The Ontario Land Tribunal has scheduled a settlement hearing for Tuesday, September 29, 2026, to approve a confidential agreement between the Upper West Side Landowners Group Inc. (UWSLG) and the City of Hamilton. The settlement will implement the secondary plan and other zoning policies required following the OLT’s August 2026 order requiring Hamilton to expand its urban boundary to include all remaining land within city limits not protected by the Greenbelt Act.
The actual terms of the settlement, covering approximately 120 hectares of land south of Twenty Road West near Hamilton’s airport, are not publicly available.
The terms of settlement have been submitted to the Ontario Land Tribunal; however, the OLT no longer allows the public to review filings in advance of hearings. This despite a December 2024 recommendation from Ontario’s Auditor General that strongly encouraged the OLT to “review and adopt best practices from other tribunals to enhance the transparency of the OLT hearings process, such as making evidence OLT examines easily accessible through its website, publishing notices of upcoming hearings and recording hearings.” [Recommendation 10]
In an unattributed statement authorized by Interim City Manager Mike Zegarac, the City Manager’s Office describes the deal as similar to what the UWSLG offered in December 2024 when seeking a Minister’s Zoning Order. The developers will provide 10 per cent of new housing at an “affordable” level; the unattributed statement does not define what “affordable” means in this context.
The terms of settlement have been submitted to the Ontario Land Tribunal, however, the OLT no longer allows the public to review filings in advance of hearings. This despite a December 2024 recommendation from Ontario’s Auditor General that strongly encouraged the OLT to “review and adopt best practices from other tribunals to enhance the transparency of the OLT hearings process, such as making evidence OLT examines easily accessible through its website, publishing notices of upcoming hearings and recording hearings.” [Recommendation 10]
The settlement hearing will begin at 10:00 a.m. on September 29. Information on how to observe the hearing is included as part of the hearing notice.
Following the Tribunal’s approval, the agreement will become publicly known.
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Published: September 19, 2026
Last updated: September 19, 2026
Author: Joey Coleman
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