Coun. Bob Madigan avoided being a fence-sitter at council on Monday night.
At a council meeting last night during the agenda item on Eden Oak (McNabb) Inc., Madigan held the developer’s feet to the fire over broken promises concerning a fence and a retaining wall.
“In regards to the fence directly, as of May 23, 2018, the fence was ready to go and they were prepared to finish it. I remember at that meeting I asked if we had it in writing. We didn’t, and the fence still isn’t up. So, I have concerns about this developer,” said Madigan. “I’ve watched them over promise and under deliver.”
“We, as the elected officials, have to take the phone calls,” he said. “When we have a large development come to town, it’s a fantastic thing, but no proposed development should come at a cost to the neighbouring residents. This one has, directly.”
Madigan continued to share concerns over setting a precedent of leniency, especially considering the 5,000 other homes that are coming down the pipeline.
The Eden Oak development is a proposal for 256 single units and 120 multi-unit dwellings on Collingwood's Southeast side off Portland Street between Hurontario and Raglan Street (near Poplar Sideroad).
“I think we need to stand our ground on this one and hold them to the flame here,” he said. “On May 23, the fence was supposed to be done before then, and now we’re a year away. The poor residents of this area are still dealing with water and flooding. I’ve learned more about swales than I could ever imagine.”
“(The report) says that staff is satisfied with the results but I can assure you the residents are not. They’re still dealing with the same issues they’ve had for 12 to 18 months,” said Madigan.
After hearing concerns from residents during the Development and Operations Services Standing Committee on Jan. 21, present councillors and town staff at that meeting agreed to meet with some residents personally one-on-one to share concerns.
“Certainly this development has been a source of frustration for the residents, staff and for the developer, but I believe at this point, now we have a signed undertaking to complete the fence and retaining wall by June 30,” said Coun. Deb Doherty. “I believe that we have done, and the developer has done, all we can do and the best thing for us to do at this point in time is to move forward.”
“From the committee perspective too, we had the opportunity to have a lot of the residents come to the meeting, we were able to answer their questions one on one,” said Coun. Kathy Jeffery. “I thought it was really a thorough process.”
Director of Public Works and Engineering Brian MacDonald indicated that the town has received an undertaking from the developer to complete the work by the requested date, which has been vetted by legal counsel for the town.
“Should that not occur, we have securities to enter into on the lands,” he said.
Council voted unanimously to pass a bylaw to execute a site plan control agreement with Eden Oak (McNabb) Inc. with the undertaking amendment added.
