Council Endorses the Recommended Settlement Area Boundary Expansions

CENTRE WELLINGTON – Township Council endorsed the recommended Settlement Area Boundary Report, allowing the County of Wellington to move forward with developing an amendment to the County of Wellington Official Plan needed to carry out the recommended expansion.

The Provincial Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has approved population and employment forecasts for the County of Wellington and its member municipalities, including the Township of Centre Wellington. Centre Wellington is expected to grow to a population of 58,200 by 2051 with total employment of 25,100 by 2051. The majority of this growth will take place in the Fergus and Elora-Salem Urban Centres (settlement areas).  By Provincial policy, Centre Wellington is required to use growth forecasts for long-term planning to ensure the provision of a diverse mix of housing, jobs, and services.  A Land Needs Assessment completed by the County of Wellington determined that the available land within the Fergus and Elora-Salem Urban Centres could not accommodate all future land uses, and therefore a Settlement Area Boundary Expansion of approximately 398 hectares was warranted.

On September 30^th, Council adopted a staff recommendation to endorse a land need requirement based on a minimum intensification target of 20% and a minimum greenfield density target of 52 people and jobs per hectare. Based on these targets, the Fergus and Elora-Salem Urban Centres would need to be expanded by 132 hectares to meet community land use needs such as housing, commercial, office and institutional uses and a further 194 hectares to support industrial employment. Based on Council’s desire to limit the expansion of the settlement area boundaries into prime agricultural areas, these targets reduced the community land need from 204 hectares. 

In February 2024, the County of Wellington launched an Urban Boundary Expansion review and received settlement area boundary expansion requests totalling more than 973 hectares. The Township was requested to recommend settlement area boundary expansions to the County, based on a detailed evaluation framework. On October 15^th, Township staff presented the recommended settlement area boundary expansions to Council, and last night, Council adopted the Recommended Settlement Area Boundary Expansions proposed by Township staff.  The Recommended Settlement Area Boundary Expansions would satisfy the need for an additional 326 hectares of land to meet future community and employment needs.

"We must acknowledge the growth and appeal of our community”. Said Mayor Watters.  “Developers are eager to invest here, and we value that interest. However, we are also focused on understanding the population dynamics, preservation of prime agriculture, and the growth of our community while adhering to the targets set by the county and province. It’s essential that we respect our residents and consider how we can grow responsibly through adequate services and planning."

All areas for the recommended settlement area boundary expansion are adjacent to the existing urban centre. In many instances, municipal sewer and/or water services are already available in the road allowances next to these expansion areas, or they will be accessible once other land within the urban boundary is developed.

To view the Settlement Area Boundary Expansion map and Reports to Council, please visit www.connectcw.ca