Who is the Owner and Applicant?
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Owner/Developer: Gilbach Georgetown Inc.
Applicant: MHBC Planning
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What approvals is the Applicant seeking to permit the proposal?
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The proposal requires Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendments. A Draft Plan of Subdivision application has also been submitted concurrently. Below is a summary of the current permissions versus the approvals being sought:
Official Plan: GO Station Secondary Plan
Current permissions vs. approvals being sought
| | Permitted | Proposed |
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| Designation |
High Density Residential / Mixed Use Area 1
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Same (with site-specific policy area related to height and density) |
| Uses |
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Apartment Building
- Mixed-use buildings (high-density residential with office and other commercial uses)
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- Apartment buildings (one of which is mixed-use)
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| Height |
Maximum 12-16 storeys |
17-22 storeys |
| Floor Space Index |
3.5 |
4.55 |
Zoning By-law No. 2010-0050
Current permissions vs. approvals being sought
| | Permitted | Proposed |
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| Zone |
Development (D) |
Site-specific mixed-use one (MU1) |
| Uses |
- Uses that existed prior to 2010
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- Multiple dwellings and apartment dwellings
- Commercial uses on the first floor of a multi-residential building
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| Parking |
2,608 parking spaces
- 2,222 tenant spaces
- 371 visitor spaces
- 16 commercial spaces
NOTE: Pursuant to Bill 185,
Cutting Red Tape to Build More
Homes Act, 2024, Municipalities
cannot pass a By-law to require
minimum parking in a major transit station area. |
1,481 parking spaces
- 1,333 tenant spaces
- 118 visitor and commercial spaces
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Draft Plan of Subdivision
A Draft Plan of Subdivision was submitted to establish a public road to connect River Drive with Mountainview Road North. The subdivision would also be used to create the 3 separate development parcels and to address any easements or rights-of-way needed between the development parcels.
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Why is the Town considering these applications?
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| The Town, or any municipality in Ontario, does not have the authority to refuse submission of a planning application filed by a private property owner. The Planning Act allows a landowner to advance any development proposal for their lands, regardless of whether it meets the intent of the applicable policy framework or not. The Town must fully evaluate the proposal before making any decision, as that decision can be appealed by the owner to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT). |
Who makes a decision on the applications?
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- Town and agency staff complete a thorough review of the submitted applications/materials and receive public feedback on the proposal in order to properly evaluate the policy and technical merits of the proposal. Once staff have completed their review of the proposal a report will be brought to Council for consideration providing staff recommendations. There is no timeframe in which staff will be in a position to bring forward a recommendation report.
- The decision with regards to the applications resides with Council.
- The decision with regards to any appeal of the applications resides with the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT).
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What are the appeal rights for Gilbach, the Town, neighbours, etc.
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- As a result of recent provincial changes to the Planning Act, third-party appeal rights have been removed for privately initiated development applications. This means that neighbours, residents or community groups may no longer appeal Council’s decision on the applications to the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT).
- Only the owner/applicant, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and another public body/agency/utility/First Nations group may appeal the decision of Council to the OLT.
- The owner/applicant may also appeal to the OLT if Council does not make a decision within 120 days of the applications being deemed complete. 120 day deadline for this project is May 18, 2025.
- However, the Planning Act does allow residents to make a request to the OLT to be added as a party to any appeal filed by the above entities. The OLT may approve the request to be added as a party provided the person made oral submissions at a public meeting or written submissions to the municipality before the decision was made and the Tribunal is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds to add the person as a party.
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How can residents stay informed and give feedback?
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Any comments, questions or requests to be notified should be directed to Greg Macdonald, the Senior Development Review Planner assigned to the applications on behalf of the Town. Email Greg Macdonald or contact him at 905-873-2600, ext. 2979.
- A Statutory Public Meeting for the applications will be held in April or May. Residents are encouraged to attend the public meeting and may provide comments or provide written comments to the planner listed above. Date to follow.
- Join the mailing list for periodic project updates. Contact Greg Macdonald to sign up and receive future notifications regarding these applications.
- Check back with this project page for ongoing updates and to view additional information
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What are the next steps?
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- Town and external agency staff have circulated the applications for review. A commenting deadline in late February has been provided.
- It is anticipated that the Statutory Public Meeting will be scheduled for April or May. The intent of the public meeting is to present the development proposal to Council and obtain public comments/feedback on the applications. No decision is made by Council at the Public Meeting.
- Property owners within 120 metres of the subject lands will be notified by mail and a notice sign will be erected along the frontage of the property at least 20 days prior to the public meeting.
- The notice will also be posted to the project webpage in addition to any online channels that communications staff uses for notification purposes. Individuals on the email notification list will also receive the notice.
- The “Application Review Process” graphic above shows where the applications currently stand in the approval process and the next steps.
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What is the Application’s relationship to the Go Station/Mill Street Corridor Secondary Plan Review?
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- The GO Station/Mill Street Corridor Secondary Plan review is on-going. Given that the development applications were submitted prior to the approval of an updated Secondary Plan, the proposal will be reviewed against the Town’s approved policy framework, including the existing GO Station Secondary Plan). The proposal will also be evaluated against the 2024 Provincial Planning Statement.
- Should a new Secondary Plan be approved by Council before a decision is made on the applications, the proposal will be reviewed against the updated policies. Any updated Secondary Plan policies would be informative to the evaluation and decision on the proposed development, but not determinative (i.e., they would not be used on their own as basis for a recommendation to approve or deny the applications).
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