The Ontario Municipal Board has upheld the new Prince Edward County Wineries Policy, with a few amendments. A board meeting was held in Picton in early December, hearing arguments from the Winery Association of Prince Edward against the policy. The O-M-B has just released its decision, and says the policy should be approved. However, it ruled the appeal should be allowed in part, and that farm wineries and estate wineries be permitted in both prime agricultural and rural land use designated areas of the official plan. It also wants the requirement a farm winery would have to use at least 51 per cent of its own grapes in any wine making changed to predominately, and the definition of farm winery will be amended to include a tied-house licensed by the A-L-G-O as a permitted accessory use to a farm winery.
