Dear Fellow Concerned Citizens:
“Help one another; there’s no time like the present and no present like the time.”
– James Durst, songwriter
The Richmond Hill Naturalists need your help. We have been called to appear before the Ontario Municipal Board April 30, 2015 to face a potential decision to award costs to our opponent – the largest housing development corporation in Ontario – The DG Group – formerly Metrus Development.
These costs sought by The DG Group are in excess of $200,000. The Richmond Hill Naturalists have spent significant funds already to build a strong case using expert witnesses and lawyers as to why the rare dual-zoned Dunlap property – categorized as both institutional and greenbelt – shouldn’t be re-zoned to residential use. We lost this battle with a recent OMB decision in December 2014.
But the battle to preserve public participation in a democracy must be never-ending.
If the OMB awards costs in this case (No. PL101372/3), every non-government organization including yours, will be affected. All of us volunteering time, expertise, energy and personal funds to protect the cultural and natural heritage of Ontario can give up now. Who can afford hundreds of thousands of dollars to support the protection position and then face hundreds of thousands of more dollars to pay the developer’s bills when the OMB rules against us?
Let us be clear, there should be no preferred difference between the expert witnesses of a non-governmental organization and those of a development company.
“Silent gratitude isn’t much use to anyone”
– G. B. Stern, novelist, literary critic
Silence may kill your organization, and it may kill ours.
All non-profit organizations are linked together by service goals to their community. And if your organization’s voice isn’t somehow heard Thursday, April 30 – then your ability to speak out to protect your community and meet the goals of your members – may be significantly curtailed.
Imagine your organization being publicly punished on its’ 60th anniversary of active service in your community. Imagine a provincial tribunal decision that says “Richmond Hill Naturalists, your actions don’t represent the public interest”.
“Here’s to all volunteers, those dedicated people who believe in all work and no pay.”
– Robert Orben, presidential speech writer
We have given eight years of volunteerism to save the David Dunlap Memorial Observatory and Lands from urban sprawl. The 1955 Provincial Land Plan for Richmond Hill said this property is to stay open greenbelt. The Official Plan recognized its green space values. The matriarch of the Dunlap Family bequeathed these lands to the University of Toronto for educational and conservation purposes in perpetuity. A change in use for the Observatory could only occur after debate in the provincial parliament. The Conservation Review Board said keep the scientific, heritage and ecological values of this significant property together. Do not minimize the protections.
The Richmond Hill Naturalists were the only group to step up and speak on behalf of all these public processes and provincial recommendations at the OMB. Now we face a devastating penalty for working tirelessly and professionally to protect the greater public good – the developer’s OMB fees in excess of $200,000.
“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.”
– Marjorie Moore, writer
As a valued leader in the community, we are asking for your group’s support and assistance in letting our politicians know the Naturalist possible fate is outrageous and cannot be allowed to happen. We need to tell our Government that the OMB is about to take away our right to participate in how our communities are shaped. Facing a $200,000+ penalty for participating will put an end to public participation – fear has this affect.
We ask that you assign a staff member as an observer to attend the cost hearing against the Richmond Hill Naturalists on Thursday, April 30 at 10 a.m. at the OMB offices at 655 Bay Street, Suite 1500, 15th Floor, Toronto.
Please phone and write your provincial member of Parliament, the Minister of Municipal of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Ted McMeekin, Attorney General, Madeleine Meilleur and Premier Kathleen Wynne. Ask them why it has taken five years for the Liberal party to get their anti-SLAPP legislation to the order table and why the Richmond Hill Naturalists are being made to go through a process that is in direct contradiction with planned legislation (Bill 52, Protection of Public Participation Act, 2015, sponsored by Madeleine Meilleur).
You may also contact Mr. Jerry DeMarco and Mr. S. Wilson Lee, key decision-makers of the Ontario Municipal Board, to express your concern directly.
Contact information for all provincial government officials and their critics, can be downloaded here: Ontario Government Contacts
We appreciate any and all the time and effort you can volunteer to help to protect our public right to participate without fear of financial ruin.
Simply speaking –
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.
– Dr. Seuss, children’s author
Sincerely,
The Richmond Hill Naturalists