Places to Grow Act (Ontario)

Places to Grow Act (Ontario)
Title	Places to Grow Act
Jurisdiction	Ontario
Enacted by	Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Date enacted	2005
Status	enacted

Places to Grow Act (Ontario)

The Places to Grow Act, 2005 is provincial legislation enacted by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to provide a statutory framework for regional growth management across Greater Golden Horseshoe, Peel Region, York Region and other Ontario regions. It establishes mechanisms for long-term land use planning coordinated among municipalities such as City of Toronto, City of Hamilton, City of Ottawa and the Region of Waterloo, and sets out relationships with provincial ministries including the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Transportation (Ontario). The Act informed planning instruments like the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe and shaped interactions with agencies such as Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx.

Background and Purpose

The Act grew from provincial responses to pressures in Toronto, Brampton, Mississauga, Vaughan, Markham, Burlington, Oakville, Richmond Hill and Halton Region driven by population increases, housing demand, commuting patterns tied to GO Transit, and expansion of the Greater Toronto Area. Policymakers in the McGuinty ministry sought to integrate land use and transportation planning, linking to initiatives by the Ontario Growth Secretariat and advice from bodies such as the Provincial Policy Statement authors. The purpose was to direct growth into priority settlement areas, coordinate infrastructure investments by entities like Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx, and align municipal Official Plans in municipalities including London, Ontario and Kingston, Ontario.

Legislative History and Passage

Introduced under the Liberal Party of Ontario government led by Dalton McGuinty, the Act was debated in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario alongside other statutes such as the Greenbelt Act, 2005 and the Greenbelt Plan. Members from caucuses including the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario and the Ontario New Democratic Party scrutinized provisions related to municipal autonomy and provincial authority. Legislative committees and hearings involved submissions from stakeholders like the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, the Canadian Urban Institute, and the Urban Land Institute. The bill navigated amendments before royal assent and subsequent proclamation coordinated with provincial plans for regions such as Niagara Region and Windsor.

Key Provisions and Policies

The Act authorizes the Lieutenant Governor in Council to issue provincial growth plans, such as the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe (2006), that set density targets, intensification requirements, and employment area designations for municipalities including Mississauga, Scarborough, and Hamilton. It permits the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to approve or modify municipal Official Plans and to establish upper-tier conformity timelines affecting Durham Region and Halton Region. Policies encompass transit-oriented development proximate to GO Transit and VIA Rail corridors, protection of agricultural lands adjacent to the Greenbelt, and coordination with provincial transportation initiatives like the Big Move by Metrolinx. The Act also provides for provincial orders to resolve disputes involving municipalities such as Burlington and Oakville.

Implementation and Governance

Implementation relies on provincial ministries including the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Transportation (Ontario), regional planning authorities, and municipal councils in cities like Brantford, Guelph, St. Catharines, and Cambridge. Governance mechanisms create linkages with crown agencies such as Metrolinx, Infrastructure Ontario, and conservation authorities like the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. The Act’s instruments interact with municipal Official Plans, provincial environmental assessment processes administered by bodies including the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario (historical office) and with funding programs tied to Infrastructure Ontario and federal partnerships with entities like Infrastructure Canada. Intergovernmental coordination has involved the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area and institutions such as the University of Toronto and Ryerson University for research support.

Impact and Criticism

Proponents argue the Act promoted compact growth in municipalities such as Oakville, Vaughan, Markham, and Mississauga, influenced intensification in centres like Downtown Toronto and supported transit investments by Metrolinx and GO Transit. Critics including municipal associations, developers like the Ontario Home Builders' Association, environmental groups such as Environmental Defence (Canada) and academic researchers from York University and McMaster University contend it centralized authority, constrained municipal decision-making in places like Niagara Falls and Thunder Bay, and sometimes produced tensions over housing supply, affordability, and infrastructure funding. Legal scholars from institutions like Queen's University and think tanks such as the Fraser Institute and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives have debated its effects on land markets and municipal finance.

Amendments and Legal Challenges

Since enactment, the Act and its growth plans have been amended through provincial decisions involving ministries under premiers including Kathleen Wynne and Doug Ford. Amendments addressed matters such as density targets, mapping of settlement areas affecting Hamilton-Wentworth, and modifications to the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Legal challenges brought by municipalities, developers, and conservation authorities have reached tribunals such as the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (historical) and courts including the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, prompting judicial review of ministerial orders and conformity decisions. Disputes have involved affected parties from regions such as Durham, York, and Simcoe County.

Category:Ontario legislation Category:Urban planning in Canada