Nanticoke Development Proposal
In February 2022, Haldimand County Council received a presentation from Empire Communities Inc. about developing a new, complete community on 4,200 acres of land in the Nanticoke area.
On this page
Overview
The key details of Empire's proposal for Nanticoke include:
- 1,700 hectares (4,200 acres) of total land area
- 1,010 hectares (2,500 acres) or 60% of the total land area used for residential development with the potential for 15,000 residential units and 40,000 new residents. A total of 2,000 (15%) of the new residential units would be dedicated to affordable housing
- 690 hectares (1,700 acres) or 40% of the total land area used for employment development with the potential to bring 7,500 to 11,000 jobs
- The potential for an additional 7,000 to 8,000 commercial retail and service jobs to support the new community, intermixed within the residential and employment areas
- 40 hectares (100 acres) of waterfront lands to be dedicated to Haldimand County for recreational development (such as parks, trails, etc.)
- The development of a new wastewater treatment plant which could also accommodate/service the communities of Hagersville, Jarvis and Townsend in the long term
- The extension of natural gas infrastructure and capacity to the area
For Haldimand to consider this proposal, a Minister's Zoning Order (MZO) is required to override existing land use and zoning regulations. MZO approval would allow for the start of a comprehensive local planning review to ultimately decide if the proposal should move forward.
What is an MZO?
An MZO allows the Minister to directly zone lands for a specific purpose, without the usual public planning application process or appeal period, even if it conflicts with a municipality's official plan or zoning by-law.
Additional municipal review
If the MZO is approved, the County requires that the proposal still be subject to several local approvals and conditions before moving forward. Items for approval include:
- A master plan informed by public consultation
- Detailed technical studies, including land use compatibility, archaeology, environmental impact, hydrogeological, stormwater management, servicing, traffic impact and geotechnical
- Plan(s) of subdivision
- Refined site-specific zoning informed by the master plan details
Timeline
Find past reports and videos of Council discussions at the links noted in the timeline.
February 2022
- Empire Communities Inc. makes a presentation to Council proposing the development of a new, complete community in the Nanticoke area on 4,200 acres of land. To achieve this new development, Empire requests going forward with a Minister's Zoning Order.
- Staff are directed to review Empire's request and bring comments back to Council.
March 2022
- Staff bring a report to Council responding to Empire's presentation and recommend proceeding with the Minster's Zoning Order.
- Council unanimously supports the report and a Zoning Order is submitted to the Province.
February 2023
- Mayor Bentley brings forward a motion directing staff to organize public consultation to gather input for Council's consideration to withdraw the MZO request.
- The motion is carried with an amendment that staff gather feedback on the current MZO for general Council consideration and not solely on input to withdraw.
April 2023
- Council receives public input on the current request for the MZO at a special virtual meeting on April 19, 2023, and a special in-person meeting on April 27, 2023.
May 2023
- Staff provides a summary of public comments to Council.
- Council passes a motion to re-confirm the MZO request to the Province that was originally submitted in March 2022.
Contact Us
Haldimand County
53 Thorburn Street South
Cayuga, Ontario
Canada, N0A 1E0
Phone: 905-318-5932
After hours (Road, Sewer, Water or Park & Public Facilities Emergencies): 1-888-849-7345