“Based on the analysis contained in the report prepared by Meridian, Town Staff are satisfied that the proposed amendments represent good planning, are consistent with Provincial and County policy direction, and appropriately support the planned function of the Main Central Area as a focus for intensification.”

These words contained in the Staff report examining the proposal for a high-rise development in the middle of Downtown, which will overpower City Hall sound the death knell for reasonable commercial development in that area. This land comprises a huge amount of Downtown parking, which will be lost forever.

This is the third post about this development (post 1 here), (post 2 here) and now it appears that this application has moved from the discussion stage and into the actual approval stage by approving a rezoning application that blows all of the Main Commercial Zoning provisions to bits.

We at the BurdReport ask that you read this the Planning Department’s justification for the approval and responses to the Public Comments received –IT IS A TOTAL WHITEWASH and gives everything to the Developer without one change from the application.

The BR was wrong; in post 1 we wrote – “Everybody in the system knows this and even the Developer knows that there is not a hope in hell that this building will get built in the form of the application submitted. Just remember folks this is a ‘blue-sky’ application designed to get a compromise!”  We still ask just how anybody in the system could approve this it is beyond our comprehension! 

We have seen this type of Council action before. The Walmart approval on the Strathy lands twenty years ago rings true here. A rezoning proposal for the lands was brought before Council during an election campaign, the majority of Council voted for it. After the the election when campaign expenses were filed it was discovered that majority of Councillors, including the Mayor had received donations from the developer. Of course the Citizens did not know this at the time but this time it is different. We can demand that donations be declared from the Candidates that they do not accept donations from this developer.

All we can say that if this proposal is approved by this Council then they had better accompany the results with a demand to the developer that they finance the yet to be approved Parking Garage on Covert St.