WhyDufferin · Planning
Planning & approvals in Dufferin
Who approves what in the County and its eight municipalities: official plans, zoning, incentives, provincial plans and the conservation authority for each piece of land. Every item links to its official source, checked 2026-10-21. Not found means we looked and couldn't find it published. Always confirm with the municipality before you buy or apply.
Jump to: Approval path · By municipality · Provincial plans · Conservation authorities · Watershed map · Data: JSON · CSV
Approval path for a typical commercial or industrial project
General guidance based on the Ontario Planning Act and the County's delegation by-laws. Your project may skip steps or need others; pre-consultation confirms which.
- Check the property
Look up zoning and the OP designation on the town or County map. Check whether it sits in a conservation authority regulated area (the CA's map) or the Niagara Escarpment Plan area (Mono and Mulmur). - Pre-consultation
Meet the town's planning staff. They tell you which applications and studies make the application complete, and they circulate it to the County and the CA. Some towns charge for this, and Mono requires it. - Zoning or OP change, if needed
Council decides zoning amendments. Local OP amendments go to the County for approval, except in Orangeville and Mono, which approve their own. - Minor variance or severance
The Committee of Adjustment hears minor variances, and consents in most towns. In East Garafraxa the Township handles consents. - Site plan approval
Most commercial and industrial projects need it from the town (Planning Act s.41), with an agreement and securities. - Other permits
A CA permit is needed for work in a regulated area (O. Reg. 41/24). In the NEC Development Control Area, an NEC development permit is needed before a building permit. - Building permit and charges
Get the building permit, then pay development charges (see Costs) and pass inspections before occupancy.
By municipality
County of Dufferin
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map · Fees
- Official Plan
- County Official Plan, consolidated August 2025 (includes OPAs 2, 3 and 4). The Municipal Comprehensive Review finished when the Province approved OPA 4 on July 31, 2025. [source]
- Zoning
- No County zoning by-law. Each local municipality has its own. [source]
- Zoning map
- County interactive mapping [source]
- CIP / incentives
- not found [source]
- Strategies
- Corporate Strategic Plan 2023–2026; economic development strategy "Dufferin Builds Together" [source]
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- The Province (MMAH) approves County OP amendments. The County approves local OP amendments, except in Mono and Orangeville, which approve their own (By-law 2015-16). Subdivision and condominium approval (By-law 2015-15) and consents (By-law 2015-12) are delegated to the eight local councils. [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Not applicable: consents and minor variances are handled locally [source]
- Pre-consultation
- County pre-consultation guide and form [source]
- Fees
- Planning applications and fees [source]
- Planning contact
- Planning & Development · 519-941-2816 ext. 2511 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: see towns · Greenbelt: see towns · Oak Ridges Moraine: Mono only [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority 47.3%
- Grand River Conservation Authority 46.4%
- Credit Valley Conservation 4.3%
- Toronto and Region Conservation Authority 1.2%
- Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority 0.7%
Source protection: South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region; Lake Erie Source Protection Region; CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario); Saugeen, Grey Sauble, Northern Bruce Peninsula Source Protection Region [source]
Orangeville
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map · Fees
- Official Plan
- Office consolidation dated March 10, 2025. The plan dates from 1985 (approved 1987). Review status: not found. [source]
- Zoning
- Zoning By-law 22-90, consolidated March 10, 2025 [source]
- Zoning map
- Planning Information Portal (PIP): zoning and OP layers [source]
- Open data
- Open Data Orangeville publishes zoning districts, zoning special provisions, minor-variance areas and development charge areas as open data under the Open Government Licence – Orangeville. They are on the WhyDufferin map under Extra layers. [source]
- Open the map
- Development applications
- Planning Applications Dashboard (Town web map; not published as an open dataset, so it is linked rather than copied) [source]
- CIP / incentives
- CIP for 2023–2027 with 8 grant programs, including a planning-fee grant (50% of fees, up to $5,000), a tax increment equivalent grant (TIEG) and grants for studies such as Phase II ESAs. Applies to the town-wide, Broadway–First Street and Centennial Road areas. 2026 applications are closed and expected to reopen in 2027. [source]
- Strategies
- Economic Development & Culture strategy and annual report [source]
- Secondary plans
- OP schedules for specific policy areas and the CIP area (Schedules B and D) [source]
- Who approves
- Council approves its own OP amendments (delegated by the County), subdivisions and consents [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Committee of Adjustment · [email protected] · 519-941-0440 ext. 7303 [source]
- Pre-consultation
- Pre-consultation tiers (minor, standard, major) are in the fees by-law [source]
- Fees
- Application fees [source]
- Planning contact
- Planning Division · 519-941-0440 ext. 2228 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 0% · Greenbelt: conflicting: the Town OP doesn't mention the Greenbelt, but the provincial layer overlaps the town. Confirm with the Town. · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Credit Valley Conservation 100%
Source protection: CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario) [source]
