Province asks for proof of consultation on controversial Blair warehouse project

KITCHENER -

The City of Cambridge has been given a deadline to prove to the province it has consulted with the community on a controversial warehouse project in the neighbourhood of Blair.

The plan was to build a one-million square foot warehouse and logistics distribution centre at Dickie Settlement Road and Fountain Street South, near Highway 401.

City council unanimously approved a Minister's Zoning Order (MZO) for the project back in April, a process meant to fast-track development projects while also barring any further public consultations or appeals.

The province gave its approval in August.

Those decisions angered some local residents who have continued to protest the approval process and specifically the use of MZO's.

On Monday, Cambridge MPP Belinda Karahalios brought up the issue to Steve Clark, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, during Question Period at Queen's Park.

"I've [written] the mayor, and asked specifically, from a council perspective, have they done their due diligence in terms of consultation with the local community," responded Clark. "The city came back and again confirmed, not only had they done their due diligence, but that they also reaffirmed that they requested a Minister's Zoning Order. Speaker, we've been very clear with the city of Cambridge, with the local council on this project. We expect that they do their due diligence before they ask for this order."

CTV News obtained a letter Clark sent to Mayor Kathryn McGarry on Oct. 27. In it, he references two previous letters to McGarry, and specifically one dated Aug. 27. It reads, in part: "In that letter, I also emphasized that a failure to engage with Indigenous communities may result in the revocation of the MZO. My staff and I have requested on a number of occasions that the City of Cambridge share the outcomes of its consultations. To date, my Ministry has not received any assurances that meaningful consultation has taken place by the City of Cambridge. I am therefore requesting that you provide an update to my Ministry by November 30, 2021 or I will have no choice but to consider commencing the process to revoke the MZO."

In a statement to CTV News, the City of Cambridge said it received the final site plan application from Broccolini Real Estate Group on Nov. 10 and it will be circulating that plan to "various agencies, stakeholders and First Nations."

The city also said a response will be sent to Clark by Nov. 30, and a Traffic Impact Study and Heritage Impact Assessment will be presented to council at a later date and will be open for delegations.

Lonny Bomberry agrees that Six Nations should have been consulted when the project was in the planning stages.

The land and resources director for Six Nations said in a statement to CTV News: "If the city does not consult with us, regardless of the timeline, then the project should be pulled. That would be a good thing because it would set a precedent that besides the Counties of Haldimand, Brant, and the City of Brantford, that all other municipalities within the Haldimand Tract must consult with us."

Bomberry is hoping to meet with the city to discuss the project.

-- With reporting by Heather Senoran