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Steves said leaving each municipality to put restrictions on the size of homes and footprints leads to complicated debate and inconsistent policies.

“I think it’s the first problem the province should be dealing with,” Steves said. “If a firm ALR rule is put in it will save us a lot of grief at the local government level.”

The Metro recommendation, that has been made twice before, is to enact provincial regulations that put restrictions on the “home plate,” which is the portion of a lot that includes the principal and any other residences, along with residential facilities. The restrictions would address house size, residential footprint location and size “to discourage the use of agricultural land for residential and commercial purposes.”

Metro’s report also suggests reforming the farm property tax policy to adjust the method for valuing agricultural land that is not used for farming, so that non-farm residential and commercial activities on ALR are paying similar taxes to those in urban areas.

“That loophole has to be fixed as well,” Steves said.

The Metro submission says that the system currently “provides a financial incentive to locate a non-farm residential or business activity in the ALR.”

Other recommendations include developing a two-tier farm classification benefits system that confers two different levels of tax benefits based on gross farm income, developing better legislation to deal with commercial uses on agricultural land, and maintaining ecological services on agricultural land using covenants.

The recommendations will go before Metro’s board on April 27.

jensaltman@postmedia.com

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