After a marathon meeting lasting nearly five hours Prince Edward County voted to adopt the new official plan at Wednesday’s special meeting.
Some of the bigger changes on the report are lowering the number of severances per property from two to one and eliminating country lot subdivisions. According to the report, these changes are aimed at limiting rural housing developments and directing them towards urban settlement areas such as Picton and Wellington. The report states the changes are being made to protect the stated vision of the county in “being rural with its unique charm”.
Five deputations were made by members of the public on the matter. Two deputations came from people with active development applications that would be made more difficult by the new official plan. A later amendment to the transitional policy stated that any applications that were deemed to be completed by council and planning staff by July 6, 2021 would proceed under the old official plan.
Multiple deputations were made on the subject of conservation and climate awareness. Councillors later approved an amendment putting a 50-metre setback from wetlands for prospective developments and applied the same regulation to Waring’s Creek.
The approval of the document, which has been worked on for years, didn’t come without strong words of opposition with councillors Janice Maynard and Andreas Bolik making statements clearly opposing passing the new official plan for a variety of reasons.
Councillor Bolik, who represents Ameliasburgh, made it clear that he felt it didn’t represent the needs of his constituents.
“It’s not only bad for the county, it’s terrible for Ameliasburgh. It does not recognize that different areas of this county have desperate needs and realities. It is a product that fails to incorporate a true understanding of all areas of this county.”
Mayor Steve Ferguson expressed his support for the new official plan.
“I think we’ve gone through a long struggle and gone through a lot of analysis about this and the plan and doing what is appropriate for everyone in Prince Edward County, so I am in support of it,”
In the end, the motion passed with the amendments by a vote of 10 in favour to four opposed.
The new official plan will be sent to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing for final approval.