Shelburne
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map: not found · Fees
- Official Plan
- Consolidated Official Plan (planning period to 2036). Consolidation date and review status: not found. [source]
- Zoning
- Zoning By-law 38-2007. The posted consolidation dates from May 2012; later amendments are separate (for example Z25-03 in 2025). [source]
- Zoning map
- not found (no interactive map; use the County mapping) [source]
- CIP / incentives
- CIP adopted October 3, 2022 (By-laws 50-2022 and 51-2022) for the Downtown and the Main Street and Owen Sound Street corridors. Offers grant programs and fee rebates; it was sent to the County for approval. Current program amounts: not found. [source]
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- Council decides OP and zoning changes; local OPAs and the CIP go to the County for approval [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Committee of Adjustment (consents and minor variances). Consult the Town Planner before applying. [source]
- Pre-consultation
- Consult the Town Planner before submitting [source]
- Fees
- User fees and charges By-law 52-2024 [source]
- Planning contact
- Town office · 519-925-2600 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 0% · Greenbelt: no · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority 100%
Source protection: South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region [source]
Grand Valley
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map: not found · Fees
- Official Plan
- New Official Plan via OPA 8: adopted November 4, 2025 and approved by the County March 3, 2026 (Vision Grand Valley review). [source]
- Zoning
- Zoning By-law 2009-10 (consolidated). An updated comprehensive amendment, 2026-45, passed July 21, 2026 and is in its appeal period. [source]
- Zoning map
- not found (PDF schedules A1 to A3) [source]
- CIP / incentives
- not found
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- Council decides zoning, site plans, consents and subdivisions; OP amendments go to the County for approval [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Minor variances and consents are on the Town's 2026 fee schedule [source]
- Pre-consultation
- Pre-consultation (no charge) decides which studies are needed for a complete application (OP Appendix A) [source]
- Fees
- 2026 fees By-law 2026-20: site plan $5,000, zoning amendment $2,500, OP amendment $5,000, consent $2,500 and minor variance $1,000. Deposits may also apply. [source]
- Planning contact
- Town office · 519-928-2275 [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 0% · Greenbelt: no · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Grand River Conservation Authority 100%
Source protection: Lake Erie Source Protection Region [source]
Mono
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map · Fees
- Official Plan
- Consolidated as of November 2018; later amendments not included. Review status: not found. [source]
- Zoning
- Comprehensive Zoning By-law 78-1, consolidated April 21, 2021, with Oak Ridges Moraine schedules [source]
- Zoning map
- Online planning map (search a property's zoning) [source]
- CIP / incentives
- not found
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- Council approves its own OP amendments (delegated by the County). In the Niagara Escarpment Plan area, amendments go through the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act, and NEC development control applies. [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Committee of Adjustment (consents and minor variances), meets as needed [source]
- Pre-consultation
- Pre-consultation required for OP and zoning amendments, site plans, subdivisions, condominiums and multi-lot consents [source]
- Fees
- Fees & Charges By-law [source]
- Planning contact
- Town office · (519) 941-3599 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 33% · Greenbelt: yes, about 46% of the Town including NEP and ORM · Oak Ridges Moraine: 1.9% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority 86.9%
- Credit Valley Conservation 6.6%
- Toronto and Region Conservation Authority 6.5%
Source protection: South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region; CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario) [source]
Mulmur
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map: not found · Fees
- Official Plan
- New Official Plan adopted by By-law 17-2026. County approval status: not found. [source]
- Zoning
- New Comprehensive Zoning By-law, consolidated December 2025 (by-law number not shown on the page) [source]
- Zoning map
- not found (PDF Schedules A and B) [source]
- CIP / incentives
- not found
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- Council decides zoning, consents and subdivisions; OP approval rests with the County. In the NEC area, NEC development permits apply. [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- not found
- Pre-consultation
- Pre-consultation application form on the planning page [source]
- Fees
- User fees and charges [source]
- Planning contact
- Township office · (705) 466-3341 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 34.6% · Greenbelt: yes, the NEP area (about 35%) · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority 100%
Source protection: South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region [source]
Melancthon
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map: not found · Fees: not found
- Official Plan
- OP adopted August 14, 2014, approved by MMAH March 9, 2015, with OMB approval September 5, 2017. Under review: Draft 1 of a new OP was released for consultation in 2026. [source]
- Zoning
- Zoning By-law 12-1979, as amended [source]
- Zoning map
- not found
- CIP / incentives
- not found
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- A planning consultant reviews applications. The Committee of Adjustment decides consents and minor variances; Council decides subdivisions and OP and zoning amendments. [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Committee of Adjustment (consents and minor variances) [source]
