The Blue Mountains council is considering the sale of 11 town-owned properties to raise some cash.
On March 12, council held a public meeting to gather input on the possibility of the properties being declared surplus and eventually sold. The 11 properties under consideration are a mixture of unopened road allowances, narrow lanes, larger parcels that could be potential building lots and one small lot on Grey Road 2 that may or may not be a separate property.
At the meeting, council considered each property on an individual basis with the proceedings drawing a crowd to the council chambers. The potential sale of the various properties also generated many written comments from the public, summaries of which were read by Clerk Corrina Giles.
During the 2023 budget process, council directed staff to take a look at the possibility of selling surplus town lands to raise extra money for the town and future initiatives. Town staff spent a considerable amount of time reviewing the town’s land inventory that culminated with a report that identified 11 potential properties that could be sold. After receiving that report, council directed staff to proceed with a public meeting on the topic.
At the meeting, CAO Shawn Everitt told council that no waterfront properties were considered during the process. Everitt also said the town provided 58 days of notice to the public about the meeting to ensure a “fair, transparent and clear process.”
“This is the largest grouping of surplus land staff have ever brought forward,” said Everitt. “This process has been hugely valuable.”
The properties (the full list can be found here) under consideration are:
- Cedar Street Road allowance, 0.31 acres. It is a potential building lot
- Leming Street Road allowance, 0.05 acres. It has no potential to be a building lot. The property is a small laneway.
- Clark Street lot (behind the old Collingwood Township firehall). This is a 0.11-acre landlocked piece of property with minimal potential as a building lot.
- Grey Road 2 (just south of Grey Road 19). This 0.45-acre lot is believed to be owned by the town. Everitt called it a “very interesting piece of property” but said more research needs to be done about the lot’s history. The owner of the adjacent property, Darryl Wilson, spoke at the meeting and questioned the existence of the small parcel. “To my knowledge there is no town-owned land,” he said.
- Cameron Street road allowance. This is a 0.37-acre lot that is a potential building lot.
- Margaret Street (Craigleith area) road allowance. This is a long 0.87-acre property that does have the potential to be a building lot. A town drainage course is on the property that Everitt said would have to be severed from the land and maintained.
- A small lot measuring 12 metres by nine metres. The property is located between the town’s new parking lot in downtown Thornbury and the Bruce Wine Bar.
- A narrow laneway behind several homes on Bruce Street, with access from Alice Street. It is 0.13 acres in size and is not a buildable lot.
- Corner of Huron and Elma Streets. This is a 0.02-acre parcel shaped like a triangle. It is not a building lot and is currently part of the road allowance.
- Gordon Street West (near the Village at Blue). This is a 0.25-acre parcel that could have potential as a building lot. The lot is irregularly shaped as it contains access to a local trail.
- Plan 119, Block 25 - Salzburg Place. This is a 0.54-acre lot that is currently zoned open space. It fronts on the Salzburg Place cul-de-sac and is a potential building lot.
Public comments on the properties potentially being sold by the town ranged from neighbouring property owners expressing interest in purchasing certain properties should they become available to outright opposition to the sale of certain properties.
The Gordon Street West property attracted many comments from residents opposed to it being sold. The residents said the property is currently a walking trail and green space and they preferred it be left that way.
There was also plenty of support for the sale of the property near the Bruce Wine Bar to a neighbouring property owner.
At the conclusion of the meeting, Everitt said no decisions had been made on any of the properties. He noted that, in some cases, other processes may be required before the town can move forward with any potential sale. A follow-up report summarizing the public comments will come to council in the near future.
“There are a number of steps required to complete this process,” he said.
