Phase 3 FAQs

The format for the third Stewarttown Secondary Plan Public Open House was broken into three components:

• A drop-in session where attendees could walk around and view the display boards with project information covering the key components of the draft Preferred Land Use Plan, policy directions, and the ongoing Trafalgar Road re-construction project. The intent of this was to provide attendees with the opportunity to re-familiarize themselves with the project, while interacting with Town staff and project consultants.
• A presentation from the lead consultant (MHBC Planning) to provide project updates, including the results of the Feasibility Analysis for a secondary road into the expansion lands; and an outline of the draft Preferred Land Use Plan. A 10 to 15 minute question period was also included with this component for attendees to ask questions related to the material presented.
• A workshop activity where attendees could participate in smaller group discussions on the proposed designations associated with the draft Preferred Land Use Plan. Town staff and members of the consulting team were also available at every table to help guide the discussion, take notes, and respond to questions.

The first two Public Open Houses were held virtually, consisting of a presentation, and followed by a question and answer period. 

The third and most recent Public Open House was held in person on June 7, 2023. Town staff transitioned to this setup to ensure they provide a more interactive format, with opportunities to gather ideas and feedback from attendees to help form the completed draft Secondary Plan guides land use. 

While the question and answer period was much more limited this time around, attendees are reminded that questions can be submitted directly to Town staff at any time on Let’s Talk Halton Hills. Staff continuously aim to provide responses to these questions in a timely manner.

Town staff sought out several options to host this event, including other Town venues (e.g. Mold-Masters Sports Complex, libraries), schools, and options within the Stewarttown Plan Area. 

The Hillsview Centre was the best possible option available for this date based on capacity, seating, and audio/video requirements. For future events, Town staff will continue to seek out the best possible venue to meet the needs of those interested in attending.

For the Preferred Land Use Plan, staff will be recommending a unit density be specified for the expansion lands, however, this does not have to be identified as a range. As a Special Policy Area under the Stewarttown Secondary Plan, density can be expressed as a maximum, as opposed to a range, similar to the five units per hectare maximum, which is currently set for the existing Stewarttown area.

The boundaries for these proposed Policy Areas can be adjusted based on feedback from the public and Town staff recommendations. The need for boundary adjustments will be evaluated as part of the work completed on the draft Stewarttown Secondary Plan.

This study was completed in the fall of 2022, to identify and evaluate secondary access road options into the expansion lands. Members of the consulting team from MHBC Planning, Crozier Engineering, and Natural Resource Solutions Inc worked together to identify and evaluate road options based on functionality, access to existing road networks, impacts on natural heritage, and policy implications.

The recommendation from the study is not to pursue any of the road options identified. Technical constraints, the presence of endangered species and wildlife habitat, and Greenbelt Plan policy restrictions all factored into this recommendation. For more detailed information on this study, including memos and the options evaluation table, please visit Let’s Talk Halton Hills.

The project is currently entering its fourth and final phase. A draft Preferred Land Use Plan will be presented to Council for endorsement in the coming months. The project team will also begin to draft policies for the Stewarttown Secondary Plan. Existing Official Plan policies, along with feedback gathered throughout the life of the project will be used as a guide for the draft Stewarttown Secondary Plan.

 All project updates are posted on Let’s Talk Halton Hills for all those interested. Additionally, all past participants of public events for this project will be notified of any future engagement activities including Public Open Houses.