Oxford County issues have implications in Woodstock

Mt. Elgin plans to add 200+ homes over the next few years

By Mark Schadenberg

Oxford County has some of the best farmland in the province and proof is seen in soil testing results, crop yields and real estate prices. I’m not going to discuss loam types and percentages of sand versus silt, or Class 1 through 7, and then compare it to the Holland Marsh near Bradford as I’m not a horticultural / agricultural specialist.

This entry deals with where municipalities ‘might’ be given permission to expand their ‘settlement boundary’ into current farmland.

I watched last night’s Oxford County Council meeting with great interest (I viewed the video so I could rewind when needed.) as a proposal for a large subdivision was discussed with maps and lots and streets, and lots of numbers. It was a public meeting section of the county agenda, so there was permission granted to delegations to speak against the plan as well. In this particular case, this new residential area was not on the horizon for Woodstock, Ingersoll or Tillsonburg. The GSP Group was in attendance to describe a 230-unit subdivision and zoning change for the community of . . . Mt. Elgin in Southwest Oxford township with a forecast of 166 single detached homes and then several townhouses.

You can watch the County Council video of the meeting where Cath Kindree and Heather Thomas of Mt Elgin speak against the idea based on several reasons – utilizing great farmland, creating more homes in a village which lacks dentists and shopping (etc), and over-taxing what they describe as a large septic system in place for municipal servicing. I can add that as a former Realtor I have seen these buried buckets in the front yard in Mt. Elgin which collect waste (brown water), so at best this is a modified or certainly unconventional waste water system. The proposal on the desk at the county did include an expansion of this unorthodox sewer system.

As is mentioned in the delegation speeches, the area’s Reynolds Creek is part of the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority watershed. I’m on the UTRCA board and know about aquifers, water quality and existing habitat.

Included with this writing is a series of 4 Twitter entries by Zorra Township mayor Marcus Ryan. However, at the county council meeting he voted in favour of the zoning change.

Woodstock councilor Deb Tait was against the elimination of farmland adjoining this rural village setting and voted against the motion. Woodstock councilor Connie Lauder pointed out that Mt. Elgin may require an actual sewer waste-water system in the future which would cost thousands for each household to attach to.

Ingersoll mayor Ted Comiskey suggested that the ministry of environment should analyze how well the current septic program is working as it was approved in 2006, and determine if it will still be effective if system capacity is expanded when adding more homes.

Keep in mind, that pre-existing livestock farms do maintain a ‘minimum distance requirement’ rule with respect to building homes close to barns and active pastures.

The motion for a zone change to permit the subdivision passed with 3 voting against – Tait, Lauder and Comiskey.

I’m running to be re-elected to Woodstock City Council as a city-only member, but earlier this year I most certainly deliberated the thought of running for the more expanded City – County role for many reasons and allowing more residential living in smaller serviced villages is among my issues of concerns (Others include the multi-dimensional multi-faceted county human services department operations, the county amassing vast reserves for concepts such as a new landfill not required until at least 2050, county roads inside municipalities, snow removal, and other areas where the county somehow wants to expand its reach for offering services such as bus transit).

Woodstock, Ingersoll and Tillsonburg are the residential bases in Oxford County, but other communities do have defined ‘settlement boundaries’ which can be expanded because they have municipal services such as water and waste-water. Therefore, I can understand if Norwich, Thamesford and Tavistock (and even Beachville, Otterville and Drumbo) seek additional residential areas because they have (limited) lifestyle amenities such as employment, groceries, restaurants, medical offices, etc. In my mind, centres such as Mt. Elgin, Innerkip, Embro, Princeton, Bright and Plattsville should be discouraged to expand like a flow of lava into farmland with homes because residents of those hamlets must commute for work and shopping – thus creating emissions.

I do often refer to the Provincial Policy Statement 2020 as it elaborates on all land uses around the province, including farming, commercial and aggregates, and also the fact Oxford County is NOT in the so-called Golden Horseshoe.

