COVID-19
The Town of Newmarket Planning & Building Services has adapted its processes to be able to continue to provide services during the COVID-19 pandemic while respecting the health and safety of customers and staff. Please see details here.
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February 24, 2021 - Committee of Adjustment Hearing
At this time, the Municipal Offices remain closed to the public. The public can join this meeting by following the steps in the How to Login for Attendees and available under newmarket.ca/meetings.
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If you are planning a change to your property that is not in conformity with the zoning by-law, but follows its general intent, you can apply for a minor variance. A minor variance occurs through the Committee of Adjustment. The Committee of Adjustment is a committee regulated by Section 45 of the
Planning Act. The Committee of Adjustment also makes decisions on Land Severances.
It can take approximately 2 to 3 months to go through the Committee of Adjustment process. The application fee is found on the application form. The decision of the Committee is given at the hearing, after which there is a 20-day appeal period before the decision is final. Persons in attendance at the hearing, or who provided written submissions prior to the hearing, may appeal the decision to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal.
An arborist report may be required for a Minor Variance or a Land Severance application. Please read the Town's Tree Policy for additional information.
Minor Variances
The Town of Newmarket Zoning By-law provides regulations for the use of land and construction of buildings. Zoning by-law provisions are standardized across large areas of Town; they cannot take into account all circumstances such as lot size, lot shapes or yard setbacks, which may affect the development of a particular property. In such cases, the property owner may apply to the Committee of Adjustment for a minor variance to the Zoning By-law. The Committee of Adjustment will review the site-specific circumstances regarding each application, hear from the public and hear from the applicant. The Committee then considers the following questions concerning an application before reaching a decision:
- Is the variance minor in nature?
- Does the variance conform to the Official Plan?
- Is the general intent and purposes of the Zoning By-law maintained?
- Is it desirable for the appropriate development or use of the land, building or structure?
Land Severances
A land severance, also referred to as consent to sever, is the authorized separation of a piece of land to form two new properties. Consent to sever is required if a portion of land is to be sold or is to form part of an agreement lasting more than 21 years. In addition to the division of land, the registration of rights-of-way, easements and any changes to existing property boundaries requires consent approval. Legislative provisions for consent applications are outlined in Section 53 of the Ontario Planning Act.
Land severance approval is required to ensure that:
- consents are considered within an established community planning framework,
- new lots and new land uses do not conflict with the overall planning goals and policies of existing communities, and
- consideration is given to the effect of the division of land on the site, on the neighbouring lands, and on the community as a whole.
Members
- Gino Vescio (Chair)
- Elizabeth Lew
- Ken Smith
- Peter Mertens
- Mohsen Alavi
- Michelle Starnes (Alternate)
Committee of Adjustment Hearing Schedule for 2020-2021
Thursday, December 24, 2020
| Wednesday, January 20, 2021 (via ZOOM)
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Friday, January 29, 2021
| Wednesday, February 24, 2021
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Friday, February 26, 2021
| Wednesday, March 24, 2021
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Friday, March 26, 2021
| Wednesday, April 21, 2021
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Friday, April 23, 2021
| Wednesday, May 19, 2021
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Friday, May 28, 2021
| Wednesday, June 23, 2021
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Friday, June 25, 2021
| Wednesday, July 21, 2021
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Friday, July 30, 2021
| Wednesday, August 25, 2021
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Friday, August 27, 2021
| Wednesday, September 22, 2021
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Friday, September 24, 2021
| Wednesday, October 20, 2021
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Friday, October 22, 2021
| Wednesday, November 17, 2021 |
*All applications must be completed and received no later than 12:00 p.m. on the deadline date. Applications not meeting the requirements may be placed on the agenda of the next scheduled hearing.
**Please note: Although the application may be received prior to the deadline, this does not automatically guarantee that the application will be placed on the corresponding hearing agenda. Depending on the volume of applications received, the application may have to be moved to the next available hearing date.