The application for a 10 storey building at 3033, 3047, 3055 and 3053 Binbrook Road (behind Shoppers Drug Mart) has been given approval to proceed as 6 storey.
This 6 storey building in Binbrook is similar to the approval given in 2007 for a 6 storey building to be located at the South West corner of Binhaven Blvd and Binbrook Road.
This application (which was originally 10 storeys) does NOT meet the Binbrook Village Secondary Plan. However we are now told that the secondary plan, which was created by the Former Township of Glanbrook in the 1990’s, is not defendable during a Provincial appeal process because the policies have been referred to as antiquated.
The Provincial appeal process is called the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT). This appeal process was formerly known as the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) and as is the case with the OMB it takes planning decisions out of the hands of the Municipality. LPAT now makes the decision and quite often those decisions have not been to support or maintain the decisions made at the local Municipal level.
When the applicants for the building learned that City staff, the public & the Councillor would not support the application, the developer decided to take this application directly to the former OMB for a hearing. Prior to a hearing settlement discussions took place between the applicant and the City. Through these settlement discussions between city lawyers and the developer it was determined that six storeys would be granted.
You ask why does the City did not defend our secondary plan and height restriction of three storeys during this process? I can only advise that according to our planning and legal staff, our plans would not be defendable at LPAT due to the provinces current density standards. LPAT would not have supported our secondary plan on this application. In developing urban areas the Provincial agenda today is to increase density where ever possible. And remember, LPAT an appeal body created by the Province, has the final decision.
As your local Councillor I believe that the current Secondary Plans for Binbrook Village are good and I DO NOT SUPPORT THESE CHANGES and have been on record opposing them. Unfortunately LPAT overrules your local council. Communities are unique in their own ways and it is unfortunate that these decisions were taken out of the hands of the local community.
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