Approximately 100 people gathered outside Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop’s constituency office on Monday night to protest "corruption in the Greenbelt."
The protest was in direct response to Ontario Premier Doug Ford announcing on Friday that he still plans to allow homes to be built on the protected greenbelt despite Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk releasing a scathing 95-page report last week that states Ontario housing targets can be met by building elsewhere.
The protest was organized by John Winchester, on behalf of Orillia for Democracy. While he says Dunlop was invited to the event, she declined to attend.
Among those in attendance was past Simcoe North Liberal Party candidate, Aaron Cayden Hiltz, who said he wasn’t there to speak as a politician but as a concerned citizen and proud uncle of two young children.
“Tearing apart of swath of the Greenbelt for the fewest bit of super-wealthy developers, who have millions of millions of dollars at their disposal, to make more money, billions of dollars, is abhorrent.”
Cayden Hiltz says he fears for the world that youth will soon live in because of the damage that has been done to the environment by politicians.
“If we keep going on these paths of destruction and resource exploitation for money, we are in serious trouble,” he said. “How are we letting development companies sit in the driver’s seat of public policy? It’s terrible.”
Cayden Hiltz — and other speakers throughout the evening — stressed the importance of demonstrations, protests, and building resistance against the Ford government.
“Hold their feet to the fire consistently,” he urged. “Put on the boxing gloves and fight these folks on this because they will not stop unless we stop them.”
Elizabeth Van Houtte, a past Simcoe North NDP candidate, told those in attendance on Monday night that she believes it is "completely unnecessary" to build on the Greenbelt.
“We can make those (housing) targets based on already existing land in Orillia, in Simcoe County, and all across this province," she said.
Last year while doing door-to-door canvasing during the provincial election campaign, Van Houtte says people of Simcoe North told her they wanted the Greenbelt protected.
Many also said they couldn’t afford housing, stressed food insecurity was an issue for them, and they believed the health-care and education systems were failing.
“People were angry. But now they are angrier because we have evidence," she said, referencing the auditor general's report.
Van Houtte says the only people who will benefit from building on the Greenbelt are developers. She also questions who will be able to afford such homes that will be built, and who will build them due to a shortage in the trades.
She also shared her belief that it will be municipalities who will pay for the homes, worrying that “our food source and wildlife" will be paved over.
“We as taxpayers, no matter where you live, wherever there are housing developments, it’s coming out of your pocket," she said.
Margaret Prophet, the executive director of the Simcoe County Greenbelt Coalition, says the Ford government is changing the conversation about what people value.
“If you can chop it up and sell it off, it doesn’t matter anymore,” she explained. “We are here tonight to say it does matter.”
Prophet says it’s important for people and communities to rally together to show the Ford government they have “gone way too far.” She also says it’s important to hold everybody who is responsible for abusing Bill-23 accountable.
“It was actually an active cabinet, which means there were 30 MPPs across Ontario who signed off on this deal,” she said. “One of them was Jill Dunlop ... We can’t let Ford take all of the blame; this was our representative who actually said she wanted to make sure the Greenbelt would be protected.”
Prophet says the result of homes being built on the Greenbelt would be more smog, less food, less affordable homes, and polluted water. She encourages those who are concerned to contact MPP Dunlop by mail, phone, or by dropping into her office to express their frustrations.
“We are going to say there is no more corruption allowed,” she said. “The blatant stealing, the lying, the buyer's process, and things that take away from your family and future has got to stop.”
