Sharing a message from the Kanata Greenspace Protection Coalition. Please take a moment to read this update and send your letter/email of disapproval. It only takes a minute!
Tell the Ontario government to make things right and fair!
Our mailbox, voicemail and social media have been busy with your comments registering great displeasure with the recent Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) decision. Many of you watched the proceedings as we did and were disturbed with the process; some of you expressed concern about the costs; all of you seemed dissatisfied with the decision. While we certainly didn’t get the decision we wanted, what concerned us more was the lack of a reasoned analysis that fully parsed the multitude of issues presented during the hearing. It just wasn’t there.
We remind you that there are still a slate of legal proceedings in the works by the KGPC and the City and that closure is a long way away. But we heard your message, that the entire OLT thing just wasn’t right, and swallowing it was made worse by the government’s involvement and decision around Glen Abbey last year.
This past week both Councillor Cathy Curry and the KGPC were able to get some phone time on this matter with our very busy MPP Merrilee Fullerton. We both noted that while she registered disappointment with the OLT decision, she seemed to be of the mind that as a result of the decision, the City is now well-armed to continue to fight alongside the Coalition with the 192 (or so) outstanding conditions of Draft Subdivision Plan approval.
While we appreciate that there are a lot of conditions to be met and some, like a viable stormwater management plan, are so daunting that KNL has been unable to create one in over 8 years for its parcels 7 and 8 north of the Beaver Pond, we do not believe that the Ontario government should consider its obligation over in the fight to stop this ill-conceived development. Leaving the City, the KGPC and our community bootstrapped to this issue for years and years of uncertainty mired in all the wrangling ClubLink likes to engage in is unfair in our view. And as we said above, it’s particularly onerous given the gift of Glen Abbey that Minister Steve Clark gave Oakville and its residents last year. Given that both the Planning and Municipal Acts have provincial oversight and serious controls, we don’t agree that issue management should be quite so one-sided. We do hear and agree with your messages – our Ontario government should do more to help Kanata North keep our community intact.
And so, last week the KGPC wrote this letter to MPP Fullerton to explain why we feel she should do more. We were copied on this letter from Councillor Curry to our MPP as well. It sure sounds like we all agree. Now, we need your help.
Let the letter writing begin! Help us create the echo we need!
It is important that MPP Fullerton hears from you. And, we want to make it easy for you to do that. You’ll find a letter here that you can copy and paste into your email and take care of in a minute. Of course, you’re welcome to make changes or write your own letter. Our best advice… do it now! Today! Tomorrow for sure! And please copy the KGPC at info@ourkanatagreenspace.ca.