By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
How high is too high?
That’s one of the questions the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) will face when it comes to determining if a new apartment building will go forward in south Chatham. The tribunal will also consider if the project should go forward at all.
At its Aug. 11 meeting, council decided to refer the matter back to the OLT rather than approve a “settlement” recommendation from staff that would greenlight an eight-storey housing development at 50 Indian Creek Rd. S.
A motion to accept the settlement idea, including the donation of a small piece of land to the municipality from the developer, failed in an 8-8 tie vote.
Earlier in the process, the developer agreed to lower the height from nine storeys to eight.
South Kent Coun. Ryan Doyle said he brought the matter forward because an apartment building doesn’t fit in with the one- and two-storey houses in the established neighbourhood.
“I pulled this because I can’t support this whatsoever,” Doyle told council.
Chatham Coun. Michael Bondy agreed.
According to municipal officials, a five-day OLT hearing on the matter is scheduled for December.
