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The IFP - Halton Hills | Thursday, June 3, 2021 | 12 theifp.ca MASKS ARE REQUIRED Downtown Georgetown FarmersMarket WWW.DOWNTOWNGEORGETOWN.COM FROM A PLEASE KEEP YOUR DISTANCE PLEAE STAY HOME ISTANCE COUNCIL IN QUOTES: RESIDENTS CALL FOR GROWTH PLAN WITH NO URBAN SPRAWL Regional council has sent staff back to the draw- ing board to produce a growth option that would keep new development current urban In an 18-5 vote, council- lors passed a motion that directs staff to develop a fifth growth scenario for consideration during th: Official Plan review that ould accommodate growth to 2051 within Hal- ton's existing settlement boundary. The resolution, put forth by Oakville Mayor Rob Burton and seconded by Halton Hills Coun. Jane Fogal, also calls for an as- sessment of the relative im- pact each growth concept would have on greenhouse gas emissions. Milton councillors Mike Cluett, Zeeshan Hamid and Rick Malboeuf, Milton Mayor Gord Krantz and Salton Bills Coun. Clark merville voted against then motion. The north Halton politi- cians cited a variety of rea- sons for their opposition, tion and employment growth within its existing boundary, the need to ex- businesses away from resi- ntial areas, and a poten- tial loss of development businesses went else. ere. To date, Halton staff has prepared four growth con- cepts, all of which require an urban boundary expan- ment growth targets pre- scribed by the Province be- tween 2031 and 2051. Thefifth growths scenar- io would build on the third concept, which looks to ac- commodate all population wth and a majority of Tyvek Tyvek \« * Metroland file photo Halton is undergoing an Official Plan review to guide how the region will grow to 2051. employment growth with- in the existing settlement potential boundary expan- sion of 980 hectares. for em- ployment land u: The ci community’ sS desire for a fifth concept to ct sider came through loud and clear during the coun- cil meeting, when 14 resi- dents from across the re- gion shared their thoughts with the local politicians. HERE'S SOME OF WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY: "We need a strong lead- ership that understands the importance of growing smarter. Directing growth to existing urban areas im- proves the edsearied of farms, nature and water. It also saves taxpayers from ring expensive sprawl, lowers our carbon pollution and reduces con- gestion." ~ KAREN BROCK, OAKVILLEGREEN CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION "The actual population increase in Halton to 2021 has been, in reality, less than what was projected. It may therefore be possible to accommodate the re- quired density within the existing urban boundary. Perhaps that means that low-density warehousing should become high-rack warehousing, and that the typical two- or four-storey office building needs to be- come 10 storeys." ~ MARINA HUISSOON, SUSTAINABLE MILTON "In 2019, all of our mu- nicipalities declared a cli- mate emergency, and today we remain in a climate cri- sis. We must cut our green- house Bases by more than half by 2 We will not achieve a decrease! inemis- sions if we allow urban sprawl, replacing prime ricultural land with single- family homes. We will, however, increase our car dependency, destroy natu- ral habitats and increase ~ LORRAINE GREEN, BURLINGTON RESIDENT “As we grow our popula- tion within the urban boundary, from necessity we will increase density. This I see as an opportuni- ty to provide a design for our towns in ways that can ctually — enhan our health. People living in car- dependent communities are less likely to be active and havea larger burden of illness directly associated with that inactivity.” ~ DR. DON TRANT, HALTON HILLS RESIDENT For more on the Official Plan review, visit www. ton.ca/ropr.