Charles Street Terminal redevelopment process inching forward
The City of Kitchener’s Finance and Corporate Services Committee has approved a next step in the process that will ultimately determine the future for the Charles Street Terminal.
Operations at the former bus terminal in Kitchener’s downtown core wrapped up in 2019. The site was used as COVID-19 testing clinic from December 2020 to March 2022, but has since been empty.
The terminal, which makes up 88 per cent of the block, is owned by the Region of Waterloo, with the City of Kitchener owning a parking lot that makes up the remaining 12 per cent of the nearly three acre property.
At Monday afternoon’s meeting, the committee approved a Memorandum of Understanding that clarifies how responsibilities and cost sharing will be handled going forward.
Among the arrangements it puts in place, city staff will participate in all applicable processes, but the region will lead and pay for all processes and preliminary work, and the region will be the final decision maker on consultant selections.
The report says preliminary work, including extensive community consultations, environmental work, technical studies, urban design briefs, and a heritage impact assessment, is estimated to cost $840,000. City and regional staff will equally split the cost of community consultation, while the other costs will be split proportional to the percentage of land ownership.
Public engagement on the future of the former bus terminal began in 2021. (EngageWR.ca)
The Memorandum of Understanding notes it does not constitute approval for a future development, as any decision on that would be subject to council deliberations.
Ahead of the vote, Ward 9 Coun. Debbie Chapman asked there be further clarity provided to address questions being raised about a potential sale of the property, as the MOU lays out a plan for how the city’s expenses will be deducted at the time the land is sold.
Executive Director of Economic Development Cory Bluhm told councillors: “Semantically, the way it was laid out in the report, could be interpreted that the outcome is sale, when really one of the outcomes is sale, the other may not be sale, so this just clarifies the semantic difference in the report.”
Public engagement on the future of the site began in 2021. Co-founders of Land Back Camp Bangishimo and Amy Smoke have been calling for it to be turned into an Indigenous community hub, even creating a short film about their vision.
More details on the project’s progression can be found on EngageWR.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Parts of Canada hit with freezing rain, heavy snowfall warnings, expected to last through Monday
Significant snowfall and heavy rain hit parts of Canada on Sunday and the weather system is expected to continue into Monday morning and throughout the day.
Who is Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the leader of the insurgency that toppled Syria's Assad?
Abu Mohammed al-Golani, the militant leader of the insurgency in Syria, has spent years working to remake his public image, renouncing to ties to al-Qaida.
Suspect wanted after victim forcibly confined, assaulted, and threatened with death in Scarborough
Police have released images of an individual who allegedly forcibly confined, and assaulted and threatened to kill another person in southwest Scarborough over the weekend.
Jay-Z accused of sexually assaulting 13-year-old in 2000 incident along with Sean 'Diddy' Combs
A woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by Sean 'Diddy' Combs has amended her lawsuit to include allegations that she was also assaulted by Jay-Z at the same party.
Trump calls for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and says a U.S. withdrawal from NATO is possible
Donald Trump on Sunday pushed Russian leader Vladimir Putin to act to reach an immediate ceasefire with Ukraine, describing it as part of his active efforts as U.S. president-elect to end the war despite being weeks from taking office.
A timeline of the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the search for his killer
The search for the killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson's has stretched beyond New York City and continues. Here's what we know so far.
Baby found dead in south Edmonton parking lot: police
Police are investigating the death of an infant in south Edmonton.
Pantone names its colour of the year for 2025
Pantone has named an 'evocative soft brown' its colour of the year for 2025, continuing a tradition that has now run for more than a quarter of a century.
Do you recognize these men? RCMP seek Metro Vancouver grandparent scam suspects
Mounties in Metro Vancouver have released photos of two men alleged to have been involved in “numerous” so-called grandparent scams earlier this year, hoping the public can help identify them.