Frequently Asked Questions

An Official Plan describes the Township’s policies on how land in the community should be used. It is prepared with input from your community and helps to ensure that future planning and development will meet the specific needs of your community. Usually, an Official Plan has a 25-year vision. The current Official Plan was adopted by Council in 2011 and approved by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs in 2013.

Section 5.5 of the current Official Plan contains policies for growth in Marysville. These policies will be replaced with the new policies coming from the Marysville Secondary Plan (if adopted by Council).

A Secondary Plan is part of an Official Plan, or becomes an amend to it. In the case of Marysville, Township Council has received the Secondary Plan document prepared by MHBC Consultants in May, 2020. Since then Township Plan staff have been working on a draft amendment to the Official Plan that will incorporate parts of the May, 2020 Secondary Plan. A Secondary Plan takes a closer look at land use activity within a specific part of a  municipality – in this case, the village of Marysville – and tries to create a more defined vision for future growth.

Township Council decided to take a proactive approach for future growth for Marysville in 2019. The main reason for this is because the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) made an announcement that year they were constructing a new ferry for Wolfe Island that would be larger than the current Wolfe Islander III. MTO also announced that they were going to build a new ferry dock in the village. The new ferry will arrive and begin operating by mid-2022. The ferry dock work is expected to be completed by December 2022, and once complete the ferry will be permanently docking in the village instead of using the ‘winter dock’ at Dawson’s Point for four or five months of the year. Increased ferry capacity and the permanent dock in the village will make Marysville a more attractive place to live and increase demand for new growth.

New Wolfe Islander IV electric ferry, expected arrival mid-2022 (Source: MTO)

 

New Marysville Ferry dock, expected completion December 2022 (Source: MTO) 

 

All local land use planning decisions need to conform to the Provincial Planning rules contained in the Provincial Policy Statement. Much of the land on Wolfe Island has been designated for Agricultural use due primarily to the high quality of soil for farming activities, and no new residential uses are permitted to protect the farmland and limit land use conflicts. Also, the PPS requires that most new development be directed to “settlement areas”, and Marysville is defined as a settlement area.

The village of Marysville has the potential to meet many of the Province’s wider policy objectives including: affordable housing, ageing in place, walkability, active transportation, social inclusion, accessibility, community hubs, transition to a low carbon society, and growth management objectives, including, infilling, intensification and brownfield redevelopment.

The Official Plan Amendment (OPA) takes priority. If Council adopts the amendment it will serve as the master plan for the future growth of Marysville. The amendment will replace the current wording in the Township Official Plan (see Section 5.5 – Village). The most recent Frontenac Islands Official Plan was approved by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs in July, 2013.

If Council adopts the Amendment, it will then be sent to the “approval authority” for final approval. The approval authority is Frontenac County Council – County Council is comprised of eight (8) members, including two members from Frontenac Islands Township. Usually, it takes two or three months to receive a decision from County Council.

Yes. Once the Marysville plan is in place the Township will also have to update the zoning by-law, particularly for the new vacant lands that will be included within the new and larger village boundary. Later, subdivision planning will be required for new housing to be constructed.