Collingwood council wants legal advice before making a decision on a developer’s application to start removing trees on a 17-acre property within a Cranberry subdivision.
MacPherson Builders is working toward permits to start construction on 249 units between Cranberry Trail East and West for phases five and six of the Blue Fairway subdivision.
The appealed to council for a tree-cutting permit so they can clear cut the land before nesting season begins, prohibiting tree cutting between April and August.
The request first came to council during a committee meeting on Feb. 8.
“The way this item came to the town was by way of the request from the developer,” said Farr.
Typically tree-cutting requests are handled by staff and require the developer to have a town-approved site plan.
“The bylaw includes an appeal mechanism to council,” said Farr, adding that is why MacPherson and town staff were bringing the matter to the committee on Feb. 8 and to council on Feb. 22.
But nearby residents have mobilized in opposition to the tree-cutting permit with a change.org petition circulating online and gaining more than 3,500 signatures.
Among the arguments in opposition to the tree-cutting permit approval, the residents want the town to wait until a site plan is approved before allowing trees to be cut down.
They are also demanding the town ensure there’s access to Atoka Trail during and after construction, and they’re calling for a 30-foot wide buffer of forested area between Cranberry golf course and the new homes planned for phases five and six.
“We realize there is development planned and it will go ahead,” said Blue Fairway resident Beth Allen during the Feb. 22 meeting. “We are asking what will be gained by granting the builder’s request to fast-track the tree-cutting permit … We’re hoping for better balance.”
Former poet laureate Day Merrill presented a poem entitled “Not Today” she wrote in opposition to the tree cutting on the property.
“There may be times when clear-cutting acres seems needed when long-term accountability is ceded to attainable profits speaking louder than sustainable practices … but not today,” she read.
Green Briar resident Bob Tyssen also addressed council in opposition to the tree-cutting permit.
He noted there are other fairways at the Cranberry golf course where homes line the course without the benefit of a tree buffer.
“We don’t want the same thing on fairway four, five, and seven,” said Tyssen, adding his support to the call for a 30-foot treed buffer. “Do the right thing, and if MacPherson won’t do it, then the town should do it.”
The developer is “close” to having an approved site plan, according to Farr, and it is part of the larger, previously approved, plan of subdivision for the area.
MacPherson has predicted a one-year delay in the building project should they have to wait until after nesting season to remove trees.
The town’s director of planning, Adam Farr, brought the appeal to council with a plan to collect $250,000 in security from the developer to be used should construction not proceed.
Farr said he spoke with the town’s solicitor who recommended council give its permission to Farr to issue the tree cutting permit, even if a site plan approval hadn’t been granted yet, provided he was satisfied with the agreement with the developer and the promised security deposit to replace trees if construction doesn’t carry forward.
The current Atoka Trail runs through the treed lot but would be moved to make room for the proposed homes.
According to the staff report, the developer has committed to a new trail linking the Georgian Trail to Cranberry Trail along the eastern border of the property.
Council deferred a decision on the tree-cutting permit, with a motion put forward by Deputy Mayor Keith Hull.
Hull wanted to get a legal opinion on the specific wording of staff’s recommendation, which asked council to “suspend” the provisions of the town’s tree preservation and protection bylaw to allow MacPherson to remove trees on the property before a site plan is approved.
Council agreed to wait for the legal consultation before making a decision.
