King Township Council Meeting - March 17, 2025
- JA
- Mar 19
- 7 min read
Updated: Apr 18
Monday night had great news for Ward 3 with the announcement that All Way stop signs will soon bee installed at the 17th Sideroad and 11th concession. Council also approved the new Highway 11 Official Plan Amendments, the concept of internet voting, and the demolition of 12958 Highway 27. Condo status for 66 Main St was deferred pending a meeting to discuss the timeline for renovations of the Historically Designated Hollingshead/Coburn house.
Quick Links
Mayor’s Comments
Mayor attending Federation of Canadian Municipalities to align all the municipalities in Canada on dealing with Tariffs and Economic Development. The US decision to impose t25% tariffs on Canadian goods entering the US and Canada’s proposed counter-tariffs is concerning to residents and businesses across the country. As a small and tight knit community, King encourages everyone to buy Canadian and shop local whenever possible. These tariffs threaten over 1400 entrepreneurs in King and sectors such as manufacturing, automotive and agriculture. King’s Economic Development team continues to collaborate with the King Chamber of Commerce who do great work in supporting local businesses navigate these challenges. King has introduced a new Economic Development Consultation service to help businesses get some advice on the proposed tariffs as well as general business assistance, support, opening a new business, etc.
King is exploring a Commercial Licensing system to support local businesses, ensure regulatory compliance and help future planning. King could choose to license sectors it what it sees as the best fit such as Air BNBs or tow trucks or taxis. King would like to hear your feedback and invites you to a Public Open House on Thursday, Mar. 27 from 5–7 p.m. at the King Township Municipal Centre to discuss business licensing options and share their feedback with the Township’s project team. An online survey will also open on March 28 and run until April 11.
Thursday is the first day of Spring and the warmer weather has seen an increased of dead animals on rural roads. Please watch for wildlife and if you see a dead animal please call Service King 905-833-5321 or email serviceking@king.ca
With the thawing of snowbanks, the township has received many phone calls about potholes on the road. The Transportation team uses AI technology to efficiently identify and prioritize and repair potholes aligning with provincial standards. To submit a pothole repair request click here.
Registration opens for King’s Spring Recreation Program starting April 1st. The full list can be viewed in the Spring/Summer Recreation Guide at king.ca/recreation.
The second King Climate Resilient Agriculture Workshop will be held March 27th from 10:30-1pm at the Schomberg Community Hall. The theme is Business and Innovation of Resilient Agriculture. The event is free but space is limited to please click here to register.
York Region is reviewing its Signs on Regional Roads Bylaw and is inviting residents to a Virtual Public Information Meeting on Thursday, March 27, 2025, at 7:30-8:30pm to provide their input through an interactive online tool. This feedback will help shape amendments to the current bylaw. Click here for more.
King is updating its Parks and Trail Masterplan to enhance recreation and overall wellbeing for residents and the Transportation Masterplan to guide roads, transit, cycling and sidewalks to 2015. A Public Open House will be held on Tuesday, Apr. 15 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Zancor Centre, located at 1600 15th Sideroad in King City, on both plans. The community is invited to review the key directions and options for recommendations developed to date, provide feedback and ask questions to Township staff and members of the consulting teams on these projects.
Annual Community Clean-Up is Saturday April 19th (or any date!). Residents are encouraged to spend 10 minutes to pick up litter to help celebrate Earth Week and make sure King’s parks and ditches and public spaces. Click here to register your clean-up location and receive cleaning supplies from King.
Highlights
Highway 11 Corridor Study
Council approved an Official Plan Amendment to amend the Countryside Site-Specific Policy Area 1 to provide policies to facilitate the planned and orderly regeneration of the Highway 11 corridor.
The Corridor is a 2km stretch of road between the abutting municipalities of Bradford West Gwillimbury and East Gwillimbury. The Corridor functions as a highway commercial strip, with uses to serve the travelling public, such as service stations, motels, and restaurants. In addition, the Corridor also contributes to King’s vibrant countryside with farmland, forests, and wetlands, and is in close proximity to agricultural lands, including the provincially recognized Holland Marsh Specialty Crop Area.
The Amendment applies a “Corridor-wide” approach to existing uses that supports consistency, clarity, and equity, by applying permissions broadly across the entire Corridor while still conforming to all the various applicable Provincial legislation and policies.
Some may have wanted King to go even further by pursing an MZO, but this was not recommended for several reasons. An MZO is still required to conform to the Greenbelt Plan, which means that it cannot introduce new provisions that would be in contravention to the Greenbelt Plan. For example, this means that the MZO would not be able to designate the lands as a settlement area, or to recognize the Corridor as an Employment Area. Further, an MZO would likely not offer any addition permissions given the policy context and policies of the Greenbelt Plan.
