PEMBROKE — Renfrew County council is taking a stand with the bureaucrats in regards to its official plan.
The Renfrew County Private Landowners Association (RCPLA) supports and applauds the Council for its position.
Council seems to be voicing opinions similar to the concerns of the local landowner groups, said association secretary Dan Mazur. Similar, but not necessarily the same, he added.
There are items bureaucrats are pushing to be included in the official plan that will be detrimental to the development and growth of Renfrew County and will curtail the freedom of private property owners to use their own properties, he said. Items such as deer yards, fire burn areas, mineral aggregate, wet lands, land use, land severances, studies to be paid for by the land owner; seeking severances, septic, building, etc., he said.
“We just hope they realize the rural areas of the county do not necessarily have the same requirements and need for regulation as the urban areas,” Mr. Mazur said, adding, “just as Renfrew County does not necessarily have the same requirements and need for regulation as the GTA (Greater Toronto Area).”
The RCPLA is appreciative the County taking a serious look and responding to requests provincial bureaucrats are making.
Property owners should not just assume that County council will make everything okay, he said. They have a never ending battle ahead and will need support. It is safe to say, not everything they put forward will be what the general population may want.
“Citizens of Renfrew County, it is your choice to pay attention to what is going on, go with the flow, or just allow bureaucrats to rule our lives,” Mr. Mazur said. “Bureaucrats who are not elected but appointed.”
The RCPLA is hosting a meeting addressing the issue of the Renfrew County Official Plan and the Ottawa River watershed on Thursday, January 17 at 7 p.m. at the Killaloe Lions Hall in Killaloe. Admission is free and is open to the general public.
The RCPLA is a not-for-profit incorporated group of property owners, farmers, forest workers, small business owners and others. Its purpose is to act as a voice and information source for its members in regards to property rights and related issues.