I submit these personal thoughts only to prove again how over-lapping every issue can be if it is simply under the human eye – and dissected under a microscope.

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Kevin Zegers debuts today in The Rookie: Feds on ABC

CTV will air show starring the Woodstock actor

My quick break from campaigning to promote local talent

The Rookie: Feds is a brand new TV show on ABC and it’s also appearing on CTV from coast-to-coast.

The show has 5 main stars – all rookies learning how to be federal agents.

Kevin Zegers of Woodstock is among the program’s stars. Zegers most recently appeared on the small screen in the Erin Brockovich inspired legal drama called Rebel where Kevin played a doctor and one of Katey Segal’s grown children.

He also was cast in the role of Oscar in the show Notorious back in 2016.

Way back in 2013, Zegers was a newspaper reporter tracking down the details of a mysterious death in the network TV drama Gracepoint.

To additionally display his depth of roles, many may recall the nighttime soap opera Titans in 2000, but if you forgot that’s okay too as it lasted just 14 episodes.

Zegers has amassed quite a resume for a 38-year-old actor who started out in children’s movies such as Air Bud (1997), Life With Mikey with Michael J Fox as star (1993) and MVP Most Valuable Primate (2000). If you look at the IMDB list for MVP performers it will display the names of 3 monkeys as stars before noting Zegers.

I own many of his pictures on DVD, including Virginia’s Run (2002), which would have been admired by anyone who loves a story about horses and characters coming-of-age.

I have included links here to 3 past writings (compilations of his background accomplishments) and must point out that this Woodstock actor has certainly accumulated a vast and ranging portfolio of performances from the son Toby in Transamerica (2005) to a steely apocalypse survivor in Colony (2013), and most recently Capt Jason Brody in the Bruce Willis super hero movie Corrective Measures which had an April 2022 release date. For the Transamerica flick, Zegers would earn an acting award at the Cannes Film Festival.

His Wikipedia page notes 42 movies and dozens of TV roles with the appearance I always recall quickly in The X-Files where he was a boy who possessed a stigmata. I was never a huge X-Files fan but that paranormal episode seems to be among the best-ever and poignant for that series due to its overall pace and evolution of the plotline with religious connotations. At the time, Zegers was just 11 and it was 2 years before his original depiction of Josh Framm in the Air Bud dog / basketball movies.

In 2008, Zegers was in the cast of the original Gossip Girls television teen-drama-romance show.

Kevin Joseph Zegers, who turned 38 on Sept. 19, had his first TV credit in the Can-Con drama Street Legal.

Back in the day (I realize it's the ultimate cliche for FB pages about reminiscing), I chatted with Kevin often when I saw him and the rest of his family (Parents and 2 sisters) at church on Sundays. Zegers played travel hockey in Woodstock and was a natural athlete, so throwing jump shots with a golden retriever or skating with a primate would have been learned skills. Zegers is married to Jaime Feld and they have 2 daughters.

I say nothing here about the plot, pacing and tone of The Rookie: Feds as I haven't seen an episode yet, but will certainly be glued to my set. 

2016 blog:

https://marklivesinwoodstock.blogspot.com/2016/09/notorious-is-new-abc-tv-show-featuring.html

2014 blog:

https://marklivesinwoodstock.blogspot.com/2014/10/gracepoint-newest-acting-project-for.html

2013 blog:

https://marklivesinwoodstock.blogspot.com/2013/04/air-bud-to-colony-for-zegers.html

Info on free bus transit and advance polls

Accessibility plan in place for election day 

By Mark Schadenberg

Did you know?

On Election Day -- October 24 -- City transit will be free. This decision by your current City Council was an integral part of the City Clerk Department report called Pre-Election Accessibility Plan, which was passed in an open session of council on June 16.

With a growing city, Cowan Sportsplex on Ridgeway Road was added as an election location to bring the voting-day polling places up to 5 -- Goff Hall (Community Complex) on Finkle, Unifor Hall on Beale, Rock Church on Nellis, and Oxford Auditorium on Nellis.

