• Stouffville’s Council is backing a resolution calling on the Province to ease restrictions on building additional residential units (ARUs) on protected Oak Ridges Moraine lands.
  • Provincial policy limits or bars ARUs throughout the Greenbelt and Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan areas, affecting much of rural Stouffville.
  • Critics say the existing rules create inequities and prevent older rural landowners from aging in place.
  • Councillor Sue Sherban opposed the resolution, warning of a “slippery slope” that threatens conservation goals.
  • Using Strong Mayor Powers, Mayor Iain Lovatt has asked Staff to recommend possible policy revisions that will enable greater ARUs throughout the conservation areas.
  • The push adds to Council’s calls for greater development access within the Greenbelt and Oak Ridges Moraine.

 

As housing affordability continues to dominate municipal and Provincial agendas, Whitchurch-Stouffville is joining another call for supply-supportive change—this time targeting rules that limit housing flexibility in Ontario’s protected natural areas.

Council has endorsed a resolution from the Township of Adjala-Tosorontio asking the Province to amend restrictions that prevent property owners on Oak Ridges Moraine lands from building additional residential units (ARUs). It urges a formal review of the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan (ORMCP) to “permit ARU’s generally” within the area.

In late November 2024, the Ontario government announced changes requiring municipalities to allow up to three housing units per serviced lot, with no rezoning application needed. This initiative, paired with the Canada Secondary Suite Loan Program offering up to $80,000 in low-interest loans, is part of a broader effort to address the housing crisis.

While the measures benefit property owners in serviced settlement areas, Provincial policy does not permit ARUs in Natural Core and Natural Linkage Areas within the ORMCP area. A Staff report from June 2024 confirms that the same restrictions apply to Natural Heritage System lands within the Greenbelt Plan Area.

Those three designations apply to much of Whitchurch-Stouffville’s rural lands, and a map has been posted online detailing where ARUs can and cannot be permitted throughout the municipality.

It shows a patchwork of different rules and regulations. Properties within the Greenbelt’s Protected Countryside Area can build one ARU either as an addition to the main home or to an existing accessory structure. In contrast, those in ORMCP-designated Countryside Areas are allowed only one ARU, but it must be physically attached to the primary dwelling.

According to the Adjala-Tosorontio resolution, such regulatory inconsistencies create inequalities between different parts of the municipality, leaving some residents unable to benefit from the same housing opportunities as their neighbours.

“Allowing for multi-family residential units with ARU’s in the Oak Ridges Moraine would permit older residents to stay in their own homes for longer and further allow for younger people and families to live in their own units with their own independence,” it states.

This is especially relevant for senior farm owners in the Moraine who hope to age in place. Supporters believe enabling younger family members to independently live on the property could ease succession planning and help preserve family farms for future generations.

Council voted to endorse the resolution at its April 2 meeting, with only Councillor Sue Sherban opposed. She expressed worry about setting consequential precedents and argued that such requests must include clear parameters and limits before receiving support.

“I think there are special circumstances when this is warranted,” she said during the meeting. “But a blanket request can turn over from being an 1,100 square foot ARU to a 2,100 square foot ARU, which would be building another home.”

Speaking with Bullet Point News, Sherban expanded on her concerns and referenced Council’s recent support for a Minister’s Zoning Order (MZO) request to sever a property in the Oak Ridges Moraine—another motion she opposed.

“Once one landowner gets permission to add another house to their property, or they are granted an MZO allowing them to sever, another person is going to ask for the same, and another after that,” she said.

“I appreciate that local farmers would like to retire in their own dwelling and on their own property,” she added. “But once that farmer passes away, there is an increased risk that somebody is going to ask us to sever off that piece of property to sell the home. Given the value of land, who wouldn’t at least consider it?”

Sherban warned that such changes could lead to broad, unintended ramifications.

“It’s a very slippery slope, and it will change the fabric of what we’re trying to do with the Greenbelt and Oak Ridges Moraine conservation plans: keep the natural state in order, support wildlife and their movements, and take care of our environment,” she said. “And let’s not forget flood mitigation, which can be impacted by increased development.”

Mayor Iain Lovatt offered a more tempered view, advocating for a nuanced approach that respects local contexts while maintaining some environmental protections.

In February, Lovatt issued a Strong Mayor Powers Directive tasking Town Staff with producing a comprehensive report on policy challenges related to ARUs in both the Greenbelt and ORMCP areas. The report, expected in Council Chambers by the end of June, will also include recommended policy amendments for the Province to consider.

“There are too many inconsistencies, irregularities, and contradictions within these policies,” Lovatt told Bullet Point News. “We have lands in Markham along our border that are not considered ecologically or environmentally sensitive, but the same field in Stouffville is protected Oak Ridges Moraine land.”

After reiterating his and the majority of Council’s long-standing desire to utilize Greenbelt lands for new employment opportunity along Highway 404, Lovatt addressed one of the more visible contradictions found within the Moraine: a homeowner can tear down an existing house and build a luxury mansion, but they cannot construct smaller, secondary units to house extended family.

“Does it make sense that someone can build a 50,000 square foot home on their property, but they are not permitted to build a 2,000 square foot ARU on that same piece of land?” he asked.

“I don’t support fully opening up the Greenbelt or the Oak Ridges Moraine, but each municipality has different circumstances and realities that only local councils are tuned into,” Lovatt said. “I’d love for the Province to set new guardrails for conversions and let local councils make the decisions as to what’s best for our communities.”

The endorsed resolution will be sent to Premier Doug Ford, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Rob Flack, relevant MPPs, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and other municipalities within the Oak Ridges Moraine.