Ontario Will Not Compensate Greenbelt Developers, Housing Minister Says

Ontario Will Not Compensate Greenbelt Developers, Housing Minister Says
Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Government House Leader Paul Calandra speaks to reporters in Toronto, on Sept. 7, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby)
The Canadian Press
9/27/2023
Updated:
9/27/2023
0:00

Ontario Housing Minister Paul Calandra says the province will not compensate developers whose lands are going back in the protected Greenbelt.

Calandra says he has put that into draft legislation that is coming soon that will also “codify” the boundaries of the Greenbelt.

The province removed land from the Greenbelt last year as part of its broader push to build 1.5 million homes by 2031.

Premier Doug Ford apologized last week when he announced the province would return those lands to the protected area after damning reports from two legislative watchdogs that found the process was flawed and favoured certain developers.

The auditor general found the developers stood to see their land value increase by $8.3 billion.

The province is soon set to table legislation so future changes to the Greenbelt would have to be done through the legislature and not done by regulation, as the Ford government did last November.