The Clerk's office, which includes election coordinator Bill Tigert on a contract salary, studied all locations for accessibility, but many other parameters were considered such as parking, width of doorways and corridors, necessary ramps, lobby space, and washrooms. The official returning officer for the vote count will always be the city clerk, who is Amy Humphries. The deputy city clerk is Sunayana Katikapalli. I talked to Amy yesterday and she noted that her team will include senior staff from City Hall, additional employees of both the City and County, and those hired for the day. Information on this hiring system is found on the City website.

Read the saved clips I have included here with more details on advance polls, election day, and the roving polls to retirement homes and the hospital. If you are unable to attend a polling station on Oct. 24 then be sure to take advantage of the advance polls, which are held at City Hall and there's an elevator there for easy access.

Also noted below is some information on how you can declare representation for someone else to therefore vote in proxy.

One last quick addition. In 2016, the condominium act changed, which now permits all candidates to campaign inside apartment buildings. My thought is that building managers should set up a table for council hopefuls to place a few flyers, which would be similar to the distribution of the Oxford Review thus allowing tenants / occupants to take any promotional material they may want.

There will be no roving polling stations on Oct. 24 in apartment buildings though.

www.cityofwoodstock.ca

Paying for roads, playgrounds, fleet and facilities

Five-year rolling budget synopsis

I hinted in a previous submission in this space that the City Of Woodstock has maintained a 5-year rolling capital budget plan for many years. It’s prudent planning and forecasting. When you factor in a stringent ‘Asset Management Plan’ you will quickly notice that everyone from engineering to recreation to finance does an incredible job tracking current conditions of roads and facilities, and has the ground work for this community’s forecast more than ‘under control’.

You could say that CAO David Creery is driving the bus and it’s a well-oiled machine with very little to be confused with a moniker such as ‘Corinthian leather seats’ and too many passengers.

Those reading this entry must know I’m penning this to display facts and knowledge, but also writing this as an attempt to be re-elected to City Council as the preparation, implementation and maintenance is certainly observed by the various departments – engineering, parks and recreation, cultural facilities, economic development, police and fire, and . . .

I will add that as a current City Council member there is always on-going stress at all levels -- current budget years, the soon-to-be future, long-term patience, and then correspondingly NOT burying the tax payers in huge increases because you feel there needs to be a ‘catch up’. I can list several amenities on a wish list of potential projects – just like you can. City Council is elected to be your responsible ‘citizen review panel’ and you can ask questions any time.

When it is time to analyze the operating budget, there is a very strict ‘line by line’ discussion on ‘additions above base budget’. In other words, we are not reducing staff at the police department as population grows quite quickly to 50,000, but rather increasing and understanding where the strategic modifications need to take place. As a further example, the Woodstock Police Services has a very strong in-house board of its own, but City Council must still approve their annual balance sheet.

Departments such as community events and children camps are managed solely on an operating budget, but revenues do exist for areas such as sponsorships, city vendors, and registration fees. Staff salaries to be lifeguards, bus drivers and works department crews, for example, are earmarked to the operating side of the budget. 

The following (below) is a list of capital projects on the docket for 2023. Keep in mind, some of these could be delayed by 12 months if priorities change or if the ‘asset management document’ suggests a time line could be altered or extended. Sometimes, a project is deferred if the hired contractor was unable to complete an approved assignment in their defined calendar year.

This capital list is not thorough (This is a real highlight reel) and will not include corresponding prices as some items might be paid for in 2023 and others debentured over a longer period of time. If this list appears to reflect my priorities, I will admit some of that sense or translation could be correct. Council is a team dissecting a wish list from a need list, but the focus must remain on items requiring ‘now’ attention.

Also, any road rehabilitation planned by Oxford County on their system (Paid obviously by Woodstock taxes in the levy of Woodstock payment to County) is not noted here.

There are many smaller items also jotted into budget, including computer replacements for certain departments, an on-going asphalt game plan, new intersection signal lights, road painting, more automatic crosswalks, additions to fleet of vehicles (street sweeper, garbage truck, bus for transit, fire truck, and a smaller digger on proposed 2023 ledger), and / or incidentals such as flooring, window coverings and security systems. By the way, if the City buys a new garbage truck or bulldozer, they usually sell the depreciated retired unit to another community or contactor.  

