Between now and the spring, residents of Collingwood will have a chance to comment on at least three different proposals for residential developments in town with a total impact of more than 1,700 units.
According to Mark Bryan, community planner for the Town of Collingwood, the three largest development proposals headed to the public meeting process include applications by Georgian Bay Hotel, Bridgewater on Georgian Bay, and Panorama North.
The Georgian Bay Hotel and Conference Centre, located on the west end of Collingwood off Highway 26, has applied for an official plan amendment in order to build 185 dwelling units in six four-storey apartment buildings. The hotel is looking for part of the lands to be rezoned to allow the units built there to be used for both short-term accommodation units and residential dwelling units. Since an official plan amendment is required, the town must hold a statutory public meeting. The meeting will take place on Feb. 11 at 5 p.m. in the town hall council chambers.
“All development applications requiring an approval from council are subject to public process in so far as they proceed to the Development and Operations Standing Committee and council, which are both public forums,” said Bryan. “Development applications involving official plan amendments [like Georgian Bay Hotel], zoning by-law amendments, or plans of subdivision are also subject to statutory requirements under the Planning Act for a public meeting.”
A public meeting like this one is typically run by council and includes a presentation on the application followed by an open mic available for any members of the public who have questions, comments, or concerns about the proposal.
“Many factors can affect a development application and the proposal that is ultimately brought forward for council’s consideration,” said Bryan.
After a public meeting, staff compile public comments in a report. In some cases, staff will address or respond to comments made by the public, and in other cases the developer will. All this information is provided to council before a decision is made on the development application, according to Bryan.
“In the case of Pretty River Estates, a few years ago, a request to increase density and add townhouses to the mix of an existing subdivision was scaled back in part due to public comment,” said Bryan.
This summer, a submission by Parkbridge to build a four-storey headquarters at 70 Huron Street stirred up emotional opposition from several residents at a public meeting, most of whom said the building should be within the allowable three-storey limit for the area.
Parkbridge changed the plan, and Parkbridge planner Robert Voigt brought back a proposal for a three-storey building, saying the company heard “loud and clear what the citizens were saying.”
The public meeting isn’t the only place to make a comment on a development. Members of the public can submit written comments by email, and you can ask to be added to a communication list to receive notices for updates on the application.
“It is important if they have comments, that they make those comments,” said Bryan. “If they don’t make these comments before council makes a decision, that may affect your ability to appeal that decision.”
The two other large developments that will go to public meetings in the spring include Bridgewater on Georgian Bay and Panorama North.
Bridgewater’s current draft approval is for 320 dwelling units and the developer is seeking to change that to a mix of 655 apartment, single detached dwellings, semi-detached dwellings, and back-to-back townhouse dwelling units. The property is also on Collingwood’s west end, on the north side of Highway 26 across from Georgian Bay Hotel and near Princeton Shore Boulevard. You can find more on that proposal on the town website here.
Bryan expects there will be a public meeting for the proposal in March.
Finally, Panorama North is a proposal for a 929 dwelling unit plan of subdivision, which would include a mix of single detached homes, townhouses, stacked townhouses, back-to-back townhouses, and apartments. The plan is to build on a parcel of land on the corner of Mountain Road and Tenth Line. Other residential developments proposed for that area along Tenth Line include Mair Mills Villages (127 single units, 192 multi units), Linksview (591 combined units), and Red Maple (131 single units and 147 multi units). Red Maple recently applied for a three-year extension on the draft plan approval to raise more funds to build a reservoir on site.
Bryan expects there will be a public meeting on the Panorama North proposal this spring, March at the earliest.
The town keeps a development activity map on its website here. The map includes names of planned development and number of single and multi units proposed for each development. As of the most recent update (January) there are 1,205 single units and 4,416 multi units proposed on the development map. The document also shows commercial and industrial development proposed or underway in Collingwood.
For more on development and land-use planning in Collingwood or to find email contacts, visit the town’s department page here. To submit a comment on a development proposal prior to the public meeting, call planning services at 705-445-1290.
