22 Weber St W Case Adjourned Indefinitely

Happy New Year, neighbours.

On January 4, 2023, the owner of 22 Weber St W requested an adjournment sine die (of no defined duration), citing an interest in having time to consider “the recent, significant changes to governing legislation, and the significant policy changes that are anticipated”.  To limit our exposure to an open-ended and less predictable process that has already spanned two years, Friends of Olde Berlin Town (FOBT) responded that it would prefer a more time-limited adjournment, preferably of known duration.  On January 6, 2023, the Ontario Land Tribunal ordered an adjournment sine die and cancelled the March 13, 2023 hearing date.  The Tribunal also ordered the developer to submit a progress report by July 6, 2023.

Case Recap
The community first heard of the owner’s Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw Amendment (OPA/ZBA) applications in August 2020.  The Neighbourhood Information Meeting (NM) that was anticipated for that Fall did not materialize.  Instead, in February 2021, we learned that the applications were appealed to the Tribunal on the basis that the City did not render a decision on the applications within the provincially-mandated time limit of 120 days.

Over the course of the process, which has spanned two years and included five Case Management Conferences, the Tribunal

  • Accepted the owner’s appeal of the OPA/ZBA applications,
  • Scheduled a 20-day hearing for August 2022,
  • Denied the owner’s request to modify their application via the appeal,
  • Set a deadline by which the owner could submit a revised application to the City,
  • Consented to the owner’s request for a second adjournment to file a Heritage Permit Application,
  • Rescheduled the hearing to March 2023,
  • Accepted the owner’s appeal of Kitchener Council’s refusal of the Heritage Permit Application,
  • Consolidated the appeals into a single hearing comprised of two phases, and, most recently,
  • Adjourned the process indefinitely, as described above. 

Many questions remain.  Will the owner seek to resume the case?  If so, when?  What might the Tribunal decide after the update due by July 6, 2023?  Why has the owner pushed the case so far along only to adjourn it now?  

In the meantime, the community can still help shape the outcome by urging the City to complete the Secondary Plan update and by participating actively in the Secondary Plan review process.

The process at the Tribunal has been long, complicated and expensive – and, to the minds of many, unfair.  But Friends of Olde Berlin Town has not been defeated.  We remain committed to the pursuit of an inclusive community that permits existing neighbours to thrive and the Heritage District to endure.  Thank you, supporters, advisors and volunteers; we could never have succeeded without your partnership.

(Participants: we do not see value in submitting participant statements at this time.  If and when the case resumes, we will endeavour to advise you of the new deadline for your statements.)

Further information is available at our campaign website,  www.obtfriends.ca.  We welcome your questions and comments at obtfriends@gmail.com.

Friends of Olde Berlin Town supports compatible, inclusive development that permits existing neighbours to thrive and the heritage district to endure.