A contract, for example, from the parks crew for bedding plants or trees or sod is part of their operating budget, but building or renovating an accessible washroom in Roth Park (Project already completed) is chiseled into the capital budget.  

Again, the 2023 budget for both capital and operating is approved by the next council, but much of the framework can be looked at now.   

2023

Expansion at South Gate Centre (www.southgatectr.com)

Cowan Sportsplex – New roof.

Cowan Fields – Landscaping for another ball diamond and new cricket pitch.

Cowan Fields / Woodall Farm – Roadways and servicing to extend road north toward Springbank.

North Shore Pittock Park – parking lot re-paving.

North Shore Pittock Park – new accessible bathrooms

Dundas Street – Reconstruction from Vansittart to Oxford/Mill, including stop lights at Vansittart.

Wellington Street N – Ingersoll Ave to Devonshire

Sprucedale – Springbank to Abbott.

Miller Street – Huron to Northdale.

Old Wellington and Victoria N – Road entrance to South Gate Centre

Eastwood Commercial – Advancing servicing and surveying at Corlett Farm industrial park.

Home Brown Park – New playground equipment.

Kinsmen / Havelock subdivision – Brand new park and playground.

2024

Southside Aquatic Centre – Expansion for larger change rooms

Leinster Street – Devonshire to Huron

Mary Street – Riddell to Beale

Rathbourne St – Huron to Blandford

Cambridge St – Hughson to Warwick

Russell St – Parkinson to Albert

Eastwood Commercial – Advancing servicing at Corlett Farm industrial park.

Southwood Arenas – New roof.

Parks – Additional trail development.

Tennis Courts – Rehab courts in Richardson Park on James St.

Cowan Fields – Landscaping for another ball diamond and news cricket pitch

2026

Projected construction cost of $9,000,000 to replace Civic Centre Arena with a new multi-use recreation facility at Cowan Fields Park.

On Oct. 24, VOTE for Mark Schadenberg

If you would like to donate to my campaign, 

please call me anytime at (519) 537-1553

The Time Is Now: To Re-Elect Mark to City Council

Terry Fox Run is one of my family traditions

 Finding a cure for cancer is a Marathon Of Hope

It was a wonderful weather morning in Woodstock to remember Terry Fox and continue his Marathon Of Hope. The annual Terry Fox Run began at 10 a.m. in Southside Park on Sunday, Sept. 18 with a large gathering of participants and volunteers.

My daughter assisted at the merchandise table. Our family was often missed in years passed in the picture of volunteers because I sat on the run / walk route at the water station or checkpoint. Maeghan was likely in a stroller when she began her involvement. I continue to post on social media and help in promotions, but my role is a drop in a bucket compared to co-chair John Versaevel, who displays immense effort and organizational skills to coordinate a crew of volunteers ranging from the Lions Club of Woodstock to many other community contributors.

I always say that volunteerism is the key ingredient to any successful community.

The guest speaker at this year's Terry Fox event was a long-time friend of mine in Steve Iorio -- (pictured) selected for a few reasons including the fact he is a cancer survivor and had met Terry Fox during the original marathon in 1980. I would expect that Steve wouldn't mind me adding that his son Michael died of cancer in April of 2019, and the disease has effected others in both his immediate and surrounding family. Michael Iorio was an active outdoors-person known for his love of nature and hiking, and he died at 27.

Terry Fox was just 22 when he passed away in June of 1981, and became a national hero by running on one leg from the East Coast to Thunder Bay when cancer returned -- now in his lungs. Could you imagine being a top flight athlete who first lost his right leg to cancer, and then attempting to cross the country could no longer breathe due to cancer.

For the 2022 run in Woodstock, John Versaevel (right) and Peter Oswald from the Lions Club of Woodstock were co-chairs again and provided leadership, direction and dedication.

