About Midtown
Its History. Its Challenges.
History
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Identified as Growth Area in 2006.
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Studies and activities to create a Midtown Oakville Strategy began about a decade ago. They were intended to provide a vision of how we could transform the Midtown area into an urban mixed use community.
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Midtown's size is approximately 100ha or 1 square kilometre. Due to constraints, less than half can be developed - approximately 43 hectares.
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In 2014, Midtown was projected to provide a minimum of homes for 13, 000 people and 7,000 jobs by 2031.
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Since then, the Province has directed Major Transit Station areas to intensify significantly given the mobility benefits of the Lakeshore West GO line.
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Increased our Regional Growth Plan to have municipalities increase population numbers and extend them to 2051.
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Revised the provincial Planning Act to expand the authority of the Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs to override Ontario’s Municipal Council’s.
Where We Started
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The Midtown Official Plan is intended to provide area-specific policies that will shape and define this urban neighbourhood. The language in the OP is particularly important, as it will be what must be considered when evaluating future development applications and what the Ontario Land Tribunal would consider if Oakville Council decisions were appealed.
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As identified above, within the overall 103 square hectare plot of Midtown, only 43 square hectares are developable. That's because there are elements within the boundaries, often called 'takeouts' such as hydro corridors, valley lands, railway easements, cemeteries, etc., that reduce the available land for development.
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Oakville's current population is approximately 222,000, By 2051, Halton Region suggests it will grow to 375,000. That means Oakville must plan to accommodate an additional 153,000 people across its various Growth Areas. The Town of Oakville is projecting an even higher population at 444,000.
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As one of those 6 Growth Areas, Midtown is intended to be a complete community that will focus on people and where they can live, work and play in walkable, mixed-use neighbourhoods.
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The Official Plan Amendment for Midtown is to play one role in the many that are usually needed to create a new community - A Master Plan, a Transportation Plan, a Parks Plan, etc. At this time the other plans referenced above are not in place.
The May 2023 density permissions in the proposed Midtown Amendment would have reached 90,000 people or more.
The latest concepts show density at 60,000 people and 19,000 jobs, BUT the question remains:
What is the optimal density for 43hectares to achieve a liveable community?
The Challenge
Oakville signed the Provincial Housing Pledge to build an additional 33,000 homes by 2032. All our six growth areas will be involved in this growth.
Providing liveability means ensuring we provide a mix of housing types - rental, affordable and attainable as well as diverse unit sizes for singles, couples and families.
In the case of Midtown, it is intended to be an urban neighbourhood centred on the railway station, with a focus on residents walking or cycling to the train, daily services and relaxation opportunities. It is to be mixed use; meaning it is to have both employment and homes within the neighbourhood.
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The scale of what is now being proposed for Midtown far exceeds what was previously contemplated. There are development applications already on hand for buildings stretching to fifty-eight stories.
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The original belief for Midtown was that increased heights would allow for increased green space. However, recent Provincial Policy revisions have dramatically reduced the amount of developer-provided parkland.
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The language in the OP is particularly important, as it will be what must be considered when evaluating future development applications and what the Ontario Land Tribunal will consider if Oakville Council decisions are appealed. The Midtown Official Plan will provide area-specific policies that will shape and define this urban neighbourhood. We have to get it right.
We Need Solutions. We Need Answers.
We Must Build Community, Not Just Towers.
