Whereas the Province of Ontario designated Langstaff / Richmond Hill Centre as an urban growth centre in 2006; and
Whereas the City of Richmond Hill supports the Province of Ontario’s decision to upload the responsibility for subway construction and urges the Province to proceed as expeditiously as possible to construct the Yonge Street Subway extension; and
Whereas the Provincial Government will be responsible for the planning, design and building for all new subway construction projects; and
Whereas on April 10, 2019, the Provincial Government announced that the Yonge Subway extension will be 1 of the 4 projects benefitting from Provincial investment in higher order transit; and
Whereas the Provincial Government has accelerated the target completion date for the Yonge Subway to be shortly after 2027; and
Whereas geotechnical and design work for the Yonge Subway extension has already commenced;
Now Therefore Be It Resolved:
That the Province of Ontario be requested to work in conjunction with the local municipalities and transit authorities to review and assess the following:
- Existing and proposed infrastructure, including the feasibility of relocating storm water ponds, reconfiguring the Highway 407 interchange ramps for an urban and pedestrian friendly environment;
- The land value uplift arising from greater intensification and to maximize the return on investment for public lands and infrastructure;
- Opportunities for a public-private partnership including an unsolicited bid for the integrated transit destination hub and other government lands;
- The potential re-designation of the lands west of Yonge Street, south of 407, for Transit Oriented Development (TOD) versus the proposed 2,000-car parking lot;
- The benefits of a world class integrated development engaging a “best-in-class” architectural, engineering, planning and urban design firms;
- Participating in a steering committee to coordinate development and infrastructure;
And further that the City of Richmond Hill requests the Provincial Government, as part of the environmental assessment updates for both the 407 Transitway (go to rail) and the Yonge Subway Extension, including the design and construction, consider the following:
An environmental assessment to bury the high-voltage hydro transmission lines from east of Bayview Avenue to west of Yonge Street to south of Highway 407 to create greater flexibility in urban planning and release additional development opportunity to the benefit of the province of Ontario;
That the Province of Ontario be requested to study the feasibility of a revised Yonge Subway Extension and take appropriate action, including revisions to the environmental assessment process, to maximize the return on investment of public-sector infrastructure and land in the Langstaff/Richmond Hill area; and further,
That the Province of Ontario undertake these considerations without any delay to the planning, construction and delivery of the Yonge Subway Extension;
And forward this motion to the City of Markham and City of Vaughan Councils for their endorsement;
And further that a copy of this resolution be circulated to:
The Hon Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario,
The Hon Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier,
The Hon Victor Fedeli, Minister of Finance,
The Hon Jeff Yurek, Minister of Transportation,
The Hon Greg Rickford, Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines,
The Hon Todd Smith, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade,
The Hon Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing,
The Hon Monte McNaughton, Minister of Infrastructure Ontario,
The Hon Rod Phillips, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks,
All York Region MPPs, and
The Regional Municipality of York Council.