By the time you are reading this article, Doug Ford’s Conservatives will have passed yet another bill that will inflict long-term damage on the City of Toronto.

Bill 108 will bring back the planning powers of the OMB over local development, allow developers to threaten endangered species just by paying an extra fee, dramatically weaken heritage protection, and prevent municipalities from using inclusionary zoning bylaws to make sure new developments include affordable homes.

This bill will effectively reduce — and in some cases fully eliminate — community input into local planning decisions. At the same time, it will shortchange new residents, by choking off funding for parks, libraries, community centres, day-care spaces and other services that new neighbourhoods depend on.

The Ford government is giving his developer friends a huge gift, and making everyone else pay for it.

The developer-friendly bill is being rammed through Queen’s Park in less than a month, with only a single day of consultation at committee, giving residents of Ontario little time to respond or fully understand what it will mean.

On May 28, I presented the details of this bill to a packed crowd at St. Roch’s parish, where I was joined by panelists City Councillor Anthony Perruzza, former city councillor and current TRCA Board Member Maria Augimeri and Humber Summit Homeowner Association President Grant Evers. Residents were shocked to hear that the premier would prioritize developer profits over the rights of communities.

The topic on whether a community has say on what is built in their neighbourhood should not be a political one. It is not about right and left; it is about right and wrong.

If you want to help me pressure the conservative government to scrap Bill 108, email me at TRakocevic-CO @ndp.on.ca or call me at 416-743-7272.