NEWS

Minister’s Zoning Orders

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Construction in Toronto

In recent months, FoNTRA has become concerned about the current use of Minister’s Zoning Orders (“MZOs”) and believes that the sudden launch of a flotilla of MZOs undermines the legitimacy of the statutory planning system. By stripping provisions for notices, public meetings, and rights of appeal from the zoning process, in our view, MZOs do not do so much as cutting red tape as purging ordinary citizens from the democratic planning process.

FoNTRA, respectfully, asks the government to confine the use of MZOs to extraordinary situations arising from the pandemic and to swiftly discard the recent wide- spread and undemocratic “enhanced” approach of backroom deals without notice, without public consultation, and without the right of appeal.

Fall 2020 Budget Consultation

Canadian coins

FUN recognizes the significant fiscal challenges facing the Government of Ontario, especially in light of the current and worsening Pandemic. We also believe that investing in and maintaining physical and social and health infrastructure, all the while addressing the Climate Emergency are critical to the future well-being of all Ontario residents. Recognizing this, our organization offers the following recommendations for inclusion in the Fall 2020 Ontario Budget.

Urban Infrastructure:

High functioning infrastructure is a key requirement to attracting and keeping businesses in Ontario. The provincial government should provide increased funding and support for urban municipalities to maintain and enhance their facilities, with an emphasis on “green” infrastructure.

Webinar: Environmental Assessment is Not Red Tape

Fall scene

The Ontario government has recently made sweeping changes to environmental assessment (EA) law in Ontario, ending long-standing public safeguards designed to protect the environment and our health. These changes have serious and alarming impacts for Ontarians: not only do they restrict the applicability of EA processes to new projects and developments, but they also increase uncertainty about how new projects will be reviewed.

In response, the Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA) will be hosting a free one-hour primer on October 22, 2020, from 1-2 p.m.

The resilient city: Why Canadian metropolises will thrive despite the pandemic

Toronto Downtown

Even the most diehard downtown dwellers have to confess their fantasies of leaving Canada’s big cities during the pandemic. I’m an unrepentant urbanist yet finding myself slowly seduced by the delights of rural Ontario and the liberations of the Zoom office. Surely nothing beats doing international video calls from the back of a sailboat drifting up a Prince Edward County creek.

If it’s happening to me, and to others envying the backyards, front yards and space of suburbia, will a whole wave of urban residents move home and workplace out of the central city? Has COVID-19 fundamentally changed our view of city life? And will that new perception change the city itself?

Main Street Action Week

Main Street

As part of the Bring Back Main Street research and action campaign, the Canadian Urban Institute is offering a week of free deep-dive technical briefings and workshops on revitalizing Canada’s main streets after COVID-19.

The harsh reality is that COVID-19 is having an unprecedented impact on our main streets. Many small businesses, for example, have already been lost, and more will continue to close permanently in the coming days, weeks, and months. We need bold action right now. Sign up for the webinars.

In It Together to Bring Back Main Street

In it Together: Bringing Back Canada's Main Streets

A new report from the Canadian Urban Institute (CUI) with partners across the country urgently shines a light on the impacts of COVID-19 on main streets in Canada, and offers dozens of actions for governments, business and community leaders to strengthen local economies, neighborhoods and communities.

Without further assistance for commercial rent, insurance premiums and emergency financing for small business, there will be a surge in main street business closures in coming months. COVID-related impacts on consumer behaviour and spending, local travel patterns, social service delivery and housing have all contributed to the struggles for businesses and local institutions. The second wave of the novel coronavirus, with further public health restrictions, amplifies the threats to main streets.

Ontario government using special orders to rezone land without appeals

Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government has issued a series of special orders to approve a handful of plans from prominent Toronto-area developers and quash any potential opposition, saying the projects are needed to help the economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Known as minister’s zoning orders (MZO), they allow Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark to make a final ruling on how a piece of land is used in the province with no appeals, such as those from citizens or environmental groups before Ontario’s Local Planning Appeal Tribunal.

Future Ground Network for local organizations

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Community group

Future Ground Network is a hub of groups who are taking action in their communities to build healthier, more sustainable futures from the ground up. Local action matters! According to the latest IPCC report, 50 to 70% of climate solutions come from the local level.

Joining the network means connecting with organizers from other groups to share best practices, find inspiration, and work together to achieve common goals.

Stop the 413 – update

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Stop the 413

The Ontario government proposes to build a new highway in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), from Highway 401, near Milton in the west, to Highway 400, near Kleinberg, in the east. The project, and its review, should be cancelled. The highway would cause significant negative impacts on the environment and on local communities. It would do little to ease congestion, and would consume billions of dollars that could be better spent on other transportation projects and solutions.

Environmental Defence has organizing tools and background information available now for GTA West groups opposed to Highway 413 to use and share with their networks.

Highway 413 Information

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413 map

Ontario is planning Highway 413, a redundant and unnecessary toll highway that would pave over farm, forests, wetlands and a portion of the Greenbelt and cost taxpayers billions.

Right now Highway 407 (another toll highway) is underused. Yet the province is proposing to build another east-west toll highway just 15 km away.