Thread by @LoveWilmot

Here's the agenda for this evening's council meeting, which begins at 7pm. Get the full package here bit.ly/3uMOZFo, watch live at bit.ly/3uMO7Az, or follow along here 👇

Council is reconvening in open session, following an earlier closed meeting (which started at 5pm).

Mayor Armstrong begins with a moment's reflection for the #IDAHOBIT2021, and he talks about inclusion and feeling welcome.

Coun Hallman reads the land acknowledgment. A modified version has been read by the women councillors at recent meetings, and it reflects the fact that the meeting is virtual. Coun Hallman also refers to #IDAHOBIT.

Coun Gerber declares a pecuniary interest (item 11.1.1) - a member of his family has a connection to the business in question, so he will abstain from the discussion and vote.

The previous meeting's minutes have been accepted.

Mayor Armstrong puts forward a motion to limit delegations for items not on the agenda to only five minutes, rather than the usual 10. This is due to the number of delegations this evening.

Coun Hallman says that if people haven't been given enough warning they may have prepared their presentations for 10 minutes.

Coun Gordijk also doesn't think it's fair to limit delegations at the last minute.

Coun Gerber suggests putting forward a motion might be fairer, rather than making the change on the spur of the moment.

Dawn Mittelholtz (Director of Clerk's Services/Director of Information and Legislative Services) says that the delegations were told that their time *might* be limited this evening.

Coun Pfenning asks the clerk if there was any feedback from the delegations about the possible change. Ms Mittelholtz says she would have to check with the Deputy Clerk.

Coun Fisher says he's okay with letting delegations have 10 minutes each tonight, but would like to see a motion for situations where there are a lot of delegations registered.

The motion is defeated 4-1, with Coun Fisher the only nay vote.

(I'm not sure why Coun Fisher voted no, as he said that he was in favour of delegations having 10 minutes each this evening.)

There's now a public meeting about a Zone Change Application for 162 Snyder’s Road East, Baden. Andrew Martin (Manager of Planning/EDO) is presenting his report.

Mayor Armstrong reminds delegations of a few rules before the first speaker. He lists a few types of comments that will not be tolerated and will result in muting.

First up is Andrea Sinclair (MHBC Planning). She's representing the planners for the property owner.

Ms Sinclair is describing the proposal, including the history of the site.

Ms Sinclair points out that there will be a review of "staff, agency and public comments" before this comes to council for a vote.

(As an aside, I've written an article for @TheWilmotPost this week, about this type of process in the Township and Region.)

The full report begins on page 37 of the agenda package.

Coun Pfenning says this is heading in the direction she would like to see for local housing. She asks on behalf of a resident if Ms Sinclair knows what the client's plans are. She answers that these will be 1- and 2-bedroom rental units.

Coun Hallman asks if any of the units will be wheelchair accessible, as there's a need in the community. Ms Sinclair says she believes this is now a requirement for "barrier-free accessible units".

Coun Fisher says he has concerns about the low number of parking spaces allocated for each unit, and asks if there will be visitor parking. Ms Sinclair says that many people living in single bed units - such as seniors - only have one car.

Next delegation is Jennifer Zielman, who is here with husband Justin. They live next to the property, and Jennifer says she's worried about the loss of privacy due to the height of the proposed building and the setback. She adds that the building might be too big for the space.

O'Derald Gingerich is next and says he has a few concerns, as he lives across the road. He says there could be up to 100 people in the building.

He's not happy about the height and says this would be bigger than any other development "in the village". (I think he means Baden, not Wilmot.) He also voices concerns about the lack of parking.

He says this is a change from what was there in the past, and names Egli's Meats. "It never had 100 people all at one time."

He says he "would rather look at a nice pastoral scene, rather than a three-and-a-half story building."

Natasha Salonen is the next delegation. She was born and raised in Wilmot, went away to university, and then moved back. She says she's the target market for these units, but she has concerns that the property doesn't meet the standards of the Township's master plan.

Ms Salonen says that the current bus schedule doesn't make it easy to live in a property like this with one or no car. She isn't happy with the aesthetic of the proposal as it doesn't suit the Township's mission statement of being a countryside community.

Ms Salonen says we should be building infrastructure first before we build housing to accommodate more people.

Jeff Pinkney is next, and his family lives at 189 Snyder's Rd E. He says his family shares the concerns of pervious delegations. He says the developer is trying to fix an awful lot of stuff into a small space.

