Minister ordered expansion onto farmland, after city voted to grow within its built-up area
Environmental groups have launched a court challenge of the Ontario government’s move to force the City of Hamilton to allow housing to be built on thousands of hectares of farmland on its outskirts.
His November decision overrode a 2021 vote by Hamilton council, which had after a lengthy local debate and a concerted campaign by environmentalists decided overwhelmingly against the expansion. However, to meet provincial growth targets, even Hamilton’s own city planners had originally recommended designating 1,310 hectares on the city’s outskirts for development.
Ecojustice says the minister must abide by the province’s overall policy statement on planning and its Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, which sets density targets for municipalities – and that he failed to do so. “It is expected that the City of Hamilton’s population will grow to more than 800,000 people by 2051,” she said in an e-mail on Monday. “That is why, after careful consideration, the minister took the necessary action to accommodate this growth and allow for more desperately needed housing to be built.”
“There is something called local democracy that I think people want to have respected,” Ms. Horwath said.
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