scheme that was crafted into the deal to bring water from north to here.  Years later laws changed that bound municipalities to only taking water from their own watershed basins so the pipeline plan switched to Erie and right now that Lake is doing poorly. 

Initially to build their big city vision they created strong alliances with gravel pit owners and developers, industry and universities to create this big city future and they invested a bundle in it but then hydrology evolved in the 90's and now they are trying to balance priorities without ruining our water supply or their revenues. It takes around 12 years or more for the government to dramatically alter plans of this nature. 

The reason we have been able to stem off damages this far is due to Walkerton and to our innovative Region for leading the way with ESL policies, intensified growth and other water protection policies. We are also blessed with the GRCA which has always been a leader in protection of the Grand and we are blessed with the concerned public pushing for protection of these features. 

The population numbers in 2004 for the Region was 495,000 but the projected growth in the next 17 years will increase that to 742,000. That's roughly the entire population of Kitchener to be added to the Region by 2030.

By far the most vocal political advocate blowing the whistle on the non sustainable growth in Waterloo Region is Ontario Environmental Commissioner Gord Miller. Great article about it here; 
http://www.waterloochronicle.ca/news/drawing-the-line/ 

If you want further details specific to Waterloo Region he has plenty of info in this report. 
http://www.eco.on.ca/uploads/Reports%20-%20Annual/2006_07/2007ar.pdf


Lulu






On Sunday, March 16, 2014 4:36:26 PM, Eleanor Grant <eleanor7000 at gmail.com> wrote:
 
You've all been very helpful.
The LRT naysayers just want KW to stay the way it is, and they don't believe all this pop growth will materialize.
But I don't think W Reg has a choice about it - that's what they don't get.
Eleanor

On Mar 16, 2014 4:19 PM, "Ginny Quinn" <ginnypq at gmail.com> wrote:

Yes, Eleanor.   The Places to Grow  Act  ( I was at the local  meeting  many
>years ago HERE at the 'French School House'  on Erb St.  (Met Kevin T.
>there, also  David  Wellhauser )  The Region agreed to accept  250,000 more
>immigrants  by the year 2035  (not 2031)   (that description is  anyone who
>is currently NOT  living here) from any country...Canada    U.S.   any other
>country qualified  by acceptance of our rules  citizenship    etc.  because
>the province had enacted the Greenbelt Protection Act.)  and needed
>somewhere else to  'house' these people.  Our Universities and Conestoga
>College  are a BIG  attraction.
>
>My greatest concern at that time was WATER   to feed  all  these new people,
>especially  being  so heavily dependent on Ground water   and the builders
>pushing so hard for 'new development land.'
>
>  We had a speaker one time at the Real Estate Board   who was a rep.  of
>ACTIVA   and told us  that  he had been here for a few yrs.  looking  for
>and purchasing more land for  them.   Activa had  been buying land over the
>last 50 yrs.   and that was 15 yrs. ago that I was at that meeting.
>
>In our battle  we often quoted   that "It's like buying a lottery ticket"
>there's always a chance that you WON'T WIN .(as in the push of developers to
>cross OUR OWN GREENBELT   now  at the COURTS re OMB.
>
>  You can get more accurate info  if you call John Milloy's office   (before
>he retires)     or Kevin Thomas will be a wonderful source of actual
>FACTS....Kevin never ceases to amaze me  with that busy and factual mind of
>his.!!!!   Hope this helps ...I'm not sure if I kept the info I picked up
>there as I'm trying to clean out  as much as I can.   We'll soon be
>downsizing...and I'm a SAVER....don't like to be called a 'pack rat'   but I
>do tend to 'save  stuff'  to help others  or refresh this old mind of mine.
>Your  question took me back many years...thanks for the memories.   Ginny
>
>
>
>From: All [mailto:all-bounces at gren.ca] On Behalf Of Eleanor Grant
>Sent: Sunday, March 16, 2014 12:58 PM
>To: GREN2
>Subject: [All] a qu re Places to Grow Act
>
>
>
>Hi All.  I thought the Places to Grow Act designated some regions, incl
>ours, as having to absorb more ppl, and that that's WHY we have to move
>toward intensification here.
>
>Is this true?
>
>When the pop of W Reg is forecast to increase by 50% by 2031, is it because
>we are a designated region for expansion?
>
>Just wondering.  I can't find any links that aren't pdfs (which I can't read
>on my little device).
>
>Eleanor
>
>

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