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in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, S ep te m be r 20 ,2 01 8 | 46464 647-496-1424 2-2983 Westoak Trails Blvd.,Oakville www.villageortho.ca Get Your Smile Ready For Picture Day! At Village Orthodontics we specialize in Aligners & Traditional Braces. Start the school year off by scheduling your complimentary consultation! Join us for an evening with one of the greatest operatic composers of all time, Giuseppe Verdi! Hear some of the most memorable operatic 'hits' of the past 150 years with world's most inspiring melodies. Arias and ensembles from Rigoletto, Il Trovatore, LaTraviata, Aida andmore. Time: Thurs. September 27th, 7:30pm Location: FirstOntario Concert Hall $44 Reg | $39 Sr | $25 Brott35 | $15 stu BROTTMUSIC.COM | 905-525-7664 Freedom of Information Act re- quest filed by a local resident. The amount covers a period from 2015 to July 9, 2018 and in-from 2015 to July 9, 2018 and in-f cludes consultants and legal costs related to: . The creation of the 2016 In- terim Control Bylaw (and the ex- tension) for the Glen Abbey property and appeals to the On- tario Municipal Board (OMB). . ClubLink's applications for the redevelopment of the Glen Abbey property and the appeals to the OMB. . The identification of the Glen Abbey property as a signif- icant cultural heritage land- scape in 2017. . The designation of the Glen Abbey property under the Onta- rio Heritage Act in 2017. . The town's Cultural Heritage Landscape Conservation Plan and bylaw for the Glen Abbey property and the related court application by ClubLink. . ClubLink's application un- der the Ontario Heritage Act to remove the golf course, and the related court applications by the town. The corporate law firm Good- mans LLP alone got $1.2 million from the town in 2017 while thefrom the town in 2017 while thef law firm Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP got $1.7 million in 2017. The town has been engaged in a fight with Glen Abbey Golf Club owner ClubLink since the organization announced plans to build 3,222 residential units at the site, including nine apart- ment buildings between nine and 12 storeys. The company also wants to build 69,000 square feet of com- mercial/retail space and 107,000 square feet of office space at the site. Jill Gowland has been follow- ing the progress of the Glen Ab- bey fight and says she became concerned about the price tag of this endeavour, which she noted has no real end in sight. Gowland filed the Freedom of Information request in July and soon had the answer to her finan- cial question. "I was pretty shocked," she said. "I knew it would be high. I would have guessed maybe $2 million, but when I saw it was more than $4 million just for law- yers I thought, 'What a waste.'" Gowland argues that is a lot of money to spend, particularly when the outcome is uncertain. She also takes issue with the town attempting to force Clu- bLink to maintain a golf course at the site when they do not want to. "The town has a duty to work with their good citizens and to help plan communities, not hin- der them," she said. "I've looked at the basic plan and I think there is a lot the town can advise ClubLink on rather than spend $5 million." According to the town's direc- tor of strategy policy and com- munications Jane Courte- manche, the scope of the Glen Abbey file's legal and planning costs is comparable to other sig- nificant applications that sought to change the fabric of the com- munity, such as the North Oak- ville Secondary Plan. The internal staffing costs, however, were not immediately available. But Courtemancheavailable. But Courtemanchea said the work associated with Glen Abbey was assigned to ex- isting staff, supported by the work done by the external con- sultants. "There were no additional staff costs," she said. Oakville Mayor Rob Burton said the cost of saving Glen Ab- bey will be comparable to saving green space and limiting growth to what fit in north Oakville. He argued the fight is about more than just a golf course. "If this fight isn't worth win- ning, there's no point in having official plans for land use rules to protect our established neigh- bourhoods from inappropriate development," said Burton. "If they can bust our growth- controlling, neighbourhood-pro- tecting official plan at Glen Ab- COALITION WANTS TO SEE COURSE PRESERVED 'FOR FUTURE Golfers make their way to the green during round two of the 2018 RBC Canadian Open, as the iconic Glen Abbey clubhouse looms in the background. Graham Paine/Metroland NEWS Continued from page 3 THE QUESTION: HOW MUCH IS THE FIGHT TO PRESERVE GLEN ABBEY GOLF CLUB COSTING YOU? THE CONCLUSION: TO DATE, $5.3 MILLION HAS BEEN SPENT ON LAWYERS AND CONSULTANTS, See - page 47