Neighbours in the Janey Avenue area, on Airport Hill, are upset following the city council meeting Tuesday night; feeling like the system is both unfair and has failed them.
They feel that a proposed 71 lot subdivision will encroach on their quality of life and on the safety of the many children in the area.
“Why do bylaws exist if they aren’t there to protect the neighbourhoods and the properties” Tara Blake, a resident of the area asked. “I don’t think the safety concerns have been addressed in an adequate manner, none of this has been assessed.”
See: Proposed subdivision unsafe according to neighbouring residents
On January 29, residents in the neighbourhood next to the proposed Janey Avenue subdivision came out to voice their concerns over issues they perceived the developed-property-to-be would bring to them and their families.
As a result, Coun. Mark King, Chair of the Community Services Committee, kept the application on the committee so staff, the applicant, and the members of the neighbourhood could engage in further dialogue to find compromises.
On Tuesday night, the application came back before the committee, with staff presenting some amendments to the application, made since the last meeting—and even up until hours before the meeting itself.
Most notable of the changes, according to Beverly Hillier, manager of planning services at the city, was the shifting of the paved portion of the proposed entrance to the subdivision by 1.4 meters, providing more of a buffer to an existing home.
“The amendments just came out yesterday,” a displeased Blake said. “The latest came out two hours before the meeting, so as a neighbourhood, we really haven’t had an opportunity to convene and address our concerns.”
This 71-lot subdivision adjacent Janey Avenue is proposed with a single entrance, a narrow intersection between two homes connecting to Janey Avenue, and over Johnston Creek.
This has been the largest concern for Blake, who said the kid-filled neighbourhood was already dealing with an unsafe bend in the road.
“In the direct area there are over 20 kids and it’s an active transportation to school,” she said. “In ideal conditions when the weather is good, it’s a difficult bend and when one of those elements changes it’s an accident waiting to happen.”
But when council decided to push the application forward, Blake was concerned about the developer getting to choose a third-party engineer to design the plans, despite city staff saying the process has been consistent with standard practice in North Bay and other municipalities.
However, Blake said she and her fellow neighbours may consider an Ontario Municipal Board appeal following the meeting.
“It’s not off the table,” she said. “We’re aware the next step is to the OMB level and once it goes to that level their decision is final and that may not be a bad idea to put it into the hands of somebody neutral.”