The Amendments were developed in a process similar to a Block Plan, with considerable engagement from business owners and landowners within the Study Area. As detailed environmental and archaeological assessments will need to be undertaken as part of any development applications, it would not be feasible for the Township to go to the same level of detail in block planning as is being undertaken as part of the Doctors Lane and Old King Road Neighbourhood Plans. Overall, this approach will provide more flexibility for land owners, within the provincial policy framework.
Demolition of 12958 Highway 27
Council approved the request to demolish this listed property which had originally been added to the municipal register in 2012 as a representative example of a Regency Cottage house constructed in 1867 with classical and regency details.
The applicant hired an architectural firm to prepare a Heritage Impact Assessment. They found the property to only meet 1 of the 9 criteria applicable for heritage designation purposes. With only 1 criterion met, the structure does not merit a designation under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act.
However, a replacement structure of similar style, aesthetic, form, and massing will be incorporated as an element of a Site Plan Control Application with respect to the proposed development of the subject lands, including the re-use of salvaged material from the original structure, where appropriate, to the extent that is reasonably possible, and that such replacement structure shall be incorporated into the proposed development of the lands.
66 Main Street Developments Inc.
The Mayor opted to defer this item until the next council meeting as the applicant has not fulfilled his obligations to restore the designated Hollingshead/Coburn house on the property as originally agreed.
The house has built in 1903 and features Italianate architectural features, not otherwise commonly seen in King Township. The Mayor called for a meeting with himself, local councillor Mary Asselstine, and the applicant to discuss when the renovation of the house will be completed.
Four Way Stop Signs at 17th Sideroad and 11th Concession
A detailed traffic safety review was conducted along the corridor of 17th Sideroad from Highway 27 to 12th Concession and determined that the intersection at 17 & 11 warranted an “all way stop control”. In addition, complete vegetation trimming in the southeast and northwest corners of the 12th Concession intersection as well as at #6595 17th Sideroad will be done.
Additionally, to encourage drivers to slow down, the following traffic calming measures are recommended:
Flashing beacons at stop signs
Sightline Improvements (vegetation trimming)
Full lane transverse bars
On road message and pavement markings
Speed feedback signs
Dragon’s teeth pavement markings
Implement advisory speed warning signs or regulatory posted speed signs at the horizontal curves
A roundabout was considered but as a rural road a significant amount of land would be needed to accommodate larger farm vehicles. Town policies surrounding roundabouts will be considered in the new Transportation Master Plan.
Selection of Voting Method for the 2026 Municipal and School Board Elections
Council approved the use of the use of both traditional paper ballots with tabulators and internet voting for municipal and school board elections in the Township of King. King is the only municipality in York Region that does not offer this service which was first used in Canadian municipal elections in 2003 and has accelerated through each election cycle.
Staff have recommended a hybrid voting model to give voters the choice to vote in-person or via the internet. This model will provide both paper ballot and internet voting during the advance vote period, with only paper ballots on voting day.
King will engage in a joint procurement process that was spearheaded by the City of Vaughan and includes seven other municipalities in York and Durham Regions. Acting as a significantly larger customer, the joint procurement group will have enhanced negotiating power compared to each municipality conducting its own separate procurement, which is especially beneficial for King. The larger potential customer base for prospective bidders may attract interest from a broader range of vendors and result in more competitive pricing. Furthermore, as King has not previously conducted internet voting, the joint procurement gives the Township the opportunity to leverage the combined experience and expertise of election, IT, and procurement professionals across the participating municipalities. Selecting a single vendor for multiple municipalities will promote greater consistency and standardization in the use of online voting across the Region.
Staff will report back to Council in Q2 of 2025 with an approximate cost for internet voting in the 2026 Municipal and School Board Election.
New Business
• The Give Back Awards are an annual $1,000 cash prize awarded to 20 graduating students from high schools in Aurora, Georgina, King Township, Newmarket, and Whitchurch-Stouffville. The Awards are presented to students who have demonstrated an outstanding dedication to community involvement.
Applications are open until 4:00 PM on Friday, March 28th, 2025 and are available at www.nnetwork.org/GBA. Winners will be announced during National Volunteer Week.
• Earth Hour is on March 22nd and the Dufferin Marsh is doing a star gazing from 8:30 – 9:30. If it’s cloudy and there are now stars there will be bonfire with marshmallows.
• The Dufferin Marsh Nature Connection will be hosting a site for clean-up day on April 19th.
• Schomberg Horticultural Society is hosting 90th Anniversary on April 15th
• May 23-25 will be the 173rd running of The Schomberg Agricultural Fair.
• Join Team King for the Run for Southlake and the end of April. Click here to register.
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