Category Archives: Updates

Tweets from our Smartening Up Growth event

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From left: Kate Daley of Smart Growth Waterloo Region, Kevin Thomason of the Grand River Environmental Network, Rob Horne of the Region of Waterloo, Aidan Grove-White of Environmental Defence, and moderator Mike Farwell at Smartening Up Growth in Waterloo Region.

On Thursday, December 12, more than 80 people packed into the multipurpose room at the Downtown Community Centre in Kitchener to learn more about the costs of sprawl and the benefits of Smart Growth in Waterloo Region. You can follow along with the conversation and see what people were saying.
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Region of Waterloo’s Submission to the Land Use Planning and Appeals Review

At its Planning and Works Committee meeting on Tuesday December 3rd, the Region of Waterloo Council decided on its submission to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing’s review process. The Region is requesting a number of changes to the appeals process, as well as to the operations of the Ontario Municipal Board itself.

You can watch the part of the meeting on the review process, and you can read the report on page 176 of the Planning and Works meeting package.

You also have until January 10, 2014 to submit written comments as part of the Ministry’s consultation process for the review. More information is available on its website.

Event: Smartening Up Growth in Waterloo Region

Smartening Up Growth Event - Poster FINAL

We’re joining with Environmental Defence and the Grand River Environmental Network (GREN) to host an event about the costs of sprawl and the benefits of smart growth in Waterloo Region.

Date: Thursday, December 12, 2013
Location: Downtown Community Centre, 35B Weber Street West, Kitchener, Ontario
Time: Doors open at 6:30 pm for light refreshments provided by Seven Shores; panel discussion begins at 7:00 pm

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Provincial government announces consultations on OMB appeals and supporting smart growth

On Thursday, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced its consultation process for its upcoming review of its land use planning and appeals system, as well as its development charges system.

A consultation workshop on land use planning and appeals is scheduled at The Aud, Subscriber’s Lounge (400 East Ave, Kitchener), on Thursday, November 14th. You can also provide your comments online, by email, or by mail. You can find more information or register to attend the session through the Ministry website.

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The High Costs of Sprawl: Why Building More Sustainable Communities Will Save Us Time and Money

The High Costs of SprawlIn response to concerns about urban sprawl and recent land use decisions, Environmental Defence has released a detailed report, “The High Costs of Sprawl: Why Building More Sustainable Communities Will Save Us Time and Money.”

This report outlines the causes of sprawl and the economic, social, health, and environmental costs it creates. It also provides tangible recommendations for growing our cities sustainably.

We highly recommend reading and sharing this document:

CostsofSprawl- FINAL.pdf (2729 kb)

Region’s Backgrounder on Procedural Fairness Complaint

Thanks to Councillor Jane Mitchell, we can all take a look for ourselves at a backgrounder the Region of Waterloo prepared to explain the most recent developments in this case. We’ve made the image larger for you below.

You can also read Smart Growth Waterloo’s take on this development in our news release.

13Aug2013 - backgrounder procedural fairness