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• Don’t Drink and Drive • Editorials • Citizens of the Year • Sports
The
THIS WEEK
Citizen
Huron County’s most trusted independent news source
Friday, November 18, 2022
$1.50 GST included
Volume 38 No. 46
Publications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 429, BLYTH, ON N0M 1H0
McLellan elected deputy By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen
A time to remember Long-time Brussels Legion member George Adams, centre, was among the first people to place his poppy at last Friday’s Remembrance Day ceremony, hosted by the Brussels Legion. The service represented a return
to an in-person ceremony, welcoming about 150 people to the cenotaph to remember. Adams’ fellow Legion members John Lowe, left, and Deb Ross, right, assisted Adams on his journey to the cenotaph. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
Bill 23 concerns councillors, planners By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Huron County Manager of Planning Denise Van Amersfoort updated Huron County Council on Bill 23, the provincial government’s More Homes Built Faster Act, outlining numerous concerns from the Planning and Development Department. The report, which she presented to council at its Nov. 9 meeting, was time-sensitive, as the government had only allowed for comments on the proposed changes until Nov. 24. The department, she said, wanted to present its thoughts to council and allow for councillors to make their own comments before the county submitted any comments on the act. First, Van Amersfoort said the act proposes changes to the section of the Planning Act that governs Site Plan Control. The act would exempt development containing no more than 10 units from Site Plan Control. Furthermore, she said that matters of “exterior design” would
be prohibited from being subject to Site Plan Control, except when pertaining to exterior access to a building that will contain affordable housing units. The act would also remove the right of appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal for members of the public or community groups on consents, minor variances, zoning bylaw amendments and Official Plan amendments. She said that any third-party appeals that do not have a hearing date scheduled as of Oct. 25 of this year will be dismissed. However, municipalities, certain public agencies and applicants will continue to have the right to appeal. Under the proposed act, public meetings for plans of subdivision will no longer be required and upper-tier planning approvals will be removed for specific municipalities, though this change will not apply to Huron County. “New changes state that no Official Plan may contain policy or that no zoning bylaw may contain provisions which prohibit the
following on a parcel of urban residential land: two residential units in a detached house, semidetached house or rowhouse if all the ancillary structures contain no more than one residential unit; three residential units in a detached house, semi-detached house or rowhouse if no ancillary structure contains any residential units or one residential unit in an ancillary structure to a detached house, semidetached house or rowhouse with no more than two residential units and no other ancillary structure contains any residential units,” Van Amersfoort said in her report. She said that the Huron County Housing-Friendly Review recommended a four-unit maximum in low-density residential areas, which has been passed by lowertier municipalities like Central Huron and Huron East, so the local rules exceed the threshold set by the provincial government in this instance. The bill proposes exemptions for pits and quarries, such as mineral aggregate resource extraction, to
the Planning Act’s prohibition of Official Plan amendments to be made within two years of the adoption of a new Official Plan, Secondary Plan or zoning bylaw amendments to be made within two years of the passing of a new zoning bylaw. Van Amersfoort said, however, that council may permit applications generally to be filed within that period with a motion or specific direction, if that is the will of council. The act also proposes that 60 per Continued on page 18
Long-time Grey Ward Councillor Alvin McLellan has been chosen as Huron East’s deputy-mayor and the municipality’s second representative on Huron County Council. McLellan was one of three to put their name forward on Tuesday night at Huron East Council’s inaugural meeting. Incumbent Deputy-Mayor and acclaimed Seaforth Ward Councillor Bob Fisher and McLellan nominated each other for the position, while Mayor Bernie MacLellan nominated Tuckersmith Ward Councillor Ray Chartrand. The three-man race was reminiscent of the 2018 deputymayor election, which Fisher eventually won, defeating Chartrand and McLellan. Fisher spoke first, saying he has been proud to serve as Huron East deputy-mayor over the past four years, feeling he had accomplished a lot both at the municipal and county levels. He said he spent his term routinely checking in with councillors to hear about needs and concerns in their wards, as well as with the local Family Health Team and food bank for the same reasons. During his time as a Huron County councillor, Fisher said, he has created a good rapport with the rest of council and members of the county’s senior management team, while focusing on green energy, accessibility and keeping taxes manageable, the same priorities he had at the municipal level. Fisher also said there was a deeper inspiration for running, echoing comments he made four years ago. He said he wanted to show those without disabilities that, with a little help, a blind person could serve as a Huron County councillor and, as well, show those with disabilities that, with a little help and a lot of gumption, they too could achieve more than they think they could. McLellan spoke next, asking his Continued on page 3
Your recipes needed The Citizen will again be publishing its Home Cooking for the Holidays section in the Dec. 2 issue of the newspaper and North Huron Publishing wants your recipes! Last year’s section included 11 pages of recipes contributed by community members, service group volunteers, Citizen staff members
and local church cookbooks. There were savoury and sweet recipes and everything in between. The deadline for submissions is Wednesday, Nov. 23. They can be sent to info@northhuron.on.ca. We can’t wait to see what you send. We want to hear all about your favourites this holiday season!