Official Plan Review

Timeline

Work on the Official Plan Review was initiated in March 2006 and its terms of reference were updated as soon as Council adopted the Town's Strategic Plan - Destiny Milton 2, in June of 2006. All municipalities are required under provincial law to undertake an Official Plan Review at least every five years, and the process must include extensive public and stakeholder consultation.

At the same time that the Town embarked upon its Official Plan Review process, Halton Region began their growth exercise known as Durable Halton(now referred to as Sustainable Halton), which was initiated in response to the Provincial Growth Plan requirement that both Regional and Local municipalities must plan for growth to the year 2031 based on the development of sustainable, complete communities. The Sustainable Halton process incorporates Halton Region's growth and land use plan for 2021 to 2031, and also includes the Region's Five-Year Official Plan Review Update.

For multiple reasons, including the Region advancing the Sustainable Halton Plan, the Town of Milton Official Plan Review Process could not meet the original timeframe developed by staff. On May 19, 2009, Planning Staff, reporting on the progress of the Sustainable Halton exercise, recommended via staff report PD-052-09 that Council formally request from the Ministers of Energy and Infrastructure and the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, a one year extension to the June 16, 2009 deadline as required by the Places to Grow Act for completion of the Town of Milton five-year Official Plan Review and Growth Plan conformity exercise. This request was unanimously supported by Milton Council and is in keeping with similar requests from other municipalities within Halton Region and the Greater Toronto Area.

In September 2009, staff provided update Report PD-081-09 and released a draft Official Plan document prepared by Meridian Planning Consultants Inc. This document which was at a preliminary draft stage incorporated new policies and revisions to existing ones, in response to Provincial and Regional policy directions. It was the intention of staff to release this document for the purposes of engaging the community in meaningful discussion with respect to the future policy directions of the municipality.

On December 16, 2009, Halton Regional Council adopted ROPA 38 (Regional Official Plan Amendment No. 38), an amendment to incorporate the results of Sustainable Halton, Official Plan Review Directions and Other Matters. This amendment provides the local municipalities with specific directions on where growth will occur in the Region (including expansions to the Town's current urban boundary) and how it will be achieved to the year 2031.

In order to meet the June 16, 2010 Provincial deadline relating to Growth Plan conformity, staff will be advancing components of the Official Plan Review, relating to the conformity exercise, through a proposed amendment to the current Official Plan. A series of meetings have been scheduled to achieve this deadline and are provided below.

Date	Meeting	Notices
March 30, 2010	Informal Open House to showcase Growth Conformity components (including draft mapping)	Notice
April 19, 2010	Special Council Meeting under Section 26 of the Planning Act, to hear public input on the revised Official Plan Review topics for the June 16, 2010 Growth Plan conformity exercise.	Notice
April 28, 2010	Statutory Public Open House relating to the proposed Official Plan Amendments. (draft amendments to be released in early April 2010)
May 10, 2010	Statutory Public Meeting with Council to discuss the proposed Official Plan Amendments.
June 14, 2010	Special Council meeting for Council to consider adoption of the Official Plan Amendment relating to Growth Plan Conformity.

Following the conformity exercise, Town staff will continue to review the remainder of the Official Plan policies and work towards the completion of new Official Plan document. A work plan for the completion of the review will be posted at a later date.

What is an Official Plan?

The Official Plan is a general land use guide which is intended to provide Council with a basis for making decisions on development applications, changes in land use, and community improvements. It also sets out a long-term vision for growth and development in a municipality. The Official Plan Review will be guided by, and will implement where appropriate, the Destiny Milton 2 goals and directions.

Topics to be reviewed
Land use
Public feedback
Official Plan Review documents
Additional information

Topics to be reviewed

The Official Plan Review will examine both urban and rural topics. Some of the key topics and policies to be reviewed include:

Population - updating the numbers to reflect the extent of lands designated and forecasting of future growth
Housing - e.g. mix, affordability and areas for intensification
Parking - how parking issues should be dealt with in new development areas
Central Business District area policies
Commercial/employment area policies - including findings of the Retail Market Study
Rural and agricultural area policies
Institutional policies relating to libraries and private schools
Natural heritage/park systems - including parkland standards and dedication, recommendations of the Woodlot Management Study and updated Trails Master Plan
Environmental - e.g. tree cutting, new regulated areas, Greenbelt Plan
Niagara Escarpment Plan - i.e. inclusion of policy updates
Heritage resources including the investigation of incentives to preserve heritage resources and alternatives such as heritage subdivisions
Transportation/Transit Opportunities - implementation of the Transit Opportunities Study
Urban design-how to improve the look of future development
Provincial Legislation and Regional initiatives - inclusion of policies that implement the Provincial Growth Plan, Greenbelt Plan, and Regional Official Plan Amendments No. 25 and 38 (No. 38 is expected to be released in Draft form in Fall 2009.)
Addition of policies to address new items/topics that currently are not represented in the Plan but are emerging areas of interest or study - e.g. Ninth Line Corridor, commercial water taking, local utilities etc.

Report PD-022-06 was brought forward to Council for endorsement on March 20, 2006. It contains more detailed information on the topics and policies to be reviewed as part of the Official Plan Review proces.

Land use

Unlike many urban centres, the Town of Milton encompasses 380 square kilometers (147 square miles) of diverse terrain. The Rural System includes Escarpment Protection and Escarpment Rural Areas, Rural and Agricultural areas, Hamlet populations and Mineral Resource Extraction Areas. An extensive Greenlands System surrounds and is networked into the existing Urban Area and the Urban Expansion Area. The Greenlands System includes the habitat of endangered and threatened species; woodlands and significant wildlife and fish habitats, as well as natural rivers and waterways. All land uses must be taken into account in the Official Plan. For details, please refer to the Official Plan Map Schedule A Land Use Plan.

Public feedback

The Town hosted its first Open House in late June 2006 to kick-start the review process, identify the issues/topics that will be considered as part of the review, and obtain public opinion and feedback on areas of importance to be addressed in the Plan. Watch the Town website (this page and the home page) for details on this project and future public meetings.

Public input into this study is very important to the Town. Therefore we are asking that if you would like to provide any comments or information, or ask any questions with respect to the Official Plan Review study process, please submit your comments using the contact information at the bottom of this page.

Official Plan Review documents

Preliminary Draft Official Plan

In September 2009, Milton Council endorsed a staff recommendation to release the Preliminary Draft Official Plan document to the public for review and comment.
The preliminary draft Official Plan both incorporates new policies and revises existing ones, and responds to Provincial and Regional policy direction, as well as the issues identified in the Official Plan Background Report presented to Council in PD-001-07. Additional revisions will be required in response to ongoing policy work and background studies.

While the document is at a preliminary draft stage, it has been brought forward at this time as a basis to engage the community in meaningful discussion with respect to the future policy directions of the municipality.

The preliminary draft document is currently available online or for viewing in hardcopy at the Planning and Development Department.

Open House June 29, 2006

Background Report May 3, 2007

Overview with links to all report sections

Additional information

Related Information:

For more information on this topic, please submit comments or inquiries to: 'planning'
Phone: 905-878-7252 ext 2398
Fax: 905 876-5024