By the way, you can still donate for a few more weeks.

The website notes there are 10,000 events around the world and funding has moved forward on about 1,300 cancer research projects.

A very important connection to Oxford County and the Marathon Of Hope was Ron Calhoun of Thamesford who was the national fundraising chair for the Canadian Cancer Society in the early 1980s. Embro author Elaine Cougler wrote a biography about Calhoun before he died. Calhoun appeared at the Woodstock Run a few years ago. At yesterday's event in Woodstock -- you can see how the connections continue -- Cougler's sister Joyce Jackson (and Joyce's husband Brian) were among the hard-working volunteers.

The legacy of Terry Fox and the importance of maintaining a strong fundraising effort annually is a way for all Canadians to thank Terry.

Here is a short version of 'Terry's Story from the foundation's website:

Terry Fox of Port Coquitlam, BC never saw himself as remarkable. Granted, he displayed an unusual determination to achieve the goals he set for himself but his orbit was local – family, school, sports and friends. But Terry’s cancer diagnosis of osteogenic sarcoma just above the knee, the subsequent amputation of his leg and experience in the children’s cancer wards changed all that. A newly nurtured reservoir of compassion, combined with a fierce determination to bring an end to the suffering cancer causes, set Terry on a path that, quite simply, changed the world.

LINKS:

https://run.terryfox.ca/3141

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/2020/09/18/the-enduring-legacy-of-terry-fox-40-years-on.html

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South Gate Centre looks forward to a 'growing' future

Renovation / addition has been planned for many years

Recreation centre invites you to join its membership at 50+ 

South Gate Centre is an immensely important facility in the City of Woodstock.

This entry is about the South Gate fundraising drive and the amount of money the City budget will be seeking in 2023 to begin the physical expansion of the existing building. 

The membership of South Gate -- with an established internal fundraising committee and a separate board of directors (Acting mayor Connie Lauder is on board) -- is committed to raising $1.5 million (About $500,00 for furnishings) and thus far have already topped $1 million raised. The centre for active seniors (50+) made that announcement official twice, including a club lunch barbecue on June 22 (I was in attendance) and also at a City Council meeting earlier this summer.

The chair of the fundraising team is David Hilderley, who is 1 of 6 candidates for mayor in the Oct. 24 election. 

Executive director Chris Cunningham has been enthusiastic about this venture for quite some time. 

To hint lightly that the club is bursting at the seams is actually a significant understatement as South Gate has patiently waited for a green light, an official thumbs up which should occur when the 2023 capital budget is approved by the next council. 

I want to be a member of that new council, but you realize that fact. 

To better explain my full understanding of this scenario, my next blog entry will include a recipe list of the ingredients projected to be in both the 2023 and 2024 capital budget as City Hall is extremely smart to operate with a 5-year rolling game plan (CAO David Creery and director of administrative services Diane Campbell are impeccable). 

By the way, make sure all candidates you talk to know this about how sound and solid the system is at 500 Dundas St.

Quite honestly, and to be exact in terminology, BLD00033 project entitled South Gate Renovation & Addition is noted to include a debenture of $5,300,000 to finance the construction in 2023. The City has already authorized work such as architectural drawings, and the analysis of the parking situation and road accesses as South Gate is adjacent to Southside Park and parallel to both Victoria and Old Wellington streets.

Check out their website (www.southgatectr.com) for activities ranging from fitness, woodworking, card tournaments, dance lessons, luncheons, slo-pitch teams, pickle ball, crafts, snooker, seminars, art instruction, and special events such as the Chilly Charlie Groundhog Day breakfast and the Twelve Days of Christmas Lottery. Also, many outside associations call South Gate home, including the Lions Club with 2 meetings every month plus a Bingo every Thursday night.

South Gate is a not-for-profit charitable organization and they would love to receive contributions from its members to assist in this new vision.

Below is a link to the story I wrote on the initial announcement of this necessary and patiently waited for transformation of this recreation facility.

