The Town of Newmarket Council has been dishonest about many things in the recent past. But if there is one issue that the Gruesome Twosome has been completely honest about, it's their plans supporting unbridled development in our town.
It always amazes me to talk to people who honestly believe that Mayor Van Bynen and Deputy Mayor Taylor give a rat's patootie about preserving our neighbourhoods - whether it be Glenway, Davis Drive,or Main Street.
Last week, the province of Ontario announced plans to increase intensification for Places to Grow communities from 40% to 60%. For many years, Newmarket's un-dynamic duo has been chirping loud and clear that they advocate for 100% intensification in Newmarket.
They are and have always been on the side of the developers.
But before we rush in an put a high rise condo tower on every street corner and pave over our parkland to create more parking lots (as is their plans in the River Walk Commons area), let's take heed of what the Mayor of Barrie, a community in the midst of intensive development, has recently reported. (You can read Jeff Lehman's comments here)
No doubt about it, intensification will lead to a higher cost of living in our town. Housing prices will rise. It will be more expensive to live in Newmarket if the Gruesome-Twosome succeed.
Clean water, wildlife and natural heritage are all under attack under the controversial Taylor/Van Bynen's plan.
They want to take away the power of the people to appeal to the OMB and instead make themselves the final arbiter of what gets built and where. Remember when former Mayor Ray Twinney was arrested on corruption charges? That's the era that Taylor and Van Bynen want to return to. Ah the glory days of council members accepting bribes from developers. Who doesn't want to return to that?
There is another path of course. We could demand sustainable development that respects our current neighbourhoods, preserves and actually builds more green space, and keeps home ownership more affordable. There is another way that ties new job growth to development.
Yet Van Bynen and Taylor believe that whatever works in Toronto will work in Newmarket. I think that's a false premise. Toronto can sustain the development because there are jobs in the city. Newmarket's housing will not be affordable because we don't have any economic growth here. Our residents must drive to Toronto for work. Bike lanes and bus rapid way systems that travel East-West across Davis Drive don't connect residents to local jobs.
And somehow the bike lane and Viva Davis Drive bus seem like the perfect illustrations of what's wrong with the flawed planning behind Taylor/ Van Bynen's unbridled growth strategy
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