That's all the delegations for this item. Today's report and discussion were just for information, and a staff report will be forthcoming.

Next is a presentation by KW Hydro, by Jerry VanOoteghem (KW Hydro Corporation) and Jim Philips (Kitchener Power Corporation Chair). The 2020 report is on page 63 of the agenda. No need for me to repeat the numbers here.

Coun Pfenning asks what the impact was with so many people working from home because of COVID. Mr VanOoteghem says there was an big increase, which isn't unexpected, given the circumstances. The hot summer (a/c) also had an effect on usage.

Mr VanOoteghem says that the dividend has already been paid to the Township, which is used for reforestation projects.

Carried.

Next is the Consent Agenda. Coun Hallman asks for an item to be removed from the agenda so it can be discussed. All the other items have been approved.

Coun Hallman asks Jeff Molenhuis (Director of Public Works) about locations for the Annual Concrete Sidewalk Program, specifically in New Dundee, which he clarifies.

No further questions, so the Award of Contract has been carried by council.

On to a zone change application for 142-148 Snyder’s Road West, Baden, which had a public meeting in July 2020. Mr Martin (Manager of Planning) is presenting his report. The application has been slightly modified since it was previously presented.

A delegation, Nathan Riedel, is speaking about the application. He lives next to the property, and he says the height of the proposed compound will block light on one side, so he asks for the number of stories to be reduced.

Mr Riedel says there isn't enough parking being provided, and there isn't enough street parking for visitors, such as support workers (the residential units is aimed at seniors). He talks about the aesthetics not being suitable for the area. (Seems to be a common theme tonight.)

He asks council to vote no to the application.

Next delegation is Sam Head (Dryden, Smith & Head Planning Consultants), the developer.

Coun Pfenning asks about the impact of reducing the height, and if that's feasible. Mr Head says he would have to ask the owners, as it might be an economic consideration.

Mr Martin says that the zoning as it stands would allow for the height of this proposal, so that isn't an issue. The application was required because of the number of dwellings, not the height.

Coun Gordijk asks about the noise study, as some previous delegations had complained about the potential noise from so many appliances and a/c units.

Mr Martin says this will be addressed at the site plan stage.

Carried.

Announcements: Coun Hallman mentions that New Dundee resident Marilyn Sararus has been recognized for her volunteer work.

Coun Pfenning says it's important for everyone to take time for themselves during this stressful time.

Delegations about the Hallman Pit application are next, and Mayor Armstrong reminds people about the rules for speaking.

Rory Farnan & Samantha Lernout (Citizens for Safe Ground Water @csgw_wr) are up first.

Mr Farnan says CSGW is here to continue to address potential impacts from the pit. This evening is covering the ecological impact.

Next speaker is Dorothy Wilson (@nvecoboosters), talking about protecting water quality and drinking water quality.

The next delegation is Linda Laepple, who has spoken before about this application. She's talking about a Review of Hydrogeological Assessment and Operational Plan.

Next is David Prong, who lives on a farm adjacent to the Hallman Pit. He's against the application because he says a lot of farm land will be lost as a result. He also talks about the protected source water area.

Mark Gordon is the next delegation, who is addressing climate change and the negative impacts on health of the Hallman Pit. He says the 150 people who live closest to the pit will be especially affected. He adds that @fordnation and @mikeharrisjrpc both want the pit to proceed.

Mr Gordon says that Mike Harris hasn't responded to his emails, even though he said in The Record that he wouldn't hide from his constituents.

Shingletown resident Christina Harnack is now talking about the land acknowledgement that is read at the start of each council meeting and how the Township needs to live up to that standard. She mentions the wildlife and protecting drinking water.

Ms Harnack says she appreciates her 10 minutes being protected tonight (referring to the Mayor's motion to reduce the delegations to just 5 minutes).

Next up is David Bricker is a former firefighter, and he's talking about airborne particles, which could affect local residents close to the Hallman Pit.

Laverne Forwell is now up, speaking about the pond on the property in question. He mentions the natural beauty, as well as the history of the area. Mr Forwell is talking about incidents that happened in the 1950s, talking about Mr A and Mr B. (?)

That was the last delegation this evening.

The earlier closed meeting is referred to. The Pfennings are donating land for recreational use, in honour of their late son, Andreas.

Coun Hallman says how grateful she is for this donation in tribute to Andreas Pfenning.

We're adjourned at 10:13pm.