I do project this project to be among the list of issues in the election campaign.

http://marklivesinwoodstock.blogspot.com/2022/03/

www.southgatectr.com

www.southgatectr.com/aplacetobe 

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Email: mschadenberg@rogers.com         Call (519) 537-1553

Facebook: Mark Schadenberg -- Re-Elect for Woodstock City Council in 2022

Twitter: markschadenberg                 Instagram: electmarkschadenberg 

  

Civic Centre Arena: Discussions and Decisions

Built in 1969 at Woodstock Fairgrounds; life span now in debate

Decisions . . . Decisions . . . Decisions.

It would have been in 1993 when then Woodstock City Council decided it was time to replace the Downtown rink called the Perry Street Arena, with a new twin pad to be built at the south end of Woodstock on Finkle Street at the site of the developing and quickly expanding community complex. I remember those council discussions and was present when the vote was made to finance through budget time (Tax collecting and utilizing development charges saved) and a debenture (loan), this new recreation facility would be a reality and would also include a gymnastics club and a community hall.

Margaret Munnoch was mayor then.

In that era, there was a consulting company called RE Winter & Associates who wrote in 1990 that Woodstock needed to prepare to replace the ice palace nicknamed the PerryDome. The thickness of the ice varied greatly as the floor was heaving and perma-frost was so bad the City recreation department stopped removing the ice in the summer as it would likely mean the end of its viability.  

Years later, as chair of the recreation advisory committee, I prepared a power point 100-year history on the Perry Street Arena which I narrated at the sports wall of fame ceremony in 2014.

Current Woodstock CAO David Creery was the deputy city engineer in the early 1990s, and he would certainly recall the feasibility study conducted by the combined efforts of Burke-Oliver and the architects called MacLellan Jaunkalns & Miller.

The City had secured just over $1 million in a provincial grant, and the community and its user groups had raised a bundle of bucks to permit the City to go forward with its investment. 

Constructed by Waterloo-based Ball Brothers, the Southwood Arenas would open in August of 1996. The Perry Street oval was demolished (levelled) that same summer and many arena fans obtained the seats and exterior bricks as souvenirs.

Now, in 2022 this community is nearing the end of the life cycle for the Civic Centre Arena. There are many reasons why, beginning with and including these factors: ice surface is too small, not enough change rooms (4), existing change rooms are too small, lack of AODA compliance for accessibility, a low ceiling, lack of land ownership by the City, and an overall change in user groups needs.

The Civic Centre opened in 1969 with a 180’ x 80’ ice surface. The main ice pad at the complex is 200 x 100, and the NHL standard is 200 x 85. At the beginning in the Civic, seating was basically ball diamond bleachers chained to the north wall, but about 30 years ago (give or take) permanent concrete was poured with wooden benches affixed for seating purposes. Without back support, this arrangement is still not comfortable for fans and parents who spend dozens of hours in this ice cube every autumn and winter.

If you chatted with Darren Hall, who is the manager of both Woodstock facilities, he would tell you that the compressor and all ice making equipment at the fairgrounds frozen pond has additional life span. Another concrete item to point out mind you, is that there are cracks and chips in the floor which were seen by myself and members of the city’s recreation advisory committee during a recent visit. 

Scheduling can also be a controversy as the City’s contract with the agricultural society, permits the Woodstock Woodworking Show to use the arena in early fall annually and this year they have chiseled in the dates of Sept. 22-25 (https://woodshows.com/woodstock/)  

However, the most recent Recreation Needs Master Plan as penned by London-based Montieth-Brown (www.mbpc.ca) consultants last year (Dec. 9 council agenda; remember as that could be an exam question later), indicated that the deficiencies of the Civic Centre Arena and its accompanying lack of surrounding land ownership by the City at that location to expand or build new, would indicate that the Civic rink was seeing its days numbered. The interesting footnote always to the Montieth-Brown document will be that two of its cornerstone writers and researchers were from Woodstock in Anand Desai and Cole Roddick.

Community members, and most certainly other candidates for council, should know some of the past directions in recreation locally as you must know what the future could be. 

