Existing Provincial Policies Work Against Smart Growth

Many of the problems related to current urban development patterns in southern Ontario have been well understood for many years. Similarly, potential provincial and municipal policy responses to these problems have been widely articulated. But according to this new report, "there has been an ongoing failure to translate these well-understood and articulated directions into action at the provincial and municipal levels." This report analyses institutional, economic, social and political barriers to the implementation of sustainable urban land use policies. The underlying ideas and assumptions about growth and development that shape the behaviour of government agencies and other actors in the development process are also examined. [Editor's note: This page includes a link to the full report in PDF format (1.1 MB).]