County council backs Wilson Ave. townhouses

Debbie Kasman, Tillsonburg Post Correspondent

Oxford County council went against the Town of Tillsonburg’s direction, voting to allow the redesignation of 155 Wilson Ave from low density residential to medium density residential, with site-specific policies to facilitate the development of a 3.5-storey, 24-unit stacked townhouse building.

Approval was given even though the Town of Tillsonburg council unanimously rejected the proposed Zone Change Application at its April 27 council meeting.

County council also ignored over 140 signatures on a petition from residents asking the county to reject the proposal, and Tillsonburg Mayor and county councillor Deb Gilvesy making a case for turning down the application. More than 50 people from Tillsonburg were in attendance at the controversial meeting.

While Oxford County cannot directly overturn a local zoning decision made by town council, the county can – and historically has – approved Official Plan Amendments (OPA) that run counter to town council’s recommendations.

That’s what happened on June 24.

The property in question is located on the north side of Wilson Avenue, and the south side of Concession Street West, near Hickory Hills, an established adult living community with more than 750 residents.

The owner of the property to be developed is 2455892 Ontario Inc., which is owned by Abe Hiebert.

Tillsonburg council cited issues like incompatibility with the neighbourhood, traffic, water capacity, density, and lack of appropriate transition from low-density areas in its rejection of the application in April. The present council followed the path set by previous councils, which rejected applications for this property eight times over the years.

Gilvesy noted specifically that “the town finds that the proposed zoning by-law amendment does not conform to the intent or spirit of the compatible development policies of the Oxford County Official Plan,” and that “approval of this development would fully allocate the town’s drinking water system.”

Gilvesy also expressed concerns that any such allocation “may constrain future industrial growth.”

Neighbouring resident Roberta Brown spoke to Oxford County on behalf of the residents of Hickory Hills, making it clear they were deeply opposed to the application for official plan amendments requested by the property owners, noting that residents are deeply concerned about loss of peacefulness for their Hickory Hills retirement community, that the town continues to deny proposals for the property, that massive bypassing of the town’s growth plan is required for this development to move forward, that the amendments recently proposed are not desirable, and the proposal shows residential units that are not geared to seniors.

Other concerns expressed by the residents of Hickory Hills included limited water capacity for the town, increased traffic, the number of proposed parking spaces, environmental impact, noise pollution, light pollution, and whether the driveway could accommodate multiple large emergency vehicles.

Brown added that Hickory Hills has been recognized as one of the best places to retire in Canada, referring to a comment from Councillor Kelly Spencer at the April council meeting: “Tillsonburg has been known as a wonderful retirement community… There have been publications of the town as one of the best places in the country to retire, and we need to protect that.”

County planning staff supported the application, saying it is generally consistent with the Provincial Planning Statement direction and Official Plan policies respecting residential intensification, infill within established neighbourhoods, increased supply, diversity of dwelling types, and locational criteria respecting the designation of new medium density residential areas.

But planning staff did confirm there are no plans for an elevator in the building. All 24 units of the stacked townhouse development would be ‘walk-up’ units from the exterior, as currently planned. Accessibility standards would meet building code standards, but the plans don’t go beyond the standard requirements.

Gilvesy made a motion asking county council not to support the developer’s proposal, citing the same reasons town council rejected the proposal, adding that she does not work for the province of Ontario, that she does not support running small towns and rural routes for intensification, that she represents the people who live in her community, who consistently say to her, “Stop shoving housing down our throats.” Applause from the audience showed the support for her remarks.

Deborah Tait, Woodstock councillor, said she supported and respected Tillsonburg council’s decision, that planning needs to be at one level, that the county should not be able to overturn a local council’s decision because they think it’s better, that provincial policies are geared to big cities, and not geared to smaller municipalities.

Woodstock Mayor Jerry Acchione said while he would normally fully support an application like this, Tillsonburg council was unanimous and he was going to respect that. He added intensification will be needed at some point.

Norwich Mayor Jim Palmer said he would support Gilvesy’s motion because council was being asked to suit the needs of a property owner rather than Hickory Hills, one of the leaders in Ontario where the elderly can live in comfort and peace.

Bernia Martin, Deputy Warden and Woodstock councillor, said she was not going to support the motion because she was told there would be a plan to address water capacity in the town of Tillsonburg as early as this summer.

Ingersoll Mayor Brian Petrie didn’t support the motion because he felt it had been given due process. He added that Hickory Hills went through the same process, and if council decided to turn this application down, it would cost the town and the county legal fees to fight an application at the Ontario Land Tribunal.

South-West Oxford Mayor David Mayberry said he was reluctant to support something the town had said no to, but having said that, “We have a legitimate official plan amendment in front of us that planning staff have professionally gone through and said is supportable. It should move forward.”

Marcus Ryan, Warden of County Council and Mayor of Zorra Township, reminded everyone that county council had adopted a housing first policy that said the county would prioritize getting people into homes, and he would not support the motion.

Gilvesy’s motion did not pass by a recorded vote of 6 to 4.

A motion was filed immediately after to approve the planning application, and that motion carried.

The project is restricted to 24 dwelling units, and site plan approval is required before the development can proceed. This will provide an opportunity for county and town staff to further review and address various site design related matters such as landscaping and buffering, fencing, lighting, garbage storage, drainage and servicing to help ensure any site design related concerns are appropriately addressed.

In a statement after the decision was made, Gilvesy said, “It is disappointing that county council is not recognizing the unanimous decision of a lower-tier municipality to withhold support for this development. Ignoring that clear local consensus undermines the voice of the community.”