The Town of Newmarket is engaged in two legal standoffs with developers regarding their proposals, with one scheduled for a hearing in May.
Town council discussed Ontario Land Tribunal appeals in a closed session March 28. The appeals relate to development at 55 Eagle St., as well as for one project at 43 Lundy's Lane, 592 Watson Ave., and 40, 36 and 32 Bolton Ave.
The 55 Eagle St. matter has been ongoing since last year and is now tentatively set for a 13-day hearing to commence May 17.
The town’s legal team said the exact cost to handle these is not yet known as they are ongoing.
“While the town maintains a legal budget which can cover the cost of litigation matters, in both cases, the town would have much preferred to work with the developers directly outside of an appeal process to avoid the unnecessary expenses to taxpayers entirely,” the legal team said.
The municipality cited the litigation clause in the Municipal Act as the reason for keeping the council discussions private. Council kept the directions confidential after the closed session March 28.
The 55 Eagle development went to a case management conference last year. Milford Development Ltd. launched an appeal for failing to meet timelines in the Planning Act, regarding two previous applications to develop at the property in 2008 and 2011. Milford has separately put forward a revised development proposal in 2021, to construct 76 residential homes on the property that is still under consideration by the town.
The tribunal issued information on the matter March 3, indicating the hearing date. The town said another case management conference would occur on May 5 and notice would be sent out.
The town faces another appeal to the land tribunal from Lundy’s Lane Newmarket Assembly Inc. regarding its proposal for 43 Lundy's Lane, 592 Watson Avenue, and 40, 36 and 32 Bolton Avenue. The proposal — a 79-unit, five-floor condominium — faced opposition from the surrounding neighourhood at a public hearing in May 2021.
The developer subsequently made a second submission Aug. 26, which it felt "meets the requirements of provincial, regional and local policies and represents good planning" according to a letter from Armstrong Planning."
The town did not indicate any hearing dates regarding Lundy's Lane. It said it is managing the Lundy’s Lane matter “internally with staff resources” thus far, whereas it has engaged external counsel for 55 Eagle. It said it would be sending out notices to residents and posting more information on its website about the issues shortly.
Newmarket recently joined the chorus of municipalities, including York Region, calling for an end to the land tribunal and said it is unaccountable and costly.
NewmarketToday will update the story as more information is made available.
