A plan to build a one million-square-foot warehouse and logistics centre in Blair Village hit a speedbump at Cambridge city council on Monday.
Council voted 5-4 against the necessary approvals needed to allow for the demolition of existing buildings on the site located at Old Mill Road near Highway 401.
In April 2021, council voted unanimously in favour of a Minster’s Zoning Order (MZO) for the project.
Shortly after, residents living in the area asked the city to reconsider the development and hired legal representation to fight the MZO. Ward 4 councillor Jan Liggett raised concerns around the project, saying in hindsight the decision was rushed without proper input from the public.
The province approved the MZO in August 2021.
On Monday, council voted against approval for both a heritage impact assessment and transportation impact study, which project developer, Broccolini Construction, needed to move forward.
Liggett said the space was never meant for a development of that size.
“It’s going to take over and engulf the village. I’m not supportive of that,” Liggett said during Monday’s council meeting. “The magnitude of this project, it was never envisioned.”
Other members of council felt revisions to the plan to cap truck traffic to no more than 262 trucks per day during the peak months of November through January offered a fair balance to achieving the city’s economic objectives.
“I see this as a compromise that we need to make here in order to reach the economic development that we have planned for our community,” said Ward 1 councillor Donna Reid.
Broccolini Construction said the project would bring between 680 and 1,075 jobs to the area, with pay ranging from $18 to $65 per hour. The developer added that about 30 of those jobs are meant to be senior level positions.
The warehouse is described as a fulfillment centre and would not include the use of smaller cargo trucks.
“This building is not designed to be repurposed for any other use other than fulfillment. So, this building does not have futureproofing to allow it to be converted,” said James Beach, Broccolini Construction’s VP of real estate development.
The proposal to defer Monday’s vote to June and allow for a public meeting in Blair Village later this spring was also shot down.
Cambridge mayor Kathryn McGarry said it’s now up to the developer to decide what to do next.
