Minutes

Planning and Development Committee

The Corporation of the City of Brampton

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Hybrid Meeting - Virtual Option & In-Person in Council Chambers – 4th Floor – City Hall
Members Present:
  • Regional Councillor M. Medeiros - Wards 3 and 4
  • Regional Councillor P. Fortini - Wards 7 and 8
  • Regional Councillor R. Santos - Wards 1 and 5
  • Regional Councillor P. Vicente - Wards 1 and 5
  • City Councillor D. Whillans - Wards 2 and 6
  • Regional Councillor M. Palleschi - Wards 2 and 6
  • City Councillor J. Bowman - Wards 3 and 4
  • City Councillor C. Williams - Wards 7 and 8
  • City Councillor H. Singh - Wards 9 and 10
  • Regional Councillor G. Dhillon - Wards 9 and 10
Staff Present:
  • Bob Bjerke, Director, Policy Planning, Planning, Building and Economic Development
  • Andrew McNeill, Manager, Official Plan and Growth Management, Planning, Building and Economic Development
  • Jeffrey Humble, Manager, Policy Planning, Planning, Building and Economic Development
  • Anand Balram, Policy Planner, Planning, Building and Economic Development
  • Peter Fay, City Clerk
  • Charlotte Gravlev, Deputy City Clerk

1.
Call to Order
 

As this meeting of the Planning and Development Committee was conducted with electronic participation by Members of Council, the meeting started with the City Clerk calling the roll for attendance at the meeting, as follows:

Members present during roll call: Regional Councillor Santos, Regional Councillor Vicente, Regional Councillor Palleschi, Regional Councillor Medeiros (Chair), City Councillor Bowman, Regional Councillor Fortini, City Councillor Williams, Regional Councillor Dhillon, City Councillor Singh and City Councillor Whillans.

Members absent during roll call: Nil

The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m., and adjourned at 8:45 p.m.

2.
Approval of Agenda
 

The following motion was considered:

  • PDC099-2022

    That the agenda for the Special Planning and Development Committee Meeting of May 30, 2022 be approved as published and circulated.

    Carried

3.
Declarations of Interest under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act
 

Nil

4.
Statutory Public Meeting Reports
 

4.1
Staff Report re. Draft Brampton Plan (Official Plan)
This item has attachments. 

1.Statutory Public Meeting - Draft Brampton Plan (New Official Plan).pdf
2.Appendix 1 - Work Program.pdf
3.Appendix 2 - Documents Review and Gaps Analysis.pdf
4.Appendix 3 - Land Needs Analysis and Growth Forecasting.pdf
5.Appendix 4 - Conformity Matrix.pdf
6.Appendix 5 - Arts and Culture Discussion Paper.pdf
7.Appendix 6 - Attainable and Supportive Housing Discussion Paper.pdf
8.Appendix 7 - Natural Environment Climate Change and Resiliency Discussion Paper.pdf
9.Appendix 8 - Growth Management Framework Discussion Paper.pdf
10.Appendix 9 - Employment and Retail Discussion Paper.pdf
11.Appendix 10 - Transportation and Connectivity Discussion Paper.pdf
12.Appendix 11 - Urban Design, Open Spaces and Recreation Discussion Paper.pdf
13.Appendix 12 - Draft Brampton Plan.pdf
14.Appendix 13 - Draft Brampton Plan Schedules.pdf
15.Appendix 14 - Statutory Public Meeting Presentation May 30.pdf

Items 5.1 and 6.1 were brought forward and dealt with at this time.

Andrew McNeill, Manager, Official Plan and Growth Management, Andria Sallese and Matthew Rodrigues, WSP, provided the presentation included with the agenda package as Appendix 14 to the report, covering areas of consideration which included:

  • The Brampton Plan Vision
  • Testing the vision and commitment to engagement
  • Brampton Plan overview: imagining Brampton, shaping Brampton, implementation and measurement, and site and area specific policies
  • City structure and expected benefits from the city structure
  • Strategy to build an urban city
  • City-wide building blocks: nurturing strong and connected communities, sustainability and climate change, housing and social matters, mobility and connectivity, health and wellness, jobs and living centres; and
  • Next steps toward the Brampton Plan: June 3, 2022 comment submission deadline, July 6, 2022 recommendation for Council adoption, and a to be determined date of regional plan approval.

Andrew McNeill responded to questions and comments from Members in relation to:

