Letter to the Editor
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Non profit housing zone change
This letter was sent to members of Town Council, CAO and Town Clerk, following the March 13 Tillsonburg Council meeting, and submitted to the Tillsonburg News as a Letter to the Editor.
Good afternoon members of Council.
It was heartening to know three of you voted against the zone change at last night's Council meeting.
Councillor Hayes, thank you for the strong and factual points why this zone change should not take place, you stated your case very well. Also thank you for the recorded vote. There needs to be more of them.
At best this issue should have been deferred again, until the developer presents site plan drawings illustrating the proposed building. To not have this information before approving the zoning change was a mistake.
In fact, how this request got in front of Council, is not in keeping with the developer being transparent.
Name another zone change where detailed concept drawings were not part of the zone change as an information item.
It is my understanding, public meetings are called for prior to zone change requests, not post it coming to Council. Public meetings should be included in the staff report. Why wasn't this process followed for the initial meeting?
The 4-3 result is disappointing, as the sensitivity to the impact of this building will have on the neighbourhood, as presented was not listened to. (After much debate the building appearance and number of units is still unknown).
The Official plan is very clear: Changes to neighbourhoods be respectful to its neighbourhood makeup.
One cannot help but ask, if this proposal was in your backyard, would you have voted the same?
John Lessif,
Tillsonburg