Requests roll in for further Greenbelt destruction

February 22, 2023

QUEEN'S PARK — Ontario Greens leader and MPP for Guelph Mike Schreiner released the following statement in response to reports that at least four landowners have asked the government for permission to build on the Greenbelt since it opened the area for development.

“It comes as no surprise that development requests are starting to roll in since the Ford government announced they would open up 7,400 acres of protected Greenbelt land last year.

We already knew that the Ford government is more than willing to let wealthy speculators pave over our vital farmland, wetlands and environmentally sensitive areas.

And now we learn that more development corporations have made additional requests since the government’s announcement late last year, setting the stage for more proposals to pave over sensitive lands.

The bottom line is that speculators know that they can now cash in on what should be protected land for the public good.

We don’t need million-dollar homes in the Greenbelt. The government’s own housing taskforce has debunked the claim that these lands are needed for housing.

We need homes that people can afford, in connected, affordable communities designed with people in mind.

Ontario Greens will continue to work across party lines to push back against Doug Ford’s Greenbelt destruction and call for the repeal of Bill 23.”

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