  • Importance of diversification and attraction by place quality, compact mixed use places around transit corridors and its importance to growing employment base.
  • Creating the type of environment that supports entrepreneurship
  • Being able to meet outdoors and its importance to resilience.
  • Schedule A/Appendix 13, page 1 - Transportation and logistics – are we accommodating for them – see them being maintained in the blue areas of the map.
  • Dialogue between Planning and Economic Development – extensive staff working team for Brampton Plan development, fully engaged.
  • Important to those on Council to know Economic Development staff have been consulted.
  • Higher order transit on corridors – concern about being able to maintain trucking lanes on the corridors.
  • Will be tensions as Brampton continues to develop – the plan sets up the ability to review delineated station areas, to be studied in detail, including property owners in the areas in the process, to determine appropriate land uses and create a vibrant city. Balancing priorities has been identified as a challenge for Brampton. Will need to be careful and thoughtful of where trucks are directed.
  • Not hearing discussion about higher density employment, what is our plan to get that? - Will try to direct it toward transit corridors, there are opportunities to intensify, will direct it toward the red zones on the Schedule A mapping.
  • Bill 108, second units, garden suites, seems to lead to the elimination of the single family dwelling neighborhoods.
  • All neighbourhoods will be different and unique, with differing characteristics, and that is a good, should have distinct character, but want to work toward a goal of complete living within a 15 minute walk, and a diversity of housing options – a good cross section of housing topology, to provide opportunities for appropriate accommodation through all stages of life.
  • Respectful, or gentle, intensification
  • Directing intensification to certain areas while respecting character of neighbourhoods
  • Envision enhancement of sustainable forms of development, mindful of impact, with integration of new technology.
  • Concrete as green house emitter
  • Toronto Gore area – did we look at rejuvenation of existing communities?
  • Talk about how to approach rejuvenation – importance of maintaining character and scale, new housing stock that doesn’t undermine the integrity of an area, how to build structures that fit in.
  • Changes and improvements in the building code
  • Have a number of tools at our disposal.
  • It has been a long road, staff has done a great job, the plan makes for good reading.
  • What about ward specific information, such as in relation to intensification?
  • What does the plan say about supporting existing communities?
  • Enabling audits to identify gaps in amenities, soft and hard amenities, libraries, day-cares, parks, and taking care of existing residents, not just incoming, such as co-locating new with existing services.
  • Unfortunately ‘Nurturing Neighbourhoods’ program tend to be reactive rather than proactive.
  • Would like to see what is planned for specific areas with regard to infrastructure and infill.
  • Brampton Plan is meant to be high-level, but it may be time to do a new precinct plan. Secondary plans for certain areas may have grown out-of-date.
  • The next step potentially for the next Council – ward specific, and with feedback from residents of the area.
  • Accessibility and the ability to walk to things are key.
  • Interesting points regarding intensification and density – many empty bedrooms, seniors in a large home without opportunity to scale down.
  • Opportunity for more options to single family dwellings – other uses for example, one house with several dwellings.
  • Importance of mid-rise, not embraced by many developers
  • Numerous ways to bring density – Washington for example
  • Respectful transition – all shapes and sizes envisioned through the Plan.
  • Need to be building complete communities with all of the hard and soft services.
  • Embrace the idea of the European piazza, can’t do certain things here because they don’t cover the cost of the land, the market doesn’t cover the cost of things of different sizes.
  • Have tried to lay out a logical approach to height and density – where tall buildings are appropriate and where we would like to direct them to locate – on main corridors.
  • People should be able to age in their neighbourhood, people shouldn’t need to leave their networks.
  • Trying to create a city where we minimize the need to travel long distances to meet daily needs.
  • It is ultimately about quality of life.

Anil Sehdev, Brampton resident, questioned the potential impacts of the Brampton Plan to their property.

Andrew McNeill noted that the Toronto Gore study review has been included in the analysis, and that he and other planning staff would be pleased to meet with the resident to review and share details, specific to their properties, particular to those properties with frontage on Countryside Drive and Goreway Drive, the potential for changes in zoning, and impacts for the specific lots.

The following motion was considered:

  • PDC100-2022

    1. That the report titled: Draft Brampton Plan (Official Plan), to repeal and replace the City of Brampton’s current Official Plan, to the Special Planning and Development Committee Meeting of May 30, 2022, be received; and

    2. That Planning, Building and Economic Development Department staff be directed to report back to Planning & Development Committee with the results of the Public Meeting and final recommendations;

    3. That the delegation from Anil Sehdev, Brampton resident, re: Draft Brampton Plan (Official Plan), to the Special Planning and Development Committee Meeting of May 30, 2022, be received; and

    4. That the following correspondence re: Draft Brampton Plan (Official Plan), to the Special Planning and Development Committee Meeting of May 30, 2022, be received:

      1. Marlene Spencer, Brampton Resident, dated May 21, 2022

      2. Daniel Berens, Vice President, Land Development, Stanford Homes, dated May 24, 2022

      3. Paul Lowes, SGL Planning and Design Inc., dated May 26, 2022

      4. Philip Stewart, Pound and Stewart Associates Ltd., dated May 27, 2022

      5. Stephanie Matveeva,  Associate, Glen Schnarr and Associates, dated May 30, 2022.

    Carried

5.
Public Delegations (5 minutes maximum)
 

6.
Correspondence
 

7.
Councillor Question Period
 

Nil

8.
Public Question Period
 

The public was given the opportunity to submit questions via e-mail to the City Clerk’s Office regarding any decisions made during the meeting. Peter Fay, City Clerk, confirmed that no questions were submitted.

9.
Closed Session
 

Nil

10.
Adjournment
 

The following motion was considered.

  • PDC101-2022

    That Planning and Development Committee do now adjourn to meet again on Monday, June 6, 2022, at 7:00 p.m. or at the call of the Chair.

    Carried
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