Notice of Complete OPA Application and Public Meeting – OPA 28 – November 18, 2025

A public meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, at 6 p.m. to consider a proposed Official Plan Amendment under Section 22 of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, Chapter P.13.

The Municipality of Mississippi Mills has initiated the following Official Plan Amendment (details below).

File number: Official Plan Amendment 28 (OPA 28)

Owner: Municipality-initiated amendment

Affected lands: All lands within Municipality of Mississippi Mills (no map attached)

Purpose and intent of the Official Plan Amendment: The Municipality has initiated Official Plan Amendment 28, the Rural Villages and Rural Vitality project, to strengthen and update policies to reflect the current and future needs of the Municipality’s rural villages and rural areas.

The effective management of growth and change in the rural area and villages is important to ensure the long-term social, economic, and environmental viability of the rural villages and rural areas in the Municipality, while continuing to protect and preserve its distinct rural character. The amendment proposes to address the following topics:

Rural Villages:

• Introduce goals, objectives, permitted uses and general policies for the villages (Appleton, Blakeney, Clayton, and Pakenham)
• Introduce character statements and village-specific provisions for each individual village
• Add guiding provisions for development in the villages

Rural Vitality:

• Introduce/update rural and agricultural policies to align with the Provincial Planning Statement, 2024, including introducing policies for agricultural systems and agricultural impact assessments.
• Introduce and clarify supporting polices for on-farm diversified uses, and new policies for special rural uses
• Refine and clarify elements of the existing rural severance policies

For more information regarding Official Plan Amendment 28, please visit our website: www.mississippimills.ca/OPA28.

Note: The draft wording for the amendment will be available online prior to the public meeting. The public meeting agenda will be posted online on November 12, 2025. To view the agenda, please follow this link: https://calendar.mississippimills.ca/council

Public meeting details: Tuesday, November 18, 2025, at 6 p.m. Hybrid meeting – Please contact the planner noted below to participate.

IF YOU WISH TO SPEAK AT THE PUBLIC MEETING before Council, please send an email to the assigned planner noted below with the subject line “OPA 28 Registered Speaker Request.” The maximum allotted time per delegation will be 5 minutes.

IF YOU WISH TO VIEW THE PUBLIC HEARING ONLINE, please follow this link to the Municipality’s web page: https://calendar.mississippimills.ca/council. When the meeting is live, this link will give you viewing privileges only, there will be no opportunity to speak via this link.

IF YOU WISH TO VIEW THE MEETING IN-PERSON, you may attend the hybrid Council Meeting during the above noted time held in the Municipality of Mississippi Mills Municipal Office, 3131 Old Perth Road, Almonte, ON K0A 1A0. If you wish to speak at the public meeting, please contact the assigned planner noted below to participate.

IF YOU WISH TO BE NOTIFIED of the decision of the Municipality of Mississippi Mills on the proposed Official Plan Amendment, you must make a written request to the Municipality of Mississippi Mills, 14 Bridge Street, Almonte, ON K0A 1A0 or by emailing a written request to the assigned planner noted below.

IF A PERSON OR PUBLIC BODY would otherwise have an ability to appeal the decision of the Municipality of Mississippi Mills to the Ontario Land Tribunal but the person or public body does not make oral submissions at the virtual public meeting or make written submissions to Municipality of Mississippi Mills before the by-law is passed, the person or public body is not entitled to appeal the decision.

IF A PERSON OR PUBLIC BODY does not make oral submissions at a public meeting or make written submissions to the Municipality of Mississippi Mills before the by-law is passed, the person or public body may not be added as a party to the hearing of an appeal before the Ontario Land Tribunal unless, in the opinion of the tribunal, there are reasonable grounds to do so.

AFTER A DECISION has been made by Council, persons wishing to formally register an objection must, regardless of any previous submissions, file with a Notice of Appeal with the Clerk of the Municipality setting out the objection and the reasons in support of the objection accompanied with the appeal fee to the Ontario Land Tribunal.

IF YOU ARE THE OWNER OF A BUILDING WITH SEVEN (7) OR MORE RESIDENTS, it is requested that you post this notice in a location visible to all of the residents.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION about this application is available on the Municipality’s web page: www.mississippimills.ca/planning-notices. For more information about this matter, including information about appeal rights, contact the assigned planner:

Hayley McCartney, Policy Planner
Municipality of Mississippi Mills
14 Bridge Street, P.O. Box 400
Almonte, ON K0A 1A0
613-256-2064
hmccartney@mississippimills.ca