I add this thought without knowing who might be reading this prose, that I believe the Woodstock ag. society is certainly overdue for their own in-house long-term master plan, but that is their concern.

I have included a link to the recreation needs master plan, so skim through it and think about what the charts and bar graphs mean as the study looks at all recreation ranging from cricket to ball diamonds to tennis and pickle ball courts, plus outdoor basketball, and most certainly trails and nature. Developers provide dollars through the development fund reserves for playgrounds in new subdivisions, but that bank account can also be utilized for an expansion at South Gate Centre, a regulation-size cricket pitch, a new outdoor pool, and other brand new projects. Where do you think the priorities should be? The master plans are always the guiding documents, but current trends can also lead the way.  

Also submitted here for your perusal are copies of Sentinel-Review stories published in February of 1993 – written by me. It should be noted that the Southwood main paid has seating for 1,950 and with standing room could attain 2,500 capacity.

Construction of Community Complex is 1995

Picture of Perry St demolition and Southwood construction are likely from Woodstock Museum archives.

LINKS:

https://www.cityofwoodstock.ca/en/resourcesGeneral/PDFs/ParksRec/Woodstock-Recreation-Facility-Needs-Study_Final.pdf

www.woodstockgymclub.com

www.woodstockwildcats.com

www.woodstockminorhockey.com

www.woodstockskatingclub.com

https://www.woodstocksentinelreview.com/news/local-news/woodstock-looks-at-replacing-civic-centre

This truly is a copy of the note arena manager Bill Fishback placed on front door 

of Perry Dome to announce last public skating time.

A Campaigning Picture Of Me From 2018

At A Front Lawn -- Little Library Box

Two topics - Intensification and Boundaries

A closer look at a couple election issues

By Mark Schadenberg

It is time to extrapolate.

In a previous posting I noted the complexities of approving residential planning matters. My exact quote is included here, so I will add to those thoughts below.

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The real reason I calmly and confidently think ahead . . . is that I have 30+ years of experience as a researcher, journalist, committee advisory member, volunteer leader and chair of several events, and simply the desire to study and learn all the facets of local government and its accompanying procedures.

Therefore, it's a personal moment to pass along to citizens my caring attitude, knowledge, connectivity, and love of this wonderful community. I can't begin to explain all the overlaps, provincial legislations, bylaws and policies which must be adhered to in making an important municipal decision. For example, for residential factors they range from intensification to zonings, additional residential units, multi-family properties, (low, medium and high) density, Oxford Official Plan, Provincial Policy Statement, provincial More Homes More Choices Act, traffic studies, a shadow study, central business area and entrepreneurial zone, registered easements (railway and industry such as Toyota are just two examples), in-fill parcels, development charges, parking, existing trees, the environment, flood plains, previous precedents . . . and of course the concerns of neighbours. Folks, it is not simple and that's why you elect people who know the guidelines.

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This past term of council I was a member of 5 committees – recreation advisory, environment, accessibility, boundary adjustments, and a board member of the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA). It’s been a big-time commitment, but enjoyable with the connections between environment, recreation and the conservation authority.

The UTRCA has strict flood plain maps, which can and do certainly dictate where homes and commercial entities can be built. For example, Burgess Park and Standard Tube parks for trails became a defined green space due to flooding possibilities. Also, when the Downs At Cedar Creek golf course was closed by Golf North, it was quickly determined that about 90% of that land could never be residential, but there is a small portion off Salter which may be developed for homes (Time will tell).

The rules become etched in stone often since the Thames River is deemed to be a Canadian Heritage River. As a UTRCA board member I can tell you about the long list of our Section 28 approvals we see reported at monthly meetings and these passed proposals have been under a microscope for all considerations within the watershed so that also includes Embro, Ingersoll, Beachville, Dorchester, St. Marys, Stratford, numerous London neighbourhoods such as the Sifton Bog or The Cove or The Forks or . . . .

Dams, drains and dykes are UTRCA agenda items.

