South Frontenac Township Council – Feb. 2/10

Wilma Kenny | Feb 04, 2010

Development issues in Sydenham area -

Three delegates spoke of their concerns about a proposed development at the corner of Rutledge and Sydenham Roads (Moon's Corners). At issue was the third reading of a by-law to rezone some of the property belonging to S. Gordon from Rural to Special Rural Commercial, which would allow the establishment of a gas station and the potential for a listed range of other commercial activities.

Fran Willes noted that there was a lot more development proposed for the Rutledge Road area and said she and her husband were concerned that there had been inadequate research done on water resources, and the general environmental sensitivity due to proximity to lake and wetlands. She alsomentioned that this is within an UNESCO biosphere area.

Peter Svendsen was concerned about increased water run-off and drainage problems caused by development of a low-lying area, and asked if construction blasting would affect local wells. He also asked whether locating retail outlets just outside the village was a good overall plan for the district.

A third neighbour, Jack Springer, had asked for a draw-down test on either his well, or one on the Willes' property, and wondered why such a test had been agreed to, then cancelled. He also spoke of the potential negative impact on the businesses in the core area of Sydenham.

Deputy Mayor Ron Vandewal reported that he had checked with the OMB, and it was quite clear that council could not rule on issues of business competition: it was up to the business owners themselves to prove that a change would be destructive to their businesses.

Township Planner Lindsay Mills said he had just received a petition from Sydenham merchants expressing concern that the Gordon application would create a duplication of the businesses that exist in the village. He said there had been a number of studies, peer-reviewed, that were all positive. All state that the proposed use of the property can work, with certain caveats: that the storm water design should be reviewed, a site-plan developed, and the design of the gas station should be monitored.

Currently, the Public Works Manager is doing a review of the increasing development on Rutledge Road. Reminding council that a carefully developed site plan can address most of the residents' concerns, he passed out copies of Section 41 of the planning act, which lists the things that a site plan can control: locations of buildings, facilities, traffic access,ground cover, storage of garbage, snow ploughing, etc. Mills recommended Council approve the zone change.

Council was reluctant to do so. Councilor Jim Hicks said water run-off had not been sufficiently addressed. Councilor Bill Robinson said things were moving too fast, that he didn't like being handed last-minute information by Mills.

Ron Vandewal said he found it hard to support, as it stands, that he wants to see the MOE's report, and well draw downs as promised. Also, in regard to traffic, he asked who would pay for traffic lights, if it were later found they are needed. He also noted that the drawings for Phase 5 do not agree with Phase 1 drawings.

Councilors Alan McPhail and David Hahn both worried that this was only the beginning of what had the potential to become a very large development, one that should not be initiated until council has revised the official plan to include policies for the development of Sydenham village. Why, for instance, encourage development outside the area that could be easily serviced by the Sydenham water system? Both spoke in favour of a larger plan for the future of Sydenham, before doing piecemeal development in the area.

Councilor Larry York said there were too many maybes, not enough facts, the proposal demanded "too much, too fast."

Councilor Del Stowe asked why the township would wait for an applicant to get this far, and then hold them off. "Why aren't we ever proactive?" he asked.

Ron Vandewal felt the present plan was too broad, citing a history of poorly enforced site plans. He asked for something in writing from the Ministry of the Environment regarding the potential impact of a gas station upstream from the lake.

Mr. Clarke, the developer's representative, said that draw down tests on a well on the property and a well directly across the road both showed an adequate supply of water. The other neighboring wells could not be tested, under current MOE regulations, for two of them were not cased to the surface of the ground, and the third was not currently in use.

He said qualified engineers had said storm water and traffic could be satisfactorily controlled. He also said it is not the developer's intent to draw business from Sydenham, but to enhance the area.

In the end, Council deferred the third reading of the zone change by-law until March 2, pending further information from the MoE and the Cataraqui Conservation Authority.

Building permits -

Councilor Hicks raised the issue of building permits, saying he wants to see a township policy about them. Mayor Davison said building permits were governed by the building code act, and that the township has no policy re exemptions, therefore there are no exemptions.Councilor Robinson said he felt it was unfair that the township had just turned down a request for exemption, yet the township itself doesn't pay building fees. He listed the Sydenham water plant and the upcoming library and ambulance buildings.

CAO Wayne Orr replied that council had made it quite clear there were to be no further exemptions, including the township. (Note: at the last meeting of the library development committee, of which Councilor Robinson is a member, the architect had been directed to include building permit fees in the budget. Councilor Robinson was unable to be present for much of that meeting, so may not have known this.)

Budget debates to begin -

CAO Orr presented a preliminary budget summary for the first amalgamated township budget. Debate will begin next week at the Committee of the Whole meeting, and is expected to continue at the Feb 16 Council meeting, with the final revision coming for approval on March 2nd. All these meetings are open to the public, and should be lively, as Council's present directive of a 1 to 2% tax increase presents challenges that may be possible to meet only by reduction in services across the township, or serious draw downs of the reserves

Why is the County sitting on all that gas tax money?

Mayor Davison responded to this query by Councilor Del Stowe by saying that County Council was struggling with this question, and hoped to have some answers soon.

Closing of Prison farms

Councilor Ron Vandewal suggested the township forward their letter of concern to Vic Toews, the new Minister of Public Safety, sending copies to the Prime Minister and MP Scott Reid. A letter on file from the previous minister, Peter VanLoan, is not encouraging, and gives no acknowledgment to the value of learning transferable work skills in a farm setting.

Bid accepted for Louborough Lake Bridge construction

Clearwater Structures of Ajax has been chosen to build the Louborough Lake bridge. The winning bid was $1.376 million, which is much lower than the price estimate on the project. The estimate was $1.8 million. Of the nine bids that were submitted, there was wide range of pricing, ranging to over $1.9 million.

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth said he is not familiar with the bidder, but the tenders were peer reviewed by Jewell Engineering, which recommended Clearwater, based not only on the fact that they were the lowest bidder by over $150,000, but also on Jewell’s experience with Clearwater on numerous projects. Construction is expected to begin in the spring and the new branch should be ready for occupancy by the fall.