Quote:
Originally Posted by Colin May
But in Toronto, first you have to meet with the councillor and the residents and lay out what community benefits you will provide to the adjacent community or how much money you will provide for projects in the community. The councillor decides how and where the money will be spent, whereas in Halifax the money gets shipped out of the adjacent community. And that is why there are so few appeals in Toronto. the developers know who they have to deal with and know the rules are the same for everyone. In HRM it's "Approve everything, we need the money"
If HRM council is willing to support such a process I am sure many people will be happy.
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That only happens for projects involving Section 37 though, which is just density bonusing by another name. Most projects don't involve a consideration of localized benefits, but are just approved or not approved based on planning principles for the zoning in question. Ford opposed section 37 because he's an ignoramus who doesn't understand anything about proper planning.
It's true though, I think, that some Haligonians and councillors have the mentality that we should rubber-stamp everything, no questions asked, which is silly. If TO council denies a development application, the Star isn't running an editorial the next day about how the city is chasing developers away and ruining the city.