Category: Greenbelt (Page 1 of 4)

LAST CALL: 502 Winston Road Greenbelt Public Planning Meeting – June 5th @ Town Hall

June 4, 2024 / GCFRG

It’s “Groundhog Day” on June 5th for the Greenbelt property at 502 Winston Road when the Town hosts its last public meeting into the application to redesignate the property from “Specialty Crop – Tender Fruit & Grape Lands” to the lesser-protected “Rural” classification. If approved, this would be the first step towards potential major development of this Greenbelt land.

After the original change was put on hold and then outright rejected by the Province after their “Greenbelt fiasco”, the applicant is now trying (again) at the Town and Regional level.

If you wish to spectate or delegate your opinion on this Greenbelt property application, the meeting will be tomorrow (Wed June 5th) at 6PM at Town Hall, Council Chambers. If you wish to delegate by Zoom, you can email your request to planning@grimsby.ca and/or clerks@grimsby.ca

Meeting Agenda: https://bit.ly/3yOv1kJ

Notice of Public Meetings: 502 Winston Road Greenbelt Redesignation (Town & Region)

May 23, 2024 / GCFRG

After the Province made good on their promise to rollback all their Greenbelt changes, the developers at 502 Winston have “reactivated” their original Town and Regional Official Plan Amendment applications. The applications are attempting to “redesignate” the Greenbelt property from Specialty Crop/Tender Fruit to the lesser protected Rural designation. This would “pave the way” for an urban boundary expansion and potentially significant development on those lakefront lands.

Grimsby Wetlands Wins “Brownie” Award For Natural Lands Restoration

December 15, 2023 / GCFRG

Image Credit: Drone’s Eye Photography via Hamilton Naturalists’ Club

The Hamilton Naturalists’ Club (HNC) has won a 2023 “Brownie Award” for its work at the Grimsby Wetlands aka The Biggar Lagoon. Awarded by the Canadian Brownfields Network (CBN) under the category of “Reinvest: Financing, Risk Management and Partnerships”, the CBN has recognized the turnaround of these once contaminated sewage treatment lands into an important ecological system within Grimsby and Niagara. This was the first time a “Brownie” award has been given to a volunteer group.

Must-Read: Fifty Point Park – The Idea

November 30, 2023 / GCFRG

Image Credit: Hamilton Conservation Authority/Fair Dealing

With today being the last day for public comments to be sent to the Province about the reversal of the Greenbelt changes (submit your comments here) and Council’s willingness to see parts of it not be re-protected, it seemed timely to take a look at the history of the Fifty Point area and its natural importance.

Staff Report: Council Urged To Ask Province Not To Return Land To Greenbelt

November 16, 2023 / GCFRG

Following a resolution passed in October requesting the Town submit comments to the Province regarding the reversal of the Greenbelt changes, a Staff Report for the consideration of Council on Monday was published today. The report urges Council to request that the Province NOT to reverse the Greenbelt changes in Grimsby (502 Winston and Cline Road) and leave those parcels out for development.

Greenbelt FOI – How Province Wanted To Avoid A “Donut Hole” At Cline Road

October 30, 2023 / GCFRG

Following Freedom of Information (FOI) requests by Environmental Defence and EcoJustice to the Provincial government, they released a treasure trove of documents related to the Greenbelt fiasco. You can find the repository at this link here.

Questions Over “Cline Road”, Same Greenbelt Consultant Attends Recent Town Planning Event

October 23, 2023 / GCFRG

Photo Credit: Google/Google Earth, Fair Trading.

While most of the posts here on the Greenbelt flip-flop and its relation to Grimsby have focused on the waterfront lands at 502 Winston Road, not much has been said about the former Greenbelt properties between Oakes Road North/Kelson North and Main Street West/CN rail tracks. That is until now.

Global News has taken a detailed look at some of the lands there. Parts of the lands in question are owned or controlled by an employee (executive assistant) of LiUNA, a large Ford-friendly construction union that has local offices on Hunter Road in Grimsby.

The $10 Million Waterfront Gamble: Part 4 – That’s Not My Letter!

October 19, 2023 / GCFRG

Well, it’s been about 10 months since the last look at the waterfront Greenbelt land and future development of 502 Winston Road. Needless to say, quite a bit has transpired since. The conclusion in that December 2022 post was that an Auditor General’s report, IC investigation and/or more formal investigative process (RCMP) was needed over the whole Greenbelt process. That suggestion has now come to bear fruit.

Council To Push For Development of Former Greenbelt Lands

October 16, 2023 / GCFRG

The Province listened to Ontarians and promised to return and reverse all the removals and re-designations they made to the Greenbelt. That includes two parcels at 502 Winston Road and lands at Cline Road in Grimsby. However for Council, it seems the money-carrot attached to these developments may be too much to resist.

RCMP Launches Criminal Investigation Into The Province’s Greenbelt Scandal

October 10, 2023 / GCFRG

Image Credit: Canadian Press/Fair Dealing

As was speculated in an earlier post, the RCMP have now officially gone from exploratory mode in the Greenbelt scandal, to a full-blown criminal investigation. The OPP handed the reins over the matter to the RCMP earlier due to “perceived conflicts” and it now looks like the RCMP findings and recent events has lead the Mounties to get invasive.

The RCMP stated they would be investigating “allegations associated to the (Greenbelt) decision” and will be handed by the “Sensitive and International Investigations Unit” of RCMP’s O Division (Ontario).

In response to the news, Premier Ford’s office released this statement, in part:

“We have zero tolerance for any wrongdoing and expect anyone involved in the decision-making about the Greenbelt lands to have followed the letter of the law,”

Given that statement, it should be interesting to see where the trail leads the RCMP. With some of the outlandish claims by the government, developers and lobbyists in either the Auditor General’s report, or that of the Integrity Commissioner, surely there will be some takedowns or people being squeezed to name names in return for reduced charges.

It is unknown how long the investigation will take, however given the gravity of the matter, the RCMP will be quite comprehensive in reviewing this matter and laying charges, as necessary.

A day late and a dollar short, Ford’s mea culpa moment of calling the Greenbelt swap a mistake with plans to reverse the changes clearly did not throw the Feds off the trail at all.

More to come.