How much will developers profit from their lands being removed from Ontario’s Greenbelt? The NDP says the auditor general should find out

The provincial opposition is calling for an investigation into how much property owners stand to benefit from the Ontario government’s proposal to open up thousands of acres of environmentally sensitive Greenbelt lands for development.In a release Friday, NDP MPP Marit Stiles said she wants Ontario’s auditor general to conduct a “value-for-money audit investigating how much wealth would be increased for property owners when their lands are removed from the Greenbelt,” and if “this wealth transfer is in the public interest.”Stiles also asked the AG to consider “conflicts of interest and sharing of insider information” and “refer any evidence of misconduct to the appropriate authorities.”In an email, a spokesperson for Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark said the NDP was “opposing homes getting built.”“We will continue to explore every possible option to get more homes built faster so more Ontarians can find a home that meets their needs and budget,” said Chris Poulos.The AG’s office confirmed it received the letter but “a decision has not yet been made” on whether it would investigate. The request comes after a Toronto Star/Narwhal investigation into the Greenbelt lands Premier Doug Ford’s government is proposing to open up for development. Last month, the province announced it would remove a total of 7,400 acres from 15 areas of the Greenbelt, expediting development on those lands to help address the housing shortage. The Star/Narwhal investigation found that of the 15 areas to be opened for development, eight included properties purchased in the four years since Ford was elected.The Star/Narwhal investigation also found that nine of the developers who stand to benefit most from Ford’s Greenbelt land swap have donated significant sums to the Ontario Progressive Conservative party, totalling $572,000 since 2014.In one case, a company associated with developer Michael Rice purchased nearly 700 acres in the Greenbelt in the Township of King for $80 million, just two months before the government announcement.In her letter, Stiles questions the “suspicious timing of recent purchases of Greenbelt land” by landowners with donor and political ties to the PC Party, and references “powerful” developers Rice and Silvio De Gasperis by name.Beginning in 2003, companies run by De Gasperis have bought at least 1,300 acres of land in the Duffins Rouge Agricultural Preserve.De Gasperis — either through his own development company TACC or a consortium — owns land in four of the 15 areas of the Greenbelt slated to be opened for development.Neither Rice nor De Gasperis responded to questions from the Star about Stiles’ letter by deadline. Stiles is also asking the auditor general to “investigate the economic and environmental impacts on agricultural and natural systems.”“The removal of Greenbelt lands also has several significant long-term environmental consequences, including threatening the integrity of interconnected natural and agricultural systems,” said Stiles. “Environmental experts warn that removing pieces of the Greenbelt threatens all of it.”With files from The Narwhal’s Emma McIntoshNoor Javed is a Toronto-based reporter for the Star covering city news with interest in 905 municipal politics. Follow her on Twitter: @njavedBrendan Kennedy is a Toronto-based social justice reporter on the Star's investigations team. Follow him on Twitter: @BKennedyStar