WHEREAS illegal land uses constitute a nuisance to the public; and
WHEREAS it is in the public interest that properties are used in the manner in which they are zoned; and
WHEREAS municipalities have limited recourse to curtail illegal land uses, short of court proceedings; and
WHEREAS court proceedings can be costly and time consuming, do not represent the best use of municipal resources, and illegal land uses may continue to occur during such proceedings; and
WHEREAS municipalities should be empowered to act quickly to preserve the public interest by ending illegal land uses;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Province of Ontario make amendments to the Municipal Act and/or Planning Act to allow municipalities to declare illegal land uses, and to issue penalty notices against such illegal land users under the Administrative Monetary Penalty System; and
THAT municipalities be granted additional enforcement powers as the Province may see fit to end illegal land uses; and
THAT this resolution be circulated to the Hon. Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, the Hon. Paul Calandra, Minister of Municipal Affairs & Housing and Member of Provincial Parliament for Markham-Stouffville, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
