Town of Caledon celebrates World Town Planning Day

Written By JOSHUA SANTOS

Town of Caledon celebrated World Town Planning Day (WTPD) on Thursday, Nov. 8.

The theme for this year's WTPD is Past, Present and Future of Caledon.

The international day commemorates the accomplishment of planners and their contributions to their communities, according to a news release. Planners in more than 30 countries participate in WTPD activities annually.

“World Town Planning Day is a great time to highlight the important role that planning plays in building strong communities,” said Mayor Allan Thompson in the release. “As a Town, we are always looking to make improvements to our planning process to create efficiencies, and make things easier and clearer for our residents and businesses.”

This week, staff from the organization will have the chance to learn more about the importance of planning in the community and emphasize five areas: planning, development, heritage, policy and sustainability.

The following are a number of planning improvements in 2018.

Storm Water Engineering Projects

The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) has recently approved the Town of Caledon participating in a new Transfer of Review Program.  This program allows municipalities to conduct administrative and technical reviews, on behalf of the MECP, for environmental compliance approval applications for storm water engineering projects.

“This initiative will help the Town streamline processes and approvals for engineering reviews as part of development approvals.” said Peggy Tollett, general manager of Community Services. “This is very important as it will lead to significant efficiencies and reduced approval timelines, which will improve the Town's ability to plan for growing infrastructure needs.”

The program recognizes that the Town has ownership of the infrastructure and is highly involved in the development process to ensure that all works meet the Town standards, and are designed and constructed accordingly. Administrative and technical reviews conducted by staff are important as the Town continues to grow with multiple planning and development applications.

Staff have already completed some of the necessary training required, including a noise training course.

Transparency in Planning Public Notices

The Town will soon unveil and begin using planning public notices, public meeting signage, newspaper ads that are short, more concise and easier to understand. This is to communicate necessary information to residents, which can be quite technical, in a transparent and coherent manner.

Zoning By-Law Updates

The Local Planning Appeal Board (LPAT) approved the Town of Caledon's Zoning By-Law (No. 2016-100) to bring industrial-commercial zoning into alignment with the Town's Official Plan, making it easier for businesses to establish and grow in Caledon.

By updating the Zoning By-Law, the Town is removing barriers to industrial and commercial businesses looking to locate and build in Caledon. Removing these zoning barriers allows development to move more quickly and reduces the cost of doing business.