Background
Midtown Oakville - the area around the Oakville GO Station - was identified as an Urban Growth Centre in the 2006 Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, which is a document created by Ontario's provincial government. It is the responsibility of all municipalities in Ontario to ensure that their Official Plans conform to the policies and directions provided in the provincial Growth Plan.
Studies and activities to create a Midtown Oakville Strategy began about a decade ago and were intended to provide a vision of how we could transform the Midtown area into an urban mixed use community. At that time, Midtown was projected to provide a minimum of homes for 13, 000 people and 7,000 jobs by 2031.
Since then, the Province has mandated:
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Major Transit Station areas 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.
The scale of what is now being proposed for Midtown far exceeds what was previously contemplated.
'Tall' was not meant to be forty-plus stories and now there are development applications for fifty-eight storeys.
The density permissions outlined in the proposed Midtown Amendment could reach 90,000 people or more.
The Challenge
The overall picture for Oakville as a Town is that it is required to grow and achieve the Housing Pledge Council made to the provincial government of building an additional 33,000 homes by 2032 and still have space to grow. All our six growth areas will be involved in this growth.
To provide liveability, Oakville requires 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 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.
The scale of what is now being proposed for Midtown far exceeds what was previously contemplated. There are development applications already on hand for building stretching to fifty-eight stories. As well, 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.
The Midtown Official Plan will 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 will consider if Oakville Council decisions are appealed.
