BIA expansion not proceeding

Jeff Helsdon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A proposal to expand the boundaries of the Downtown Tillsonburg Business Improvement Association will not be proceeding.

The BIA boundaries, which are confined to the downtown core have not been changed since the formation of the BIA in 1978. The proposed expansion would have stretched from the middle of Concession Street on the north, along the Stoney Creek gully on the west to Otter Creek, across to Young Street on the south, and then up Vienna Road, crossing the Otter and towards Maple Lane. It would have added 30 properties to the BIA zone.

Throughout a process that took several months, both BIA Executive Director Mark Renard and town Development Commissioner Cephas Panschow said the expansion would allow the possibility of more commercial land. However, Panschow did have concerns about the industrial land included in the boundary.

Commercial properties within the BIA area pay a BIA levy that funds the operation of the BIA and its business promotion activities. There is no impact on residential home owners.

The expansion procedure, which is outlined in provincial statute, allows for comments by businesses in the area. If one-third of businesses in the area object, the expansion cannot go ahead. Although that threshold was not reached, council sought more input from its Economic Develoopment Committee and the BIA Board of Management before proceeding.

The latest input from the committee and board of management was captured in a report presented by Acting Clerk Amelia Jaggard at the Nov. 24 council meeting.

The BIA board’s latest motion was: “At this stage, the DTBIA recommends continued collaboration with stakeholders, including the Tillsonburg District Chamber of Commerce, Tillsonburg Economic Development Advisory Committee, Office of the Development Commissioner, and DTBIA representatives. The goal is to achieve consensus on the proposed boundary and determine an appropriate course of action moving forward.”

The Economic Development Committee motion was to halt the process and “a collaborative community group be created to discuss a potential sustainable, commercial boundary expansion.”

Throughout the process, Mayor Deb Gilvesy and Councillor Chris Rosehart declared a pecuniary interest and did not take part in the debate due to family members owning property in the current BIA core. Deputy Mayor Dave Beres also started declaring a conflict for the same reason after a complaint to the town’s integrity commissioner, which was dismissed and he was found not in violation of policy.

Despite the controversy, there was no debate or comments from the four remaining councillors at the Nov. 24 meeting and the report was accepted as information, meaning the expansion will not proceed.