Wynne denounces Ford’s plan to develop Greenbelt as ‘wrong on so many levels’ | The Star

The proposal of the leader of the Progressive Conservatives to allow housing construction on the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area's Greenbelt of protected land would promote urban sprawl and damage the environment, the Liberal leader charges.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne noted there is already enough available "land in the GTHA to build two more cities the size of Mississauga" without tampering with the Greenbelt.  (Darren Calabrese / THE CANADIAN PRESS file photo)

By Robert BenzieQueen's Park Bureau Chief

Tues., May 1, 2018

Doug Ford's plan to allow housing construction on the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area's Greenbelt of protected land is "wrong on so many levels," charges Premier Kathleen Wynne.

The Progressive Conservative leader's proposal would promote urban sprawl and damage the environment, the Liberal leader told reporters Tuesday.

"When that land is gone, it's gone forever. You cannot get that land back," Wynne said at the Charles Hastings housing co-op on Elm Street where she was touting tenant protections.

"The point of the Greenbelt is to keep in place the integrity of water systems, the integrity of agricultural land," she said of the 800,000-hectare swath of environmentally sensitive lands.

Wynne noted there is already enough available "land in the GTHA to build two more cities the size of Mississauga" without tampering with the Greenbelt.

"It is absolutely wrongheaded and I could not disagree with him more."

Her comments came one day after it emerged that Ford had privately assured developers, in February, that he would "open a big chunk" of the Greenbelt if the Tories win the June 7 election.

In a video recorded Feb. 12 and distributed to the media by the Liberals on Monday, the rookie Tory chief dismissed the Greenbelt as "just farmer fields."

"It's right beside a community. We need to open that up and create a larger supply," said Ford, predicting it would lead to "price drops" in GTHA housing.

"I've already talked to some of the biggest developers in the country, and, again, I wish I could say it's my idea, but it was their idea as well," he said in February.

Later on Monday, Ford confirmed he was looking at opening up the Greenbelt to build housing.

"I support the Greenbelt in a big way. Anything we may look at to reduce housing costs — because everyone knows housing costs (are) through the roof and there's no more property available to build housing in Toronto or the GTA — it will be replaced," he said.

"Anything that we will look at on the Greenbelt will be replaced, so there will still be an equal amount of Greenbelt."

It remains unclear how Ford could do that if protected land is developed.

NDP MPP Peter Tabuns (Toronto Danforth) said the Tories' "reckless, secret plan to open Ontario's Greenbelt to pave over farms, forests, parks and vibrant green spaces won't help Ontario families.

"When it comes to creating a livable, affordable province, Doug Ford is saying one thing publicly — and another in private to his big, rich developer friends," said Tabuns.

" We will protect prime farmland from land speculators, and strengthen Ontario's Greenbelt to expand economic opportunities for family farmers and local producers."

The Greenbelt was enshrined in law by former Liberal premier Dalton McGuinty in a bid to limit urban sprawl and conserve valuable agricultural land and wetlands.

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