Rezoning Clarington held a successful town hall meeting on July 31st. Thank you to all who joined us in Tyrone. Concerned property owners filled the hall and appreciated the information session.
The Councillors and Municipal staff who were in attendance witnessed the audiences’ frustration with the proposed expansion of Environmentally Protected lands on their property. Many owners were unaware of the changes, not having been notified of the changes directly by the Municipality.
Since accessing the maps for individual properties is difficult on the Municipality’s website, Rezoning Clarington provided hard copies of maps, so property owners could see how the proposed changes would affect their land and share the maps with their neighbours. We heard from local experienced realtors how an Environmentally Protected designation would decrease the value of one’s property and consequently make financing and loans more difficult.
The protected lands are to be centred on wetlands, significant water features or wood lots, however the maps used by the Municipality may be outdated or incorrectly identified environmental features. Unfortunately, the onus is on individual owners to contact the Planning Department to ask for a site visit to demonstrate how the Municipality’s mapping may be inaccurate.
As a voluntary group of concerned property owners, we thank those who help to organize this session. Thanks go out to our local MPP’s for their help and support. Please help us to inform your neighbours and friends of the proposed changes that can severely impact your property and your ability to make changes or expansions on the land.
For further information, please check our website and I can be reached at info@rezoningclarington.ca