Odour issues topped the list of concerns as a Global Egg Corporation unveiled plans to expand its plant in Elmira.
A zoning change needed to make way for the project was the subject of a public planning meeting Tuesday night in Woolwich council chambers.
Currently operating from two neighbouring properties at 109 and 115 Bonnie Cr., the company wants to build an addition that would join the two structures, effectively turning the existing 22,600 and 5,200-square-foot buildings into one 38,000-sq.-ft. facility.
Doing so would increase the footprint of the building in comparison to the lot size, largely reducing setbacks from roads and eliminating much of the onsite parking, explained director of engineering and planning Dan Kennaley in introducing the zone-change application.
The operation, which processes eggs into egg-whites, yolks, specialty mixes and other products, has been the source of odour complaints in the past, with a planner hired by the company suggesting the expansion would reduce the likelihood of future problems.
Bob Black of RBA Planning Consultants said the odour is due to eggs broken at another site sitting for a day or two before being delivered and processed in Elmira. With the operation under one roof – the company hopes to move the egg-breaking operation from its plant in Etobicoke – the eggs would be broken, processed and dried in short order, greatly reducing the chance of odours.
The smell was one of the issues raised by Tom Taylor, who operates Fish Farm Supply Co. on Bonnie Crescen – “the odour is a real problem.”
He also pointed to concerns about parking, foot traffic with the lack of sidewalks and snow removal on the Global Egg property if so much of the property is covered by the building.
Black said the owners have arranged for 64 parking spots on a piece of vacant land at nearby 90 Union St., adding the lack of sidewalks is not uncommon in the industrial area.
“Global Egg is concerned about the safety of their employees,” he said, suggesting a crosswalk might be an option.
In response to a question from Coun. Julie-Anne Herteis about traffic on Bonnie Crescent, Black noted that truck traffic would be reduced on that street, as shipping and receiving would be moved to the back of the new building, with access from Oriole Parkway.
Currently, there’s an average of three trucks delivering materials to the plant each day, with one truck outbound with product. With the expansion, those numbers would increase to seven and three, respectively, Black added.
Along with citing the odour problem – “it’s pretty substantial” – Mayor Todd Cowan asked company representatives about how the plant handles the waste it discharges into the sewage system.
Global Egg vice-president Gildo Vieira said the company recently installed a $500,000 treatment system that exceeds the discharge standards, adding the firm is also eager to deal with odour issues. The new process at an expanded plant would solve that problem
“We’re confident that this will take care of that,” said Vieira.
The meeting October 8 was for information purposes only. While councillors asked questions, a decision won’t be made until Kennaley’s department has studied the application, processed input from the public and brought a recommendation report back to council at a later date.
