The Municipality of Port Hope has reached an agreement with Mason Homes and will have a settlement hearing with the Ontario Land Tribunal in early September, it was announced at Tuesday’s council meeting.
The settlement includes the transfer of significant part of privately owned Little Creek ravine lands to public ownership for recreational use and protection as well as $100,000 contributed to the municipality to be used within the municipality for tree planting and tree canopy replacement.
The developer also agreed to the installation of enhanced landscaping features along the front dwellings along Victoria Street South. It would also conduct a Heritage Impact Assessment to the municipality’s satisfaction to address any development impacts on the cultural landscape and features identified in the Cultural Heritage Evaluation Report.
During question period at Tuesday’s meeting, council was asked by resident Robert Fishlock, a director with Save Our Trees, about the subject matter of an earlier closed session regarding the settlement and thought the public was entitled to know.
Mayor Olena Hankivsky said council directed its legal counsel to sign the minutes of settlement for the development of low to medium density residential units at the location commonly referred to as the Penryn woodlot on Victoria Street.
The development at the woodlot and a 120-metre buffer around the woodlot is for low/medium density residential units including 58 single detached residential lots and 43 townhouses.
OLT documents from January state “the development proposal was appealed to the Tribunal due to the failure of the Municipality to deal with the matters within the statutory time frames.”
The tribunal ordered a 12-day hearing to commence on Aug. 28.
Mayor Hankivsky said it has been a difficult and complicated division for council, which considered previous Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) decisions and consistent legal advice that the probability of a successful outcome for the municipality was deemed very low, given the prior development approvals by the OMB. Further, significant costs, upwards of hundreds of thousands of dollars associated with this matter, and the risk that the municipality may not have gained any of the agreed upon concessions per the settlement agreement also weighed heavily into council’s decision to pursue settlement negotiations.
Port Hope staff and legal counsel will present minutes of settlement and the planning instructions to the OLT at the settlement hearing Sept. 7.
The OLT will review and rule on the submission and provide next steps.
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