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Subdivision Approval "Completely Political" Says Braden
July 20, 2004
It was bitterly opposed by three councillors and at least a third of it remains clouded in uncertainty, but the Glanbrook Hills subdivision has secured the go-ahead from the city. Along the way, the Weizer Investments project to build 186 houses on Twenty Road East has cleared a long string of hurdles.
The first was its location outside the city's urban boundary on some of the best farmland in Hamilton. When owner Arthur Weisz initiated his proposal in early 2003, city planning staff strongly recommended against it. They pointed to several council decisions not to expand the urban boundary until the city's new 30-year growth plan was completed. They also noted that providing sewers to the property would require a new pumping station. The managers of the Mount Hope airport added that the houses would be too close to flight paths.
Led by then Stoney Creek councillor Larry DiIanni, the 2003 council dismissed these objections and overcame the sewer issue by approving only that portion of the land could be serviced by gravity. In 2003 this was estimated at 14.25 hectares, but that subsequently grew to 16.4 hectares. However, city staff now say servicing may require "the removal of the existing sanitary sewer, to lower it to accommodate the gravity feed along Twenty Road ".
The end-run around the urban boundary also meant that Weisz avoided the Secondary Plan process that is used across Hamilton to try and ensure that each neighbourhood includes a mix of uses and has a large enough population to justify transit services. As a result, this area will contain no jobs, no shops, no apartments and no townhouses. Instead the entire subdivision will be single-family houses.
Councillor Brian McHattie described the process as "a clear example of us ignoring proper planning principles". He also questioned the wisdom of building new homes where there is no transit service within two kilometres. HSR staff person Andy McLaughlin agreed. "Without transit service people do tend to go out and purchase a second automobile," he noted. "And once they have that, it becomes very difficult in the long run to ever attract them back onto transit."
The density of the new subdivision will be slightly over 11 units per acre. That's less than two-thirds of the 17 units per acre considered to be the minimum capable of supporting public transit. That density can generate enough riders for one bus every 30 minutes. To support 10 minute service, a neighbourhood needs over 30 units per acre.
Councillor Dave Braden bitterly declared: ""This has been one-offed right from the beginning. It has been a boundary extension when it shouldn't have been. We know we don't want low density, or a lot of it, although we want diversity. This is low-density. We do want mixed development. This couldn't be farther from the truth. We want development that eventually will be reasonably efficient to provide transit for. This will never be."
Braden tried to convince his colleagues to block approval of at least the one-third of the subdivision that is crossed by a small stream. The developer is still negotiating with the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority about whether the stream can be relocated. If it can't, this portion will not be able to proceed.
Another environmental issue was raised by two citizens who appeared before the committee. They contend that several of the house lots and part of one of the streets are in a flood zone. David Harris addressed councillors on both July 6 and July 14. He used photos and one of the city's maps to argue that the houses can only be built by bringing in tonnes of fill and damaging an environmentally sensitive marsh.
Developer representative Sergio Manchez seemed to agree there was a problem. "This whole area must be cleaned up and tidied up," he explained. "That will have to go through the NPCA fill and permit process". City staff suggested Mr. Harris was using " old general flood plain mapping that was prepared by the Conservation Authority", and said that the city was relying on more recent mapping prepared by the developer in conjunction with the conservation authority. Harris, however, used a photo to show the back of the lots is right on the edge of the marsh, and far below the highest land in the area. (See above for photo presented by Mr. Harris. His map is below.)
Map showing encroachment of housing lots on wetlands of Twenty Mile Creek.
A final objection raised from Braden was the location of stormwater facilities for the development. They will be placed outside the urban boundary on additional agricultural land.
Glanbrook councillor Dave Mitchell opposed the boundary expansion in 2003 and voted against part of the subdivision application at planning committee on July 6, but he ended up endorsing the project at City Council because he felt the developer would successfully appeal any rejection to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB).
Councillor Sam Merulla countered that it will cost the city far more to service the new subdivision than it would ever spend in an OMB hearing.
Merulla, Braden and McHattie voted against the project at both committee and council. The staff report on the application can be viewed at
http://www.city.hamilton.on.ca/Clerk/
agendas-minutes-reports/Planning-Economic-
Development/2004/July06/PD04168.pdf.
The 2003 staff report on the urban boundary expansion application is at
http://www.city.hamilton.on.ca/clerk/archives/
committee-hearings/2003/Apr16/PD03055.pdf.
A transcript of the discussions at both committee and council can be found on the CATCH website:
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