Halton politicians have issued a public call for the province to play politics on Oakville’s golf course.
A unanimous resolution approved by regional councillors on June 16 calls on Doug Ford’s government to “use all resources and tools at its disposal to protect the Glen Abbey cultural heritage landscape.”
With the legal battle for the future of the golf course and its lands scheduled to start on August 11, Mayor Rob Burton made it clear he was demanding action on political promises.
Burton noted that Ford has repeatedly said he supports local decision-making. He added that Oakville’s Progressive Conservative MPPs Stephen Crawford and Effie Triantafilopoulos promised to work to protect Glen Abbey from development.
“This resolution reminds the MPPs, Premier Ford and his government that they are running out of time to reveal how they will keep their word.”
“We are sure they are sincere people – we are sure they mean what they say,” he added. “Our resolution is here to remind them that time is running out to keep their word.”
“This is a polite reminder that the clock is running out on their promises, on their credibility and their reputations.”
Halton regional chair Gary Carr added that the region received about 15,000 emails on the issue.
“The people have spoken very clearly,” he said. “What we’re saying to the province is that they have a number of things they can do.”
Carr noted that in 2001, while he was serving as a provincial politician, the provincial government used legislation to protect the Oakridges Moraine.
In the past, Burton has called on the province to use a Ministerial Zoning Order (MZO) to block ClubLink’s application to build more than 3,000 homes and over 127,000 square feet of commercial and retail space on the golf course lands.
Oakville town council has denied the application and designated the golf course a cultural heritage landscape under the Ontario Heritage Act.
Barring political intervention, a decision on the matter will be made by the Ontario Land Tribunal (formerly the Land Planning Appeal Tribunal). The upcoming virtual hearing is expected to last 19 weeks.
But the region’s motion inviting political interference in that process was criticized by golf course owner ClubLink.
“The start of the hearing before the Ontario Land Tribunal regarding ClubLink’s proposed redevelopment of the Glen Abbey lands is now just weeks away, and it would be inappropriate for the province to take any steps at this stage to interfere with that legal process,” said lawyer Mark Flowers, in a letter to Halton councillors on behalf of the owners of the golf club lands.
Virginia MacLean, an Oakville lawyer specializing in municipal law, said the Ford government’s willingness to use MZOs to sidestep legal land planning processes has been inappropriate.
“It’s a political tool that he’s quite honestly been misusing,” she said. “Most lawyers who rely on the process and the way things are normally done would not condone such activity.”
But she isn’t surprised that politicians, with the support of Oakville residents, are seeking a political solution to the Glen Abbey issue given the uncertainty of the outcome at the tribunal -- an outcome she said is very hard to predict.
A political solution would also be much less costly for residents, added MacLean.
“It would be nice if they were successful because it would save the taxpayers of this municipality a lot of money,” she said. “It’s a long hearing; it’s big fees.”
The approved regional resolution referred to the “considerable municipal resources have been dedicated to protecting the Glen Abbey cultural heritage landscape.”
Between 2015 and 2019, the town spent about $10 million on external consultants and legal fees in connection with the various applications and court actions related to Glen Abbey and to issues related to cultural heritage landscapes.