General News

Strong Mayor powers rescinded prior to town council meeting

June 24, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

A planned discussion at the June 15 Town of New Tecumseth Council meeting did not take place, as Mayor Richard Norcross rescinded his motion before the meeting.

Under powers prescribed in Section 284.11.1 of the Municipal Act and through Mayoral Decision #MDE-2026-09, council was going to consider a by-law to adopt a revised version of Official Plan Amendment (OPA) No. 5 at the June 15 Council.

The key update to OPA No. 5, as compared to the version presented at the Special Council Meeting on April 29, 2026, is the introduction of Deferral No. 1.

Deferral No. 1 proposes to defer the adoption of “Land Use Designation: Beeton Official Plan Schedule B2,” including any related implementing policies or overlays. This deferral also applies to any proposed expansion of the Settlement Area Boundary for Beeton represented on Schedule B2 or related schedules.

As a result of this deferral, the existing land use designations identified in Schedule B2 of the Town’s approved 2019 Official Plan will remain in effect and continue to prevail until council formally considers the deferred matters.

The deferral means that consideration of the proposed Settlement Area Boundary Expansion for Beeton will be postponed until at least January 2027.

On June 12, Mayor Norcross issued a statement saying he was rescinding the motion before the start of the June 15 Council meeting.

“The by-law to adopt OPA 5 (in part), was an attempt to bring two sides together. However, no common ground has emerged. The reality is that growth is expected and mandated by the province, and we need to be in control of the local planning decisions. Growth is needed to fund the facilities – including recreation spaces – and programs that our residents are demanding. Staff presented a reasonable plan that balances growth across the entire municipality. I am rescinding the use of Strong Mayor Powers in this matter at this time, and it is my intention to bring OPA 5 forward for approval within the next 60 days.”

Readers Comments (0)