Hemson falls short on growth planning
Comment
by Bruce Haire

Simcoe County's draft Growth Management Plan goes to county council Tuesday and the public will get to comment at public information centres including one to be held at the Nottawasaga Inn.

South Simcoe municipalities are going to be drastically changed, especially by provincial intensification goals and industrial growth in Innisfil and Bradford West Gwillimbury along Highway 400.

In terms of residential growth, no municipality really got what they wanted. For instance, Innisfil wanted a population of 75,000 by 2031 and have been allocated 65,000 while New Tecumseth just adopted a new Growth Management Study calling for 60,000 people and received 49,000 while Bradford West Gwillimbury was allocated 49,700.

Adjala-Tosorontio would grow to 14,200 while Essa would see growth to 22,900.

However, the major change is in intensification targets.

According to provincial guidelines, intensification and density targets of 40 per cent are to be achieved after 2015.

Why Hemson has set the intensification standard so high in Innisfil, Bradford and New Tecumseth is a question that needs an answer.

So places like New Tecumseth, Innisfil and Bradford West Gwillimbury are being asked to achieve very high intensification targets to compensate for the lack of demand in areas of lower growth like those of North Simcoe.

One can just see the Ontario Municipal Board battles coming in all kinds of South Simcoe communities as redevelopers strive to meet what has been set out as their provincial responsibilities and residents try to preserve the single family residential look of their neighbourhoods.

Industrial areas will also have to be much more job intensive also. New greenfield development along the 400 corridor in Bradford and Innisfil will have to provide 50 jobs per hectare, with Bradford seeing employment growth of 8,400 jobs and Innisfil getting 8,100. New Tecumseth is set to grow by 7,300 jobs.

A lot of the secondary plans approved have deliberate policies (approved by the province) that are directly contradicted by intensification policies.

For instance, Beeton's secondary plan was just approved by the province and the county.

One policy in it requires "intensification and efficient use of built up areas" and "residential intensification", but it calls for protection of "village character" with limited opportunity on "certain infill sites" and to maintain the village as "a predominantly low density community".

However, say Beeton has a greenfield development plan for 500 homes from a developer. How does the community find an additional 200 homes to meet the intensification target?

All of South Simcoe's communities have similar problems with such a high intensification target whether it be Cookstown, Alcona, Stroud, Tottenham or Alliston or Bradford.

The problem seems to be that Hemson Consulting are largely demographers and economists and have no clue on how to plan a nice looking community.

There will also be a conflict of goals. People move to Simcoe County to fulfill the dream of a single family home. They don't move here to live in a high rise condo.

What works in Toronto with the same 40 per cent intensification target doesn't work in South Simcoe.