Woolwich will continue to fight a gravel pit proposed for Conestogo, unswayed by new reports submitted by Hunder Developments.
Councillors meeting Tuesday night unanimously voted in favour of opposing the Hunsberger pit at an Ontario Municipal Board hearing scheduled for September.
The township has determined the proposal does not conform with its Official Plan. It first rejected the applicant’s bid for an OP amendment in 2011, prompting the property owners to launch an appeal to the OMB. The quasi-judicial provincial board subsequently instructed Woolwich to look at new reports submitted by the applicant and to host a public meeting, which was held April 9.
None of the new information changed the minds of residents, planning staff or councillors, however.
In a presentation to council this week, Keri Martin Vrbanac of the Conestogo-Winterbourne Residents Association (CWRA) pointed to a long list of concerns that remain unaddressed, including longstanding issues with noise, traffic and visual impacts, as well as the loss of prime agricultural land.
The Hunder application would see aggregate extraction on some 150 acres of land on two farm properties located at 128 Katherine St. S. and 1081 Hunsberger Rd. The operation would see some 500,000 tonnes of gravel extracted each year, with 4.3 million tonnes available.
The pit would be bordered by four residential neighbourhoods, including Golf Course Road in Conestogo and Sunset Drive and Meadowbrook Place in Winterbourne. From noise and dust to traffic and property devaluation, the negative impacts would affect hundreds of residents, CWRA argues.
Experts hired by CWRA to review the studies submitted by the applicants found a long list of shortcomings, including overall nonconformity to the township’s planning documents, said Martin Vrbanac.
“Based on the information provided, the zone change application and Official Plan amendment should be rejected.”
That view was shared by the township’s planning staff, with director of engineering and planning Dan Kennaley recommending councillors vote to oppose Hunder’s actions at the OMB.
“We continue to have … fundamental concerns” with the application, he said of the new studies submitted by Hunder Developments.
The OP calls for no unacceptable impacts – noise, visual, traffic and the like – and the proposed pit fails to conform, said Kennaley.
Asked by Mayor Todd Cowan about the Region of Waterloo’s position on proposed pit, Kennaley said there are some differences of opinion. While the two municipalities agree the hydrogeological impacts will be manageable, for instance, they differ on the impact on traffic, particularly the Crowsfoot corner. Where the region dismisses concerns given plans to restructure the troublesome intersection, the township takes a different view, seeing additional truck traffic as a danger and increased risk.
“The Crowsfoot intersection is … another reason it should be denied,” he said of the Hunder application.
For Coun. Mark Bauman, the intersection has been a “red flag” since the Hunsberger pit was first proposed some six or seven years ago.
“There is a problem there.”
While Katherine Street and Sawmill Road are regional roads, Crowsfoot Road belongs to the township, so Woolwich would share in any liability if accidents occur, he noted, adding that, at the very least, the intersection would have to be improved before a gravel pit could even be considered.
In the event the OMB overturns Woolwich’s decision, Kennaley said the township has a long list of changes it would press for. The hearing is set to begin on September 3, with 25 days having been set aside for the proceedings.
