Ontario reversing urban boundary expansions for several communities

TORONTO — Ontario’s new housing minister says the province is reversing its moves to expand some urban boundaries.

Paul Calandra says he is reversing course on changes to official boundaries for Ottawa, Hamilton and numerous other cities.

Calandra says the previous housing minister’s office was too involved in changes for those plans.

Among the city’s impacted include Barrie, Belleville, Guelph, Hamilton, Ottawa and Peterborough, along with the regional municipalities of Halton, Niagara, Peel, Waterloo and York and Wellington County.

Many municipalities, including Hamilton, have said the boundary expansions were not needed to build housing.

Calandra replaced Steve Clark as housing minister last month after the former minister resigned in the wake of two legislative watchdogs’ probes on the decision to remove land for development from the protected Greenbelt.

Calandra recently reversed course on that move and 15 parcels of land are being returned to the Greenbelt.