For Immediate Release
January 13, 2005

Hudak and Scott Meet with Mayor Shier to Discuss Brock’s Problems with Greenbelt

BEAVERTON – Haliburton-Victoria-Brock MPP Laurie Scott and PC Municipal Affairs Critic Tim Hudak were in Beaverton today to discuss the concerns that Mayor Shier and Beaverton residents have with the Liberal’s flawed Greenbelt plan. Following the meeting, Hudak and Scott toured the site where a proposed Tim Horton’s and Loblaws have been halted by the Liberals Greenbelt.

“I was happy today to meet with Ms. Scott and Mayor Shier to discuss the impact of the Greenbelt on their community,” said Hudak. “It’s almost unpatriotic to stand in the way of Tim Horton’s in Canada! When you look across the road and see a McDonalds, a Subway and a Gas Station it shows that there wasn’t a lot of natural science that went into the Liberal’s Greenbelt plan. This highlights the Liberals haphazard mapping strategy, which is why this has turned into a Greenbotch not a Greenbelt plan.”

Hudak is traveling across the Greenbelt to meet with Municipal leaders and other groups impacted by the Greenbelt in the lead up to all-party committee hearings that will take place between January 31 and February 4. Hudak and Scott plan to raise the concerns that theys heard today with fellow MPP’s at the committee hearings, with the hopes that the McGuinty-Liberals will finally start listening to the problems faced by municipalities like Brock.

“Brock has had problems with this plan since day one”, said Laurie Scott. “And now they are plowing ahead without any regard for the very valid concerns that Brock raised during the initial rounds of consultation. It seems to me that they decided what they wanted to do and that the consultations have simply been for show.”

“After breaking their promise and building almost 6,000 homes on the Oak Ridges Moraine, the Liberals rushed their Greenbelt plan out the door,” said Hudak. “Unfortunately, they did so at the expense of natural science when it comes to mapping and with no plan to deal with the impact it will have on farmers and municipalities.”

Hudak and Scott believe that the proposed Greenbelt can be improved in 4 key ways:

1 - To save the farm, you have to save the farmer. If Greenbelt farmers are unable to farm profitably, they will simply let the land go fallow. This will cause local councils and the Province to be under considerable pressure to develop that land for housing or industry. The Greenbelt must include a solid, thoughtful, provincially funded plan to support the economic viability of the farm.

2 - Support for Greenbelt municipalities. Municipalities in the Greenbelt area will have their future growth frozen, limiting the growth of their tax base. It may make future infrastructure investments like roads, sewers or recreation centres unaffordable without significant tax increases.

3- A transportation and infrastructure strategy must be in place to complement the Greenbelt municipalities and support communities outside the Greenbelt.

4- The Greenbelt should be based on natural science, not political science. Land to be included in the Greenbelt should be designated based on science, not by drawing arbitrary lines, or political considerations.

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For additional information contact:

Tim Hudak, MPP
416-325-8454

Laurie Scott, MPP
705-324-6654