Two days after Collingwood council voted to endorse a controversial minister’s zoning order (MZO) for the Poplar Regional Health and Wellness Centre project, the new mayor-elect announced on her social media that she would be taking action to "reverse the decision."
On Thursday, during a special and final meeting of the 2018-22 council, councillors voted 5-2 to give a final endorsement of an MZO for the Poplar Village project. Couns. Yvonne Hamlin and Deb Doherty were the two votes opposed to the decision.
Late Saturday, Hamlin, who is the town's mayor-elect, posted a message regarding the matter on her social media pages.
“This MZO overrides all local zoning rules and gives away our power. Council issued a blank cheque to build millions of square feet without a way to ensure that the developer keeps his promises, mere days before the newly elected council will be sworn in,” wrote Hamlin.
The town did not issue a cheque to the developer, and has not committed funds to the project. The decision last week by the outgoing council was to officially endorse an application to the province for an MZO to change designation of the 130 acres off Poplar Sideroad to allow for mixed-use development including residential homes. As part of the process, the province requires an endorsement by municipal council. Collingwood council was first asked to consider the endorsement in March 2022.
In her social media post this weekend, Hamlin said she had spoken to members of the incoming 2022-2026 council about her intentions to bring forward a motion at the earliest opportunity to reverse the decision.
She also said she had reached out the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing on Friday.
“Yesterday, I asked Minister Steve Clark to hold off on approving an MZO until the new council has time to consider this motion and provide further direction to him,” she said.
“This is a massive development for Collingwood and I was elected to ensure responsible development that puts the needs of our community first,” wrote Hamlin.
When reached Monday morning, Hamlin said she had spoken to each incoming councillor individually regarding the matter. While Hamlin declined to speak for other councillors, current and re-elected Coun. Deb Doherty posted on Twitter over the weekend saying she fully supported Hamlin’s point of view.
I fully support the notion of revisiting the previous, lame duck Council's motion to support the MZO for Poplar Sideroad. We have no assurances of community benefits, including a location for our new hospital. https://t.co/REvmtikY1t
— Deborah Doherty (@DeborahDoherty7) November 13, 2022
Hamlin will be sworn in as mayor on Tuesday, Nov. 15, along with the rest of the newly elected council, during a ceremony at Bear Estate. She said she's in talks with the town clerk with the intention to call a special meeting of the new council before the end of this week.
When asked why she didn’t want to wait until after the inauguration to start the reconsideration process, Hamlin said MZO process can move quickly once a municipality provides an endorsement.
“Once it’s enacted, it would be very difficult to get it reversed, so it’s important that if we (the 2022-26 council) are going to take a different position, we do it immediately,” said Hamlin. “There’s some urgency.”
As of Monday morning, Hamlin said she had not yet heard back from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing on whether they had received her request. She also said she had not yet heard from any current council members regarding her intentions.
Talks had been ongoing between the town and the developers Live Work Learn Play Inc. and Di Poce Management Ltd. to negotiate an agreement prior to Thursday’s vote, and there was a four-hour closed-session meeting on Nov. 10 before council voted to officially endorse the MZO.
The Poplar Village Regional Health and Wellness Village proposal for 130 acres on the southeast corner of Poplar Sideroad and Raglan St. was first brought forward to Collingwood council in March 2022.
According to the initial vision for the project presented to council, there will be seven key areas incorporated into the design of the village including a regional health and wellness campus, a market district, long-term care/assisted living facilities, bio-science and medical research facilities, an eco-wellness centre, a regional transit hub, student and workforce housing and sports medicine clinics.
The developers intended to seek an MZO — a controversial provincial tool to fast-track a change of zoning on a piece of land with provincial authority bypassing the municipal zoning process — to change the zoning of the property from industrial to mixed-use to allow for the community-hub-style development. In order to be considered, the developer needed a resolution passed by Collingwood council in support of the zoning change.
Back in August, council gave initial approval for the MZO “in principle,” with the caveat that the developers must work with town staff, the mayor and deputy mayor and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to prepare a final MZO for endorsement. Since then, closed-door meetings have occurred between the province, the town and the developers to iron out the details of what the MZO should entail.
At that time, Hamlin voted in favour of the endorsement. When asked why she changed her vote, Hamlin said she wasn’t satisfied on Thursday because, in her opinion, there was no agreement in place to ensure what was promised is what will be delivered.
“I have been consistent in saying that I think the project could be a good one for our town, but I want to make sure all the protections and benefits to the municipality are included, and there’s no agreement with the developer,” said Hamlin.
According to the most recent iteration of the draft MZO considered in August, the lands to be developed must include a minimum of 10 per cent attainable/affordable housing and 60,000 square metres of employment in the form of office, institutional and light industrial uses. Other additions to the overall plan included that a block plan and a phasing plan must be submitted prior to any building permits being granted for the project, and a five-kilometre, all-season, multi-modal trail system must also be constructed on the lands.
When reached for comment on Monday, Mayor Keith Hull said he had seen the comments made online by Hamlin, and the comment in support by Doherty.
“As mayor, I respect their right to a different opinion,” said Hull in an emailed statement. “However, the council of 2018-2022 was well within its legislative authority to move forward with the decision made on Nov. 10th.”
Hull elaborated further in an interview.
“I’m disappointed. This has been a really tough term and, for the most part, we’ve been able to collaboratively work together, agree to disagree, but carry forward,” he said.
Hull said the implementation of the interim control bylaw, while necessary, did fracture some of the town’s relationships with the development community as a whole, which he said, as an industry, is the region’s largest employer.
“The fact that this decision is the one she chooses to go public with on social media is disappointing,” he said.
When asked Hamlin if she has concerns that her actions might have code of conduct implications – specifically Rule 15 of the Collingwood council code of conduct which states that councillors shall not actively undermine the implementation of council decisions – Hamlin says she has bigger concerns about the entire process.
“I think there might be a question about whether the former council acted improperly by bringing forward such a substantive motion without the appropriate notice,” she said. “It was described on the agenda as an update.”
“If there were going to be a complaint under Rule 15, I would be filing my own complaint. I don’t feel this was handled in an open and transparent fashion, which is going to be the hallmark of how I govern this town,” said Hamlin. “I’m not going to comment on any proposed complaint, but I’m ready for it.”
Hamlin also noted that a new council is entirely within their purview to reconsider or change direction on previous council decisions.
