•   GR appreciates municipalities coming forward with suggestions for legislative changes that can improve community and land use planning.  GR will consider specific suggestions for changes during periodic reviews of The Planning and Development Act, 2007 (PDA).  Extensive consultation with municipalities and SARM will occur before any amendments to the PDA are made.

•   With respect to the requirement for municipalities to obtain input from adjacent or nearby municipalities, the PDA applies equally to rural and urban municipalities and establishes the same standards, expectations and opportunities for inter-municipal collaboration and cooperation for addressing planning and development activity.  The following provisions apply:

o    Subsection 32(2)(h) of the PDA requires official community plans for both rural and urban municipalities "to include policies for the coordination of land use, future growth patterns and public works with adjacent municipalities".

o    To assist in meeting the province's inter-municipal cooperation interests for planning growth, section 6.5 of The Statements of Provincial Interest Regulations (SPI) requires official community plans to include policies to:

•    "establish inter-municipal processes for managing land in areas of commoninterest;

•    recognize opportunities for strategic, flexible and innovative partnerships; and

•    consider inter-municipal and regional opportunities to develop or upgrade public works, public facilities, transportation infrastructure, service delivery and housing."

o    To address the review of subdivisions, subsection 12(1)(b) of The Subdivision Regulations provides the approving authority for subdivisions with discretion to refer a particular subdivision to a planning district commission in which the development is located, government ministry or agency and other persons, authority, agency, council or board that in the opinion of the approving authority may be affected by the subdivision.