Hamilton’s Committee of Adjustment (CoA) has an odd relationship with the City’s additional dwelling unit rules.
At times, the Committee overrides Additional Dwelling Unit (ADU) permissions within the urban area – leaving it to the Ontario Land Tribunal to implement provincial policies – and recently the CoA has begun overriding both Hamilton’s zoning rules and provincial policies to approve ADUs and lot severances in rural areas without municipal water services that are needed to support intensification.
Now, Hamilton’s planning staff need to go to the Ontario Land Tribunal to have the Tribuanl step in to correct the CoA’s overreach.
Sitting as Planning Committee next Tuesday (Jan 14), City Council will vote to formally authorize the staff initiated appeals in two recent decisions.
On September 10, 2024, the CoA approved a ADU at 2016 Regional Road No. 56 in Glanbrook despite the property being only 0.15 hectares and lacking both septic capacity and municipal water services.
On August 20, 2024, the CoA overruled City policies that protect agricultural lands and approved a severance at 1248 Concession 6 West in Flamborough.
City staff, in a reported signed off by Acting Chief Planner Anita Fabac, write:
“The Zoning By-law requires a minimum lot area of 40.4 hectares for agricultural purposes. The retained agricultural lands are part of a non-abutting farm consolidation that includes a 39 hectare farm operation, as a result the existing dwelling on the subject lands is considered surplus. However, staff are of the opinion that the proposed severance results in a 1.0 hectare parcel that is larger than the minimum area required to accommodate the single detached dwelling and private services. As a result, the proposed Consent to Sever Land application removes more land from agricultural production than is necessary.”
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Published: January 9, 2025
Last updated: January 9, 2025
Author: Joey Coleman
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