Could opponents pay a price?

An article in the Toronto Star (http://www.thestar.com:80/article/302135) talks of a case where a group of citizens opposed a project to develop a large subdivision. The development's proponent is now asking to be reimbursed legal fees of over $3 million.

The idea of opponents having to pay for putting up road blocks might sound like a good way to get rid of opponents. But this seems fundamentally unfair.

If citizens have differing views of what a government should allow to be developed they shouldn't have to fear paying into the millions - even if the government decides that they are wrong.

The developer did not have to spend so much on legal fees - they chose to as part of their entrepreneurial effort to get this project done and to make money. It does not seem fair that citizens should have to pay this bloated bill for disagreeing with the developer.