Grandfathering or just ignoring the rules?
Doesn’t P.E.I. have laws, regulations that restrict how close you can build to the beach?
The headline article in the Nov. 15 edition of The Guardian (Beachfront buffer) shows an aerial photograph of footings for a massive building that’s being constructed by a Toronto-based corporation right next to the beach at Point Deroche.
The construction site, just west of Savage Harbour, is located on one of the most vulnerable parts of P.E.I.’S coastline. Weeks ago Fiona ravaged this part of the Island, removing more than 20 feet of sand dune on Blooming Point Beach.
The Guardian’s post-fiona photograph shows the dramatic erosion on both sides of the new armour-stone breakwater. The armour stone extends over the edge of the bank, across the beach and out to the low water mark, blocking public access to the beach even at low tide.
How could this happen? Doesn’t P.E.I. have laws and regulations that restrict how close you can build to the beach?
Yes, we do. Regulations under the P.E.I. Planning Act (Section 16) stipulate that a buffer zone extends a minimum of 60 feet from the top of the bank or a distance of “60 times the annual erosion rate” for the area. The annual erosion rate for Savage Harbour is three feet – that means no construction within 180 feet of the bank above the beach.
Sidney Macewen, MLA for the district, visited the site in mid-september with Environment Minister Steven Myers. According to Mr. Macewen, the construction zone and shoreline protection “are clearly within the buffer zone”.
From aerial photos, it’s also clear the walls of the new building are going to be right on the edge of the bank.
In a statement from Minister Myers and Minister Compton dated Sept. 22, 2022, a “working policy” endorsed by both departments determined that “existing homes already within the buffer zone” can remain there. In other words, they are grandfathered.
But this is no longer an existing home. The old Macandrew house that was on the site (and its seawall), was demolished this summer by the new property owners.
In spite of this, Ministers Myers and Compton have extended the grandfathering concept to include “new additions and modifications.” According to these ministers, grandfathering simply means that new builds will not be permitted to “encroach any further into the buffer zone.”
What gives these two ministers the authority to decide that new builds should be exempt from the government's own legislation and regulations?
Perhaps the ministers should examine Section 3, sub-section 2, of the Planning Act regulations which states: “No development permit shall be issued where a proposed building, structure, or its alteration … would not conform to these regulations or any other regulations made pursuant to the act.”
Waiving the buffer zone requirements would mean setting aside the government’s own legislation and regulations. It would also create a dangerous precedent in this time of climate change.