The process to re-zone and sell off property at the northwest corner of Nelson Street and Williams Avenue, to be developed into housing lots, will take another step forward at a public meeting scheduled for April 28.
The subject of the meeting will be a zoning amendment to change the property from “open space” to “residential type two.”
At this time, the public is welcome to offer comment as to why or why not the re-zoning should occur.
A formal notice of this meeting will appear in next Monday’s Daily Bulletin.
If town council opts to go ahead with the re-zoning, any member of the public can appeal that decision, in which case it will be referred to the Ontario Municipal Board, which, in turn, may set a date for an appeal hearing.
If the OMB rules in the town’s favour, the property would have to be surveyed.
Council then would vote on a bylaw to declare the property surplus, have it appraised, authorize the disposition of the land, and determine the method of sale.
Since last Monday’s 4-3 vote by council to move forward with the process to see the Nelson Street property developed into housing lots, there’s been much discussion in the community and on the Times’ website regarding the matter.
However, not all of the public’s comments were based on fact. As such, municipal planner Faye Flatt provided the Times with background information on the Nelson Street property matter.
This information was provided back on March 5 at a public meeting specifically for the purposes of explaining the issue to area residents.
All of the residents within 100 metres of the property were invited to this meeting via letters from the town.
< *c>Background
While the town has known for some time there’s a shortage of residential building lots and insufficient suitable housing, a letter received last year from AbitibiBowater regional manager Doug Murray reinforced the point that something had to be done.
The mill will see a projected 200 retirees between 2007 and 2015, and many positions will be replaced.
Fort Frances will be competing with other communities in attracting new employees, and the town is seeking to avoid negative impacts that may result from the lack of residential building lots of suitable housing and place the town at a disadvantage.
Not having residential building lots discourages relocation to the community. This, in turn, may encourage existing residents to leave—resulting in stagnant assessment and a reduction of dollars spent in the local economy.
An investigation was initiated to determine properties having the most potential for residential development based on specific prioritized criteria, including ownership, services, property characteristics, and land use policies.
Only land that was owned or under control of the town was considered because:
•the land is not subject to subdivision provisions of the Planning Act;
•the land is available immediately;
•there’s no financial impact in the acquisition of the land;
•co-ordination with private owners is not required; and
•council has the authority to regulate, dispose of, and manage property as deemed appropriate.
The town also only looked at properties that had services (such as road access, water, and sanitary sewer) because:
•no extensions or enhancements would be required;
•there would be no significant financial impact to the town;
•there would be no time restrictions as the services are available immediately; and
•they fit into the development policy of the town’s official plan.
Property characteristics considered included the area of land available, the number of potential lots that can be created, the current use of the property, and potential restrictions on development (i.e., proximity to railway, etc.)
The designation and zoning of the property also must be in compliance with the town’s official plan and zoning regulations.
Five areas of the municipality were identified for further consideration in the process, and were researched and ranked according to the above criteria.
The property with the highest ranking—the Nelson Street Park—was reviewed further in terms of historical background and information, and a decision was made by council to continue the process.
(The other properties have not been disclosed at this time).
The Nelson Street Park is located on a fully-maintained public road, and municipal services are immediately available. It is adjacent to an established residential neighbourhood and currently without structures.
The lot is 297’ x 120’, and can accommodate six lots with a frontage of 49.5’ or five oversized lots of 59.4’.
Under the town’s official plan, the Nelson Street Park is designated as “living area,” and the proposal to rezone it must follow various official plan policies, including:
•the new development should be designed and landscaped to be compatible with the character of the surrounding neighbourhood;
•the development must be adequately serviced with sanitary sewers, municipal water . . . and be satisfied there is safe access to development for existing and future traffic; and
•neighbourhood parks should be provided within 1,000 metres of all residential users.
The Nelson Street Park proposal conforms to all aspects of the official plan.
While the area currently is zoned as “open space,” there is no legislative requirement that zoning on a specific property remain in perpetuity and council has the unfettered right to dispose of municipal land as it deems appropriate.
< *c>Clarifications
One major misconception by the public regarding the Nelson Street property is the status of the designation of the Nelson Street Park as a “park.”
While council did make this decision back in 1990, the official plan and zoning bylaw for the town were updated in 1998 through the enactment of Bylaw 7/98 and 8/98.
In addition to adopting these new planning documents, all previous official plans and subsequent amendments, including those referring to Nelson Street (72/90 and 73/90), were rescinded, noted Flatt.
Council had reviewed the same lot of property in 2004, but decided not to go ahead with the re-zoning based on a challenge from area residents. Council passed a resolution to allow the continued use of the lands as “open space.”
It was noted at that time, however, that council retained the right to change the usage in the future if it so chose.
As well, comments made by Coun. Rick Wiedenhoeft at the March 24 council meeting regarding people being “jerked around” was a reference to the Nelson Street Park area residents who are opposed to the decision to re-zone, both now and back in 2004.
It was not made in reference to prospective buyers, nor did it imply the town was giving any priority to them over the Nelson Street residents in this instance.
Another misconception was that the vote should not have taken place on a holiday Monday.
Recommendations made by an executive committee are placed on the agenda for the next regularly-scheduled meeting of council. Regular council meetings are held on the second and fourth Mondays of each month.
In cases where the Monday is a holiday, the meetings usually are held on the Tuesday.
The Planning and Development executive committee last met on March 13.
Since the Monday following Easter is not a holiday in Ontario, the issue was placed on the agenda for March 24.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
