By Mark Schadenberg
In the future sometime . . . I likely do plan on putting my name
forward in some capacity to vie for a chair at Woodstock city council.
With that in mind, and fully realizing material posted to the internet
can reside here ‘for a long long time’, I do want to publicly state that (in my opinion) the
time has arrived for Woodstock to assimilate more lands from Norwich Township.
The process is underway, but if you read the media’s interpretations
of how Norwich is replying, the township, which could lose over 100 acres in
taxation revenues, wants to receive compensation ‘for a long long time’.
Successful Commercial Park Needs To Expand
The City of Woodstock recently put a conditional offer on a large piece
of property abutting the Pattullo Ridge commercial park on the south side of the
401 (Harvan, Nova Steel, Execulink, Pow Labs, Kerry, Hino, Brant Form Teck, Canada Mold
Technology, Contrans, Rentquip, North American Stamping Group, Lely Canada, Armtec, Trigon, and Rogers Communications are all located in
Pattullo currently).
The lands in question are in Norwich Township, so the Woodstock
powers-that-be have opened up negotiations for a boundary adjustment, which would logically require some compensation.
In a previous blog here I noted that the City of Brantford is offering
Brant County 10 years of taxation compensation on a sliding scale – eventually
evaporating to zero in a proposed boundary change.
A story in The Woodstock Sentinel-Review back in August states that
Norwich has been offered $75,000 for its possible tax losses.
The problem with Norwich (and you can't blame them I guess) is that the township still sees the dollar
signs offered Blandford-Blenheim during the assembly of land back in 2005 to
attract Toyota to The Friendly City.
The S-R story states that the City’s offer to purchase is conditional
until Jan 2, 2014 upon this land’s accumulation to within Woodstock borders.
While little has been resolved in Brantford versus Brant yet, the
10-year suggestion would seem ample to me as costs for attracting new business and
servicing the property would all be accumulated and accounted by the City’s
taxpayers.
More Boundary Change Suggestions
With the Pattullo large land chunk eventually added to Woodstock, I also believe
the time has arrived for Woodstock to assume the rights (jurisdiction) over two more land parcels
from Norwich. The first, I will describe as the old OPP detachment on Highway 2
at the east end of Woodstock and all dirt southward to the 401, which is not
Woodstock already (triangle shaped). I'm convinced with its location near to the 401 and Toyota that this land would have already been redeveloped if it was part of Woodstock and thereby promoted by our economic development office.
Also, since Woodstock now continues into Eastwood, but only on the north side of Highway 2 to Blandford Road, I firmly believe the terra firma on the south side of Highway 2 (also Eastwood) should also be reeled into Woodstock, but only up-to-and-including the CN train tracks and east to County Rd 55 (Old Highway 53).
Also, since Woodstock now continues into Eastwood, but only on the north side of Highway 2 to Blandford Road, I firmly believe the terra firma on the south side of Highway 2 (also Eastwood) should also be reeled into Woodstock, but only up-to-and-including the CN train tracks and east to County Rd 55 (Old Highway 53).
With the Eastwood boundary change, I think it’s necessary simply for
common sense as the north side of Highway 2 is already Woodstock.
The expansion of Woodstock for future industrial / commercial property
should be done now as the City does have a large inventory of land owned currently,
but only about 200 acres. You never know when the next multi-national
corporation arrives seeking 100 acres of shovel-ready land to build and create
more employment.
WOODSTOCK SENTINEL-REVIEW and NORWICH GAZETTE links:
Another
link:
Mark
Schadenberg, Sales
Representative
Royal
LePage Triland Realty
757 Dundas
St, Woodstock
(519) 537-1553,
cell or text
Email:
mschadenberg@rogers.com
Twitter:
markroyallepage
Discussion
. . . Direction . . . Determination . . . Destination
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