Economic and market issues frequently are important factors in land use disputes and in litigation involving real estate and the construction industry. Clayton Research has considerable experience giving expert witness testimony in these cases. The firm is well known for its sound economic and market perspective, with a solid understanding of demographics, economics, real estate markets and participants, land development and construction processes, planning and related policies, and financial markets. Typical subjects for testimony include:

Determining future population growth and its composition, household growth and its composition, and employment growth by type. (These assignments can be self-standing or part of a broader assignment looking at such matters as retail sales potential, housing and employment space and lands demands, and economic and community impact.)

Evaluating the nature of demand for particular use(s), either on specific sites or in wider planning areas.

Assessing the need for and implications of proposals for “greenfield” and “brownfield” sites, through a land demand or requirements analysis based on demographic and local economy information, and a land supply assessment.

Bringing credible, research-based information to the discussion of proposals that sometimes attract considerable neighbourhood and municipal opposition.

Providing evidence on the municipal finance impacts of development proposals ranging from infill projects to new communities and for development charge issues before the Ontario Municipal Board.

Valuing the impacts of events, from expropriation of highway lands, to contamination of cement, and break up of business relationships.

Clayton Research has prepared and given expert witness testimony in a wide variety of cases before courts and quasi-judicial bodies. The firm has gained an enviable reputation for thoughtful, research-based evidence in disputes such as the following:

As part of an arbitration hearing dealing with a land lease rent review for a high-rise rental apartment building constructed in the 1960s in Mississauga, Clayton Research undertook an analysis of the market support for alternative residential uses (condominium apartment, stacked townhouses and townhouses) for the site.

As part of a Divisional Court hearing into a constitutional challenge of Ontario’s social assistance policies, Clayton Research examined the implications of a reduction in shelter allowances. The housing situations of recipients before and after the reductions were compared to that of other low income households in Ontario and in other provinces.

An expropriated landowner claimed that the construction of an interchange injuriously affected the value and use of the remaining lands for retail purposes because of reduced visibility from Highway 400. Clayton Research demonstrated that the increased traffic flows would more than compensate for the reduced visibility for retail potential.

Clayton Research provided analysis of development charge credits for lot levy payments made by developers in Mississauga, Burlington and Toronto before the adoption of Ontario's first Development Charge Act in 1989. This analysis helped provide the "factual matrix" the Ontario Municipal Board used in interpreting the terms of various lot levy agreements.

Clayton Research critically reviewed the residential land needs analysis prepared by the City of London in support of its Official Plan, and found that an error had been made in converting net land requirements to gross land requirements. At the Ontario Municipal Board hearing for the Official Plan, Clayton Research explained why the City's long-term population and housing projections should not be changed to reflect short-term economic fluctuations and why the urban boundary had to be expanded to accommodate projected demand.

Cachet Woods Ratepayers Association Inc. appeal of Town of Markham official plan amendment No.43
F & F Realty Holdings Inc. vs. Ontario Ministry of Transportation
Gateshead Enterprises Limited: Proposal to develop a neighbourhood shopping centre, City of Mississauga
Goldlist Properties Inc. appeal of City of Toronto's refusal to permit replacing existing rental apartments with new condominium apartments and townhouses
Mori Nurseries Ltd.: Town of Pelham urban area boundary expansion

Clayton Research staff brings a variety of backgrounds and specialized economic and market expertise to expert witness testimony. Read more about Frank Clayton, President, Jeannette Gillezeau, Vice President, Robert Feldgaier, Vice President, Residential Services, Peter Norman, Vice President and other senior staff members.