Del Duca promises to replace ‘abused’ ministerial zoning power

ipolitics.ca
Dec. 1, 2021

Steven Del Duca, leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, announced on Tuesday morning that if his party is elected to govern the province this spring that it would do away with ministerial zoning orders (MZOs) -- a powerful provincial development tool that Premier Doug Ford’s government has used in an unprecedented way.

MZOs allow the provincial government to avoid certain consultations or environmental assessments that are typically required for development projects, and also allow the province to overrule local planning decisions.

Ford’s government has issued dozens of MZOs during the Progressive Conservatives (PCs) three-and-a-half years in power, which is far more than any previous government. Since 2018, the government has issued MZOs including for the purpose of speeding up major housing developments, constructing a Walmart distribution centre near Vaughan, and building an Amazon warehouse near Pickering -- which the company pulled out of.

MZOs have been a tool used by Ontario governments for decades, but were usually reserved for extraordinary circumstances.

The Ford government’s frequent use of MZOs has been criticized by opposition parties, environmental groups, agriculture organizations and others since 2018. Journalists and opposition parties have also uncovered numerous examples of MZOs benefitting PC donors or those with other links to the party.

“The abuse and the misuse of this power by Doug Ford has made it crystal clear that it is no longer the mechanism that will help us build the communities that we need,” Del Duca said.

A Liberal government would replace MZOs with a “more narrow” mechanism, only allowing the provincial government to fast-track projects to build affordable housing, employment projects, not-for-profit nursing homes or to expand protected green space, Del Duca said.

Del Duca announced his party’s latest platform promise at the Foundry Buildings in Toronto’s old industrial area. Using an MZO, the province began tearing down the provincially owned site’s heritage buildings earlier this year to build affordable housing units. Demolition of the buildings paused after a local neighbourhood group, the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood Association, threatened an injunction against the development, and there were protests at the site. This summer, the province reversed course, announcing that much of the Foundry Buildings would be spared in the redevelopment.

Ontario New Democratic Party Leader Andrea Horwath also revealed a part of her party’s campaign platform on Tuesday; she promised that an NDP government would raise minimum wage in the province to $16/hour on Oct. 1, to $17/hour by May 2023, and by $1/hour more to eventually reach a minimum wage of $20/hour by May 2026.