The Town of The Blue Mountains has settled an appeal of its new development charges bylaw and the end result will be a 40 per cent reduction in fees levied on new construction across the community.
On March 25, the Ontario Land Tribunal issued a decision on an appeal of the town’s development charges bylaw, which was passed by council in April 2025. The decision ratifies a settlement the town reached with the four parties that had launched the appeal of the bylaw after it was adopted.
In a statement released on April 8, the town said the settlement includes a 40 per cent reduction in local development charges.
“Applicants who have already paid development charges at the increased rates will receive refunds for the difference between the new rates and the 2024 rates. Refunds will be issued automatically, and no additional application will be required,” the statement said.
The statement also included a comment from The Blue Mountains Mayor Andrea Matrosovs.
“Development Charges are an important tool to help municipalities manage growth responsibly, and this decision ensures that we are moving forward on a clear and consistent path,” said Matrosovs. “We are hopeful that this adjustment will help support development in our community and contribute to creating more homes for all ages and stages of life in The Blue Mountains.”
The appeal saga began on April 15, 2025 when The Blue Mountains council officially approved its new development charges bylaw. The bylaw included increases to the various development charges the town collects.
The town has 11 area-specific development charges – Craigleith, Castle Glen, Osler, Thornbury East, Thornbury West, Clarksburg, Lora Bay service area 1, Lora Bay service area 2, Lora Bay service area 3, Camperdown and Swiss Meadows – in its bylaw.
The charges in the new bylaw ranged from a low of $35,041 in Swiss Meadows to a high of $133,754 in Osler. The bylaw also increased the non-residential rates charged across the town with a low of $137.12 per square foot in Swiss Meadows and a high of $873.66 per square foot in Osler.
The bylaw was sharply criticized by several local developers at a public meeting in March 2024.
After the bylaw’s approval, four local developers appealed the bylaw to the Ontario Land Tribunal. Those that appealed the bylaw were: BMR GP Inc., the Georgian Triangle Development Institute, Great Dale Manor Ltd. and NG Lora Bay Ltd.
Key issues raised in the appeals included:
- The population growth forecasts used in the development charges background study
- The treatment of hotel and commercial resort units
- The charges being levied for library services, parks and recreation, roads and the water and wastewater systems.
Throughout the remainder of 2024 and 2025, the case worked its way through the appeal process.
“The resolution of the appeals involves numerous adjustments to the eligible DC projects, the ‘benefit to existing’ and ‘post-period benefit’ share of projects, the water and sewer infrastructure capacities, and the resulting DC calculations. These changes result in lower DC rates for the categories of parks/recreation, roads, water, and wastewater,” tribunal officer Scott Tousaw said in the decision.
The settlement includes changes to some definitions in the town’s bylaw and lowers all residential and non-residential development charges across the town. The new rate for a single residential unit at Swiss Meadows is $22,639 and at Osler is $101,183. The new non-residential rate is $89.06 per square foot at Swiss Meadows and $706.30 at Osler.
By Chris Fell, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Original Published on Apr 08, 2026 at 11:00
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