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On Sept. 8, the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) adjourned the proceedings until April 2021, to allow the subdivision application recently filed with the Town to be appealed to LPAT and consolidated with the Marotta hotel/convention centre application.

The lawyers for both SORE and the Town recently filed their responding factums with the Court of Appeal in the Marotta group’s ongoing effort to overturn the previous Council’s decision to initiate the heritage designation process of the Rand Estate in August of 2018.

The court application by the Marotta companies to overturn your elected Council’s decision to proceed with designation of the Rand Estate under the Ontario Heritage Act has been completely rejected. In a decision by the Ontario Superior Court, Madame Justice Walters found against the Marotta group on every ground and dismissed their application with costs payable to both the Town and to SORE.

As reported on in our last update, the Conservation Review Board (CRB) held a prehearing conference on Monday, December 2.  The CRB heard submissions from the Town and SORE that the uncertainty about the Marotta group’s challenges to the Town’s  designation of the Rand Estate under the Heritage Act has dragged on long enough and […]

In a not entirely surprising move, Benny Marotta’s lawyer advised the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal late yesterday that he was withdrawing the Marotta group’s zoning appeal to LPAT.  LPAT has cancelled the July 29 scheduled hearing, at which the Town and SORE were poised to ask the Tribunal to set the appeal down for a […]

SORE has learned that the Town has recently laid four charges against two of Benny Marotta’s companies under the Ontario Heritage Act. These are quasi-criminal charges under our legal system and can result in substantial fines for corporations and jail time for individuals upon conviction.

SORE was granted party status by the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) on May 9 for Benny Marotta’s appeal to that Tribunal.

SORE has been granted full party status to intervene in the court challenge brought by Benny Marotta’s companies of your elected Council’s decision to designate the Rand Estate under the Heritage Act.

Save Our Rand Estate – also known as “SORE” – was created to support responsible development, specifically of the Rand Estate. We welcome projects that respect the unique historical and cultural heritage of NOTL. At the same time, we are prepared to stand up against developers who show little regard for our cultural heritage and the Town Official Plan.

After a several month initiative, SORE and the residents of NOTL were successful Monday night in having Council agree to having all four properties at the Rand Estate designated under the Ontario Heritage Act to recognize their unique and important cultural heritage value to NOTL and to the entire country.