City enhances public engagement in development applications with early notice
The City of Burlington has taken another step forward in enhancing public involvement in planning and development matters, by creating webpages for proposed development applications.
In the past, a webpage would only be created after a complete application had been submitted, yet public input starts much sooner than that in Burlington.
In our city we require developers to host a public meeting before submitting an application to seek resident input and then demonstrate how that has been incorporated into the final application once submitted.
Under the new system, by creating a website as soon as there is a public meeting or other public documents to share, residents have a reliable way to see the facts about a proposal and stay connected throughout the process. The pages will include summary details of a pending or proposed application where those have been made public by the applicant, any upcoming public meetings, any staff reports, staff directions or background information. Residents can also subscribe to receive updates whenever new information is posted.
This will allow residents to stay involved in the application as it moves through the planning process which can take many months.
The first two applications to receive this enhanced early notice treatment are the proposed Nelson Quarry Extension, and the proposed Millcroft Greens development.
You can visit and subscribe to those pages here:
City Council has also recently approved a format for virtual public meetings for development applications, to ensure there are opportunities for public input through the COVID19 pandemic while in-person meetings are not possible due to provincial emergency orders. The Millcroft Greens proposal will be the first application to use this new approach.
The virtual public meeting will take place on Wednesday June 17 from 7-9pm. Details for how to participate can be found on the Pending Applications webpage for this proposal here: Millcroft Greens Virtual Public Meeting
My Take:
This is another great step forward to ensure public input and involvement in development applications early in the process, before applications are submitted. This is something I advocated for and practised in my eight years as the Ward 2 Councillor, hosting pre-application meetings and posting information on my webpage with the willing participation of developers (all but one who voluntarily agreed!). It’s great to see this process embraced and formalized by the city. The new webpages will give residents a reliable source of information, and a way to stay involved in proposed developments throughout the planning process.