In an impressive show of solidarity, Huntsville councillors who sit at the District table managed to convince the majority of their District colleagues to approve an amendment to Huntsville’s Official Plan.
Councillors were able to muster the majority required to obtain approval for allowing much smaller rural residential lots in Huntsville, despite two levels of municipal planning staff expressing concerns.
Huntsville Official Plan Amendment 6, pushed by Huntsville council, changes the minimum required size of a rural residential lot from 2 hectares (4.94 acres) to 0.4 hectares (0.988 acres). It also changes the required frontage on a year-round maintained road from 134 metres to 60 metres. The amendment was passed by Huntsville council in April, despite Huntsville planning staff recommending a more modest decrease. With some exceptions, Huntsville planning staff preferred a minimum rural residential lot standard of 1 hectare (2.47 acres) and 90 metres of road frontage. Staff also noted that council is still able to approve variances on a case-by-case basis. Huntsville council did not agree.
The Official Plan amendment was forwarded to the District for approval and discussed at the District of Muskoka Committee of the Whole meeting on September 15. At that meeting, planning staff indicated that they shared the Town of Huntsville planning department’s concerns.
Among the concerns expressed by Curtis Syvret, District Manager of Planning, who also previously worked as a planner at the Town of Huntsville, were the potential environmental impact and the character of the rural area, as well as directing development to serviced urban areas. He recommended a more gradual decrease and endorsed the recommendation from Huntsville planning staff. You can find his report to council HERE.
“Believe me, we are not looking at our rural area and trying to break it up into one-acre lots throughout and pave paradise,” said Huntsville Mayor and District Councillor Nancy Alcock. “I know we have a wild cowboy and wild west attitude, sometimes people think so, this is not the case,” she told her colleagues around the District council table. She clarified that the rural lot standards would remain at the current minimum requirement of four hectares. She said that what Huntsville council would like to see decreased are the required standards for rural residential lots, similar to those in settlement areas such as Port Sydney and Hidden Valley, as well as other areas of Huntsville, including homes along the Brunel Locks, which are smaller and also serviced by wells and septic systems.
Alcock said enough applications were being denied by planning staff who were following Huntsville’s OP, only to have them approved by council in favour of creating more affordable rural residential housing and/or giving families the ability to sever their property to create an inexpensive lot for their children.
“Council decided on the reduction because it is very much part of our recently-approved housing action plan, which has 17 recommendations we are so incredibly proud of, and the reason why we are [is] it cuts across every department in our municipality. So this little piece, which isn’t going to produce hundreds of homes, let alone thousands… It’s going to produce, hopefully, a few dozen that we’ll be very excited about, which is part of our housing action plan,” she added.
Councillor Bob Stone argued that the Town of Huntsville is already pushing development to urban areas. He said a report is expected at planning that will look at higher density, up to five or six-storey buildings. “We’re just talking about being able to sever off one acre here or there…” He also argued for a municipality’s right to self-determination. “This issue stops at Huntsville’s border, and it should be up to Huntsville council to make this decision, and we do have all of the environmental protections and safeguards in place, and our planning policies, when we do want to allow these one-acre lots.”
Councillor Dan Armour told his colleagues that what’s being proposed is infilling where there are already rural residential lots. “I think people need to realize that .4 of a hectare is almost the size of a football field, so it’s really not that small when you think about it, and we have lots of those sitting around in our area and our community settlement area that are just sitting there empty,” he said, adding that they’re great affordable building lots.
Councillor Scott Morrison said council does not like going against staff who are simply following the rules. “We are approving all of the applications that come through. What that does is it puts a tax on our staff, so our staff now has to do a report for every single one. They’ve got a longer agenda on Planning Council and we’re going to approve it…,” Morrison also noted that it means the applicants have to spend more money on planning fees just to get what they know they’re going to get, but three to six months down the road. He said people cannot afford to live in Muskoka, “and rural lots, not just urban, can be affordable if we allow more of them. Everything is supply and demand…,” he said. “Let’s talk about the reality of affordable housing in Muskoka, which is off the charts, and I always use this sports analogy: we really love the home runs with 15, 20, 30 unit apartment buildings, they’re great. But these 17 steps that we built are singles, doubles, and triples… and still help us in our community. So please, I’m begging you, please let us have this really cool thing that we want in Huntsville, and if it sets a precedent… great, that’s more people housed.”
A lengthy discussion ensued, and although it was not a recorded vote, in the end, Huntsville District councillors managed to secure the majority needed to approve Huntsville’s Official Plan amendment at the District. The recommendation is expected to be ratified at the next District council meeting.
Related
Mayor says Huntsville is pulling all the stops for more housing
Public meeting scheduled for January 15 on alternative rural residential lot standards
Huntsville to ease off on restrictions surrounding the creation of rural lots
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Smaller lot sizes leading to even more development in an already overpopulated town, with overcrowded classrooms, a maxed out hospital, no family doctors, no walk in clinics, a multi-year wait list for nursing homes, and an already inflated rental cost leading to housing crisis….great idea Councillors.
Have two comments. First is similiar to Norm’s post as I see no value in the Distict council completely. It is lead by Lehman who lead Barrie to become a squaller of Lake Simcoe and now he is working on destroying Muskoka. My second point is why is the Huntsville council so driven to destroy mHuntsville I seee no need for smaller lots but we need better leadership and planning. Voters better pay attention.
Very Good Point Norm
Why would anyone but the council elected by the people of Huntsville have a say in what happens in Huntsville? This is just another example of how the we are over governed in Muskoka. Can someone explain why we have a district planning department when each lower tier municipality has a planning department?