GO STATION CONSTRUCTION DELAYED

Construction of a GO station in Innisfil is now expected to start in 2023, after initially being scheduled for 2022, despite a special provincial zoning order aimed at fast-tracking the project.

Innisfil council recently heard an update on the Orbit development to be built on the 6th Line near the 20th Sideroad. The development is premised on highdensity living around a future GO train station to preserve agricultural land. At full build-out, the community will have a population of 150,000 people.

In the latest update to council,

town staff noted the construction start date has been pushed back to 2023. Staff also reported that the developer who is helping to design and build the GO station, Cortel Group, proposed "decoupling" the station from the 6th Line overpass and moving it to the northwest. Staff said it con

tinues to work with the developer on design concepts.

The proposed change had at least one councillor feeling a little uncertain.

"How do I feel about it? I can't really say until I see something," said Ward 2 Coun. Bill Van Berkel. "I'm totally uncertain of what we're going to get."

Van Berkel said he supports council's direction and decisions, but feels uneasy about the use of a minister's zoning order (MZO), issued by the province in 2020 after council requested help expediting the project.

The MZO allows the province to rezone lands without going through the normal process of having an official plan review.

"When you're going to do something like this, it takes careful planning," Van Berkel said. "Whatever is done, it shouldn't be done without input from all parties."

MZOs have received criticism because they remove the ability to appeal and can be seen to speed through other normal processes. Critics say they benefit developers while limiting local feedback and the ability to address environmental concerns.

Lack of consultation over this MZO has already seemingly become an issue. The Williams Treaty First Nations filed to have a judicial review of the MZO, alleging that the Minister of Municipal Affairs Steve Clark "unreasonably and unlawfully ignored his

constitutional obligations to consult and accommodate WTFN."

That review is expected to be heard in September 2022, but in the meantime,

the MZO remains in "force and effect," according to town staff.

Innisfil resident Steven Kirshenblatt shared his concerns about a lack of public consultation about the Orbit over the past six months with council through a delegation.

"I see no GO station construction happening this year, as was promised," he said. "It's hard to understand what they got out of this MZO process."

Since coming to power, Doug Ford's PC government has courted controversy for its willingness to use the MZO tool. Between 2017 and 2018, it wasn't used at all. Between 2019 and 2021, the government issued 44 MZOs, according to Ontario's auditor general.

MZOs have been used two other times in Innisfil, for Tollendale Village 2, and more recently for Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre's south campus site in Innisfil.

"The use of MZOs can be for the public good," Kirshenblatt said, noting the benefits of a having a hospital in Innisfil. "They can also be seen to be anti-democratic because they are taking away the rights of certain people."

Using an MZO to build a community comparable to the size of Barrie is something that should have more public input, and could become a municipal election issue, Kirshenblatt suggested.

"Do the people of Innisfil really want to see their really nice rural community change into a big city?" he asked.

For more information about the Orbit, visit https://innisfil.ca/en/ building-and-development/the-orbit.aspx.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: With the provincial election upon us we looked at the use of Minister's Zoning Orders, a provincial tool that some municipalities are using to spur development, and causing local controversy.