In Woodstock, the City has an agreement with the UTRCA which permits the Pittock Conservation Area Day-Use park to be free – no admission. It is a complex contract, but the City improves structural items like bathrooms and playground equipment, while the UTRCA cuts the grass and maintains its dam. 

The protection of the Thames is very important and that’s why there is a large campground, parks and a trail system surrounding the river, and not homes. I believe that if the UTRCA existed before 1947, the City’s map around Tecumseh Street would be much different as historically (Many generations ago) there was a fairgrounds there and Erastus Burgess (Park named after his family) trained Queen’s Plate thoroughbreds on this property.

This entry will be divided into two as I realize there is a ‘tune-out factor’, but my opinion on the term intensification can also be mentioned here.

The City has and must utilize all its available residential space in the inventory before pushing the boundaries north of County Road 17 (Tollgate road) or west of the 11^th Line.  However, long-term Woodstock growth for the next 20 years must include negotiations now.  

I was quite frankly ecstatic (Yes, excited and exuberant) when a proposal for an apartment building at Alberta and Juliana was presented to City Council. This parcel is part of a triangle which includes Cedarview Retirement and then lots of grass, but its zoning is residential, and it’s a close proximity to the community complex which opened in 1996, so that’s more than 25 years of idle land, which I do admit was utilized for farm fields but not for the past 10 years approximately. (Run-on sentence - Sorry)

City Council has also approved, but not yet built by its developers, several other residential opportunities, including Hunter and Oxford, Adelaide and Victoria, and Devonshire and Lansdowne. 

I offer this list to those reading because there sometimes seems to be a sense that the current council is not doing enough to alleviate the overall lack of residential units. That is simply NOT true.

In the hopper or on the drawing board are Main and Wellington, Juliana and Athlone, former lighthouse lot on Ferguson, the lot just south of Woodingford Lodge, a small townhome project at Park Row and Mill, the former Woodstock Meadows golf course, and of course (pun intended) the site of the old hospital at Riddell and Vincent.

There are additional homes (units) under construction, including Oxford and Drew, Pittock Park Road, Parkinson Road, and the east edge of Nellis, which all loosely fit the definition of in-fill or brownfields.     

Over the years, many empty buildings have been re-purposed for dwellings – Paquettes, Harvey Woods, Broadway School, Chapel School, a church across the street from WCI at Riddell and Adelaide, and an Anglican Church on Winniett. No wrecking balls, but maintaining the heritage ‘look’ of the City by using brownfield buildings to a new use.

This list does not include the on-going subdivisions such as Havelock Corners, Sally Creek, the Hartley Farm, and the Neighbourhoods of Devonshire, and the pending new streets in the old SouthWest Oxford north of Karn Road and west of Anderson Street.

The point I’m making is that the inventory of possibilities within our current boundaries exist, but some day those lines will modestly move north and west.

I am not on a township council obviously, but while I see the sense in increasing the size of the footprint of Tavistock, I disagree with any large expansions in Innerkip.  However, those are map items for their residents (and voters) to contemplate, and both are a current election issue in East-Zorra Tavistock township.

Next time, thoughts on the Civic Centre Arena.

 Woodstock Meadows golf course

 

 Woodstock around 1980

Posted on Facebook by: Phil Dunbar of Sky Turkey Balloons

LINKS

https://thamesriver.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/Publications/Thames-CHRS-BackgroundStudy.pdf

www.sierraconstruction.ca

https://thekingsmen.ca/new-homes/woodstock/havelock-corners/

www.broos.ca

www.finorohomes.ca

www.thesouthsidegroup.ca

www.indwell.ca

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CigizPaNPHL/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

https://fb.watch/fG9fvpg67b/

Mark Schadenberg

Facebook: Mark Schadenberg - Re-Elect for Woodstock City Council in 2022

Contact me: (519) 537-1553

www.marklivesinwoodstock.blogspot.com

Email: mschadenberg@rogers.com

Twitter: markschadenberg

Instagram: electmarkschadenberg

Picture of me this past April participating in the annual Thames River Clean-Up for the UTRCA and also volunteering with the Lions Club of Woodstock.