- Pre-consultation
- not found
- Fees
- not found
- Planning contact
- Township office · 519-925-5525 [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 0% · Greenbelt: no · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Grand River Conservation Authority 55.5%
- Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority 41.1%
- Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority 3.5%
Source protection: Lake Erie Source Protection Region; South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region; Saugeen, Grey Sauble, Northern Bruce Peninsula Source Protection Region [source]
Amaranth
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map: not found · Fees
- Official Plan
- New Official Plan (September 2026 version) went to Council for consideration October 7, 2026. Outcome and County approval: not found. [source]
- Zoning
- Zoning By-law 2-2009, as amended [source]
- Zoning map
- not found
- CIP / incentives
- not found
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- Council decides zoning, consents and subdivisions; OP approval rests with the County [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- not found
- Pre-consultation
- not found
- Fees
- Fees and Charges By-law (see the By-laws page) [source]
- Planning contact
- Planning · 519-941-1007 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 0% · Greenbelt: sliver (about 2%) on the provincial map · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Grand River Conservation Authority 82.4%
- Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority 15.9%
- Credit Valley Conservation 1.7%
Source protection: Lake Erie Source Protection Region; South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region; CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario) [source]
East Garafraxa
Official Plan · Zoning · Zoning map: not found · Fees
- Official Plan
- In force: 2004 OP (By-law 59-2004, approved 2005), consolidated May 2025. A new OP was adopted June 23, 2026 (By-law 27-2026) and is pending County approval. [source]
- Zoning
- Zoning By-law 60-2004, Township consolidation January 2011, plus later amendments (for example 26-2023) [source]
- Zoning map
- not found (PDF schedules; 'Interactive Mapping' links to the County) [source]
- CIP / incentives
- not found
- Strategies
- not found
- Secondary plans
- not found
- Who approves
- The Township handles consents; the Committee of Adjustment hears minor variances; OP approval rests with the County [source]
- Committee of Adjustment
- Committee of Adjustment (minor variances); consents through the Township [source]
- Pre-consultation
- Pre-application consultation recommended. Land-use questions go through the online Land Use Inquiry Form ($150). [source]
- Fees
- Tariff of fees for planning, By-law 28-2025 [source]
- Planning contact
- Township office · 226-259-9400 · [email protected] [source]
- Provincial overlays
- NEP: 0% · Greenbelt: yes, Protected Countryside (about 16%; named in the OP) · Oak Ridges Moraine: 0% [source]
- Conservation authority (share of land)
- Grand River Conservation Authority 84%
- Credit Valley Conservation 16%
Source protection: Lake Erie Source Protection Region; CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario) [source]
Provincial plans
Provincial Planning Statement, 2024
In effect October 20, 2024. Replaced the Provincial Policy Statement 2020 and A Place to Grow (Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe), which was revoked the same day. Applies everywhere in Dufferin. [source]
Niagara Escarpment Plan / NEC
Covers about a third of Mono and Mulmur; none of the other six. In the NEC Development Control Area an NEC development permit is needed before a building permit, unless the work is exempt. [source]
Greenbelt Plan
Includes the Niagara Escarpment Plan and Oak Ridges Moraine areas plus Protected Countryside. In Dufferin: Mono, Mulmur and East Garafraxa (named in their Official Plans); Amaranth a sliver on the provincial map. [source]
Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan
Western tip reaches the south-east corner of Mono (about 2% of the Town). Mono's zoning carries ORM schedules. [source]
Conservation authorities
Five conservation authorities share Dufferin. Shares of each municipality's land come from the province's open conservation-authority boundaries, so exact lines near a watershed divide need the CA's own map. [source] Grey Sauble and Lake Simcoe Region don't cover any part of Dufferin.
Credit Valley Conservation (CVC)
Permits · Regulated-area map · Fees
Contact: 905-670-1615 · [email protected] [source]
CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario)
Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority (NVCA)
Permits · Regulated-area map: not found · Fees
Contact: 705-424-1479 · [email protected] (planning: [email protected]) [source]
South Georgian Bay Lake Simcoe Source Protection Region
Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA)
Permits · Regulated-area map · Fees
Contact: 519-621-2761 · [email protected] [source]
Lake Erie Source Protection Region
Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA)
Permits · Regulated-area map: not found · Fees: not found
Contact: not found [source]
CTC Source Protection Region (Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, Central Lake Ontario)
Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority (SVCA)
Permits · Regulated-area map: not found · Fees: not found
Contact: not found [source]
Saugeen, Grey Sauble, Northern Bruce Peninsula Source Protection Region
Watershed map
Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario (LIO conservation authority administrative areas and municipal boundaries). Licence. Simplified for display; not for legal boundaries. GeoJSON: planning-ca.geojson
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