Development Hungry Councillors

More coverage on the Greenbelt debacle from the Toronto Star - Durham councillors love look of sprawl - and from Durham Region News - Durham wants lands out of greenbelt.

Both articles mention how developer-friendly our councillors are, and they certainly deserve that label as they've worked hard for it over the years. They have fought residents at every turn when concerned locals have tried to protect environmentally sensitive lands, preserve wildlife corridors, fisheries and forests, and keep urban sprawl to a minimum.

Now Durham is the only region in the entire GTA where local councillors are openly fighting greenbelt boundaries. And Clarington is right at the forefront. The Star calls Durham Region a "retrograde council". We couldn't have said it better.

"The behaviour of Durham's concrete-friendly councillors exemplifies why Ontario needs a greenbelt plan that is enshrined under the authority and force of provincial legislation. Were it not for that, efforts to chip away at the belt and erode its protections would likely be more widespread." This is exactly why the Greenbelt Plan was enacted - because some local municipalities couldn't keep their paws off sensitive recharge areas, wetlands, prime agricultural land, etc. They wanted it for development, and we have already lost much of our prime land to developers with more slated to be paved over in the future. Even the Province realized there needed to be some protection from these developer-friendly councils, some of whom go overboard when it comes to approving developments; who seem to think that all development is good, no matter what.

The Durham Region Official Plan tells us that we do NOT need more urban lands within Clarington before at least 2026, so why the rush to remove these areas from the greenbelt so they can be designated for development now? And why THESE lands? There is plenty of land in south Courtice that is undeveloped that is not environmentally sensitive. And more land in other parts of Clarington, that is not within the greenbelt. Why THIS particular area, if not for pressure from certain development interests? It just doesn't make sense. And that is precisely why our Council and Regional Council (the majority, with a few notable exceptions) have such a terrible reputation with Durham residents as well as in the GTA as a whole. This is not a new thing.

And it's also one more reason why we still think the Chair of Durham Region should be elected by the residents of Durham, not chosen by the small group of development-hungry councillors. Mr. Anderson (current Chair) is known to be quite pro-development too. Why not give residents a chance to put in someone who might be a little more willing to listen? Why can't we vote for Regional Chair?

"Concrete-friendly, retrograde council". Not terribly flattering, is it? We think it's time for a substantial change to the composition of our council. We need some new faces and new leadership. We need people who can understand the wisdom of controlled development and preservation of agricultural and environmentally significant lands. We need a council who is not afraid to reverse some of the ill-conceived direction this council has taken and go forward on a more sensible path. We need a council who will actually listen to residents and what they want, rather than pretending to listen and then pushing forward with their own agendas nevertheless.

Let's ask the difficult questions of those running for office, and demand answers on questions such as the greenbelt issue, development, transportation issues, 407, tax increases, and more. Remember that these politicians do NOT always know best, as they like us to think. We have had some who have come to run for office because it pays better than their previous job (if they had a job). Some come to run because they truly feel they can make a difference. Some run because of ego. Some turn out to be excellent and others end up being an embarrassment or worse, causing lasting damage to our municipality. We have had some of those in the past and are still dealing with the fallout from some terrible decisions they have made regarding "paving over paradise".

Here is one good example to illustrate how this sprawl happens. Clarington added what is called "the finger" in North Courtice, which should never have been added in to the urban boundary in the first place. (See 4, 3 on map) That section was added because two Regional Councillors from Courtice at the time (Mary Novak and Larry Hannah) pushed hard at the local and regional level to have the area added. There was no "need" for the added land, and it encompasses some of the most environmentally sensitive land in the municipality. It is the large green area to the left of the white #4 area, south of Pebblestone and all the way west to Townline Road (left edge of map) that is one of the two areas in Courtice where Regional Council wants to remove the greenbelt designation so it can be added for future development. You can see the two areas on the map in the previous blog article.

Both areas (3 & 4) are still "special study areas" and a stipulation was made that development could only take place if a full, comprehensive watershed study was completed and if that study allowed for development of some of the lands. Local residents worked hard to get that designation and they should be commended, particularly Mrs. Racansky, who was treated so badly by the mayor recently. To date there has been no watershed study done, and it's been at least 10 years. Piecemeal studies are not good enough - the stipulation was for a complete, comprehensive watershed study of the entire Black-Farewell watershed, which we understand is very large. (Thanks to Mrs. Racansky's hard work for information on "the finger").

So why not remove "the finger" from the urban boundary since it never should have been added in the first place. Allow that area to be added to the greenbelt which would make the Province happy, rather than continuing to fight them. Why not add other areas that are more suited for development and intensification. Talk about "urban sprawl". Just look at the map. What would you call "the finger"? You won't find a better example of it than that.

So lets really get involved in this election. Learn about the candidates, ask questions, and make a point of voting. They say we get the government we deserve. We don't think we deserve this.