2018 Belleville Municipal Comprehensive Review

Watson undertook an updated Municipal Comprehensive Review (MCR), which was the first report required as part of the City’s new Official Plan Update process.

The main purpose of the MCR was as follows:

• Assess the current boundary of the Urban Serviced Area and whether there is a sufficient amount of designated land available in greenfield
  and intensification areas to accommodate future residential and nonresidential employment growth over a 20-year planning horizon. Additionally, to prepare a detailed technical planning and economic analysis to comprehensively assess the City’s long-term urban land needs.
• Examine the potential for the exchange of employment lands that are currently within the Urban Serviced Area (majority of lands located in
  the Cannifton East Industrial Area) for lands outside the Urban Serviced Area that were expropriated by the City of Belleville (adjacent
  to the North East Industrial Park) for the purpose of future industrial development.
• Provide detailed policy direction and recommendations that are required as part of the Official Plan update process.

The Draft MCR was updated through review and analysis of relevant public comments received by the City. With respect to the City’s urban land needs,
the MCR determined the following:

1. The City of Belleville has sufficient residential supply opportunities to accommodate residential growth through 2038.
2. The City of Belleville has sufficient designated vacant commercial land to accommodate forecast demand.
3. The City of Belleville has sufficient designated Community Facility lands to accommodate forecast demand over the 2018 to 2038 period.
4. The City has a surplus of employment land to accommodate growth to 2038.
5. The City should complete a land exchange to strengthen its competitive position and economic development potential. The land
   exchange would consist of the following:
   • Remove 276 gross hectares of employment land located north of Highway 401 and east of Highway 37 from the City’s urban boundary which is currently unserviced and not considered serviceable within the forecast period.
   • Add 166 gross hectares of expropriated lands adjacent to the east of the North East Industrial Park into the Urban Serviced Area as employment land.

This will assist the City by reducing its employment land surplus to 337 gross hectares.

The City should proceed with the conversion of six parcels of employment land within two mature industrial areas within the Sidney Street Industrial Area and the Waterfront Industrial Area as these sites are considered isolated and fragmented parcels that are surrounded by residential uses.

There is no requirement to change the urban boundary of the City with the exception of the proposed land exchange for the expropriated
lands adjacent to the North East Industrial Park.

Industrial Land Swap

The MCR determined that no expansion to the current urban boundary was needed. However, to strengthen the City’s economic position and competitiveness, the MCR recommended that the City add approximately 166 gross hectares of expropriated agricultural land to the Urban Serviced Area to support the future expansion of the North East Industrial Park.

One requirement of any MCR is that an expansion of the urban boundary does not increase an existing surplus of any particular land-use category in order to comply with the PPS, and be approved by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs.

As the MCR determined, the only way that the City-owned lands could be incorporated into the urban boundary for the future expansion of the North East Industrial Park was to remove other employment lands from the urban boundary which were either no longer attractive for future industrial
development or were not serviceable.

To reduce the surplus of employment lands available within the City’s urban boundary, the MCR recommended a land exchange consisting of the addition of the 166 gross hectares of new employment land from outside of the City’s urban boundary, and the removal of 276 gross hectares of existing employment land, including the employment lands in the Cannifton Area.

After considering comments from the public regarding this recommendation, Staff provided a revised recommendation for a land swap consisting of the removal of approximately 167 gross hectares of employment land from the urban boundary, which is approximately the same amount of land proposed to be added. The lands recommended for removal are illustrated in Attachment #5.

The Cannifton lands recommended to remain within the urban boundary include the route for the proposed Belleville East Arterial Route (BEAR). The BEAR is planned to link a future 401 interchange to Highway 37, and provide access to the North East Industrial Park as well as a direct route to the City’s east boundary. The BEAR follows the preferred interchange and route identified through both the Ministry of Transportation Environmental Assessment process and the City’s Transportation Master Plan. There is reason to provide the BEAR link through urban lands to protect for future development.

PP-2020-63