Appeal of Minnow Lake subdivision plan set for March 18

The fate of a large residential development Dalron Ltd. wants to build in Minnow Lake could be decided in March.

The hearing date was set during an Ontario Municipal Board prehearing Nov. 6 at Tom Davies Square. The prehearing determined who will have standing to speak at the March 18, 2013, appeal, which will also be held at city hall.

The Ontario Municipal Board oversees planning issues in Ontario and is the last venue of appeal for residents and developers unhappy with a city council decision on land use matters.

Last April, Dalron came to the city’s planning committee with a proposal to develop 192 lot subdivisions near Howey Drive. The land is already properly zoned R2-2, which permits the single-detached, semi-detached, linked and duplex dwellings Dalron wants to build.

The plan received the necessary approvals from planning staff, but fierce opposition from area residents concerned about adding more traffic to an already busy Howey Drive convinced just enough members of the committee to reject it by a vote of 3-2.

At the time, Ward 7 Coun. Dave Kilgour, who chairs the committee, mused that if Dalron appealed to the OMB, they would likely win.