Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday March 9, 2005
McGuinty Brushes off Developer’s Accusation
A developer who says he got favourable treatment when Ontario was drawing up conservation boundaries is provoking trouble because so much of his land was placed inside the so-called greenbelt, Premier Dalton McGuinty suggested Tuesday.
The allegation by developer Silvio De Gasperis that he had land excluded from the conservation plan after pleading his case with Municipal Affairs Minister John Gerretsen threw the province’s Opposition into a ferment Monday.
Their attacks forced Mr. Gerretsen to backpedal on earlier statements that he had avoided any talks with landowners about the proposed boundaries.
But Mr. McGuinty sought Tuesday to deflect attention by noting that lots of other land owned by Mr. De Gasperis does fall inside the greenbelt boundaries, putting it at the mercy of strict development rules and reducing its value. (Globe & Mail)