At Council's Planning & Development meeting held Monday, July 8, CAO Clohecy provided an update on the Transit Oriented Community Program (TOC) . In this video clip Ms. Clohecy outlines various aspects of the TOC such as the Confidentiality Agreement required by the province, preliminary stages of the process including the establishment of a Workgroup and Steering Committee, timing for public engagement, etc .

 

Her remarks accompanied a written report submitted by staff which also included a copy of the letter from the Ministry of Infrastructure which is referenced in the June 3rd entry below. 

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Earlier, at Council’s Special Midtown Urban Growth Centre meeting on  June 3rd, CAO Clohecy announced that Infrastructure Ontario had formally notified the Town of Oakville and the Region of Halton that a potential Transit-Oriented Community Program (TOC) is under exploration within our  municipality and that the ministry wants to establish key principles for governance as well as next steps for engagement between the province, the town and the region.

 

What Does This Mean?

Infrastructure Ontario will be leading the working group, stakeholder engagement and ultimately, development permissions for the area they define as within being within the project scope. This may be a portion of Midtown or all of it.  We await their direction on the boundaries to be included in the work. 

 

The working group will be established in June with stakeholder engagement to commence in August.  We have put on the record that we want clarity on how Council will be updated on the working group’s efforts and most importantly, that our expectation is that the Town vigorously advocate on behalf of the public.

 

What About the Lower Population Midtown Re-Set From April 22? 

Council discussed the Staff report provided in response to its request for a Midtown plan for a population of 35,000 people and jobs. The report  provided additional financial details and transportation comments.  It framed challenges such as where would the additional population be allocated and how might it impact infrastructure efficiency and transit ridership? 

 

• The report did very little to show a new concept plan for the community or address climate change mitigation opportunities.

• The public delegations resoundingly supported a reset and their delegations continue to demonstrate a commitment to responsible, thoughtful land use planning.  

 

Facts to Keep in Mind​

We must meet and expect to exceed the Provincially-directed target for an overall total Oakville of 349,000 people in 2051. We are not mandated to achieve the Joint Best Planning Estimate numbers of 444,000 developed by Oakville.

 

Over the next 30 years, a range of growth opportunities have the ability to address concerns. These include unaccounted opportunities for growth in areas such as some commercial plazas, widespread infill, minor adjustments in growth nodes including the longer-term potential of the Bronte GO station, etc. Ensuring Midtown has the right land use permissions for a liveable community on the 43 hectares of land available, and addressing the context of the critical intersections of Trafalgar/QEW/Cornwall and Cross need to be the priorities. At 35,000 people/jobs, we will more than achieve the Provincial target.

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While we await the direction of Infrastructure Ontario it remains our collective responsibility to take every opportunity to let the Province and Council know that Midtown must be a balanced, livable, environmentally responsible community that fits well with the rest of Oakville.

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What Was Council's Feedback to Staff?

You can read the full set of directions provided to staff here.

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