The LPAT has been a focus for the Ford government, which last year scrapped the previous Liberal government’s changes that scaled back the tribunal’s powers and gave municipalities more say over land-use planning.The Ontario government has named a former chief lobbyist for Toronto’s real estate development industry to the province’s powerful land-use tribunal, while stripping it of four adjudicators with environmental backgrounds.
Those not reappointed to the LPAT with environmental CVs were: Justin Duncan, a former staff lawyer for activist group Ecojustice who once sought a federal NDP nomination in Toronto; Marcia Valiante, a former University of Windsor environmental law professor; Hugh Wilkins, a lawyer who worked for the World Wildlife Fund and Ecojustice, and Paula Boutis, an environmental lawyer.
Toronto City Councillor Josh Matlow, a vocal critic of the LPAT and the Ford government’s other moves to reduce burdens on developers, said the appointments should be a concern to everyone in Ontario. The LPAT has been a focus for the Ford government, which last year scrapped the previous Liberal government’s changes that scaled back the tribunal’s powers and gave municipalities more say over land-use planning. The development industry welcomed the PC government’s reversals, saying it would reduce the power of local councillors to block projects.
Jenessa Crognali, a spokeswoman for Mr. Downey, said the appointments are made in consultation with the LPAT and Tribunals Ontario, and that all candidates go through a competitive interview process. And in September, the government appointed Steven Cooke, a former school trustee and one-term town councillor in Clarington, Ont., to the LPAT. He lost his bid for re-election to Clarington Council in 2018. Previously, he sought the PC nomination in Durham in 2014. Mr. Cooke has also served as the local riding association’s vice-president and worked as an aide to then-provincial PC cabinet minister Jim Flaherty and Conservative federal finance minister Joe Oliver.
OMG