Erin council backs off pit decision

An overflow crowd and a petition with 772 names have forced Erin councillors to delay a controversial gravel pit vote, with the town now seeking a better deal with the pit operator. 

Council decided on Tuesday to defer a decision on whether to recommend that the county allow Halton Crushed Stone (HCS) to expand its existing gravel pit north to County Road 52.

Mayor Allan Alls said CAO Nathan Hyde will meet with the company to explore ways to reduce the impact of the expansion, across the road from the BelErin subdivision. He said the process could take until this fall.

Residents are concerned about noise, dust, traffic and visual appearance, and want a 300-metre setback. Various studies and concessions by HCS have not been sufficient to move the project forward, and the company says it is open to further discussions.

Resident Robyn Johnstone presented a petition urging a No vote, saying the expansion “threatens our families, Erin’s natural appeal and future prosperity.” It says property values would decrease by up to 30 per cent, and that recycling asphalt would release toxic dust. 

“We are not willing to roll the dice when it comes to the health of our children,” said Johnstone.

The expansion would allow gravel extraction above the water table on 150 acres of agricultural land, and storage of up to 60,000 tonnes of recycled asphalt.

County Planning Director Aldo Salis recommended approval, saying the proposal is “in the public interest” and that concerns have been adequately addressed.

The approval process requires an Official Plan change by the county and a further zoning decision by the town. The outcome could be appealed by either side.

Coun. Matt Sammut declared a conflict of interest since his home is near the pit, and he could not vote or participate in the debate.

New efforts to reduce gravel pit impact

New efforts are being made to reduce the impact of Halton Crushed Stone’s proposed gravel pit expansion south of Erin village.

At an April 17 meeting, County Planner Aldo Salis supported the expansion, and HCS offered changes to appease opponents, but council’s debate was cut short when the vote was delayed until May 15.

Councillor Jeff Duncan, who is opposed to the proposal as it now stands, did not get to speak. He says a gravel trade could move the pit farther from nearby homes.

“I propose a significant amount of the gravel deposit that the Town of Erin has under the TenthLine that is part of the application be assigned/traded to HCS as a concession for a significant setback,” he said. He wants no extraction in a triangle measured 300 metres along the roadways.

Possible closure of the Tenth Line in about 20 years to extract town-owned gravel has been discussed, but it would require an additional agreement between the town and the pit operator.

Roy Val, who received a Town of Erin Volunteer Award recently for his research into this and other local growth issues, said he was pleased that HCS had recognized the environmental concerns related to asphalt recycling on the site by agreeing to groundwater monitoring.

“HCS still fails to recognize the impact of a pit across the street from an established subdivision,” he said. “I would hope those residents, in particular, are ready to engage councillors head-on to address the issue of a larger setback prior to the next council meeting.”

HCS has doubled the minimum 30-metre setback, promising not to mine the first 60 metres from the northwest corner of their lands. They also committed to mine the next 95 metres in a two-year period, starting whenever they decide to strip the topsoil.

Duncan’s proposal suggests a two-year limit on a larger area, comprising 50 per cent of the land parcel closest to the subdivision. He also wants the operator to set up a Community Liaison Committee.

The proposal is for mining above the water table, but Duncan wants tighter restrictions, saying HCS could too easily get approval for mining below the water table.

He would also like to see asphalt recycling removed from the land use, or at least temporarily restricted while the Ontario government is developing new policies on this land use.

“Placing 60,000 tonnes of a hazardous material on the floor of a gravel pit could be one of the worst places to put it,” he said. HCS and Salis say the asphalt poses no risk to human health.

Ministry to mediate on wastewater objections

The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change will mediate between the Town of Erin and any residents who appeal the results of the Wastewater Environmental Assessment (EA).

The culmination of the Master Plan and Municipal Class EA process, which was mandated in 2004 and started in 2009, is publication of an Environmental Study Report (ESR), which is subject to a formal 30-day review period. The completed report is almost 2,000 pages, and will be available at erin.ca, in libraries and at Town Hall.

On April 24 town council got a report from Joe Mullan, President of Ainley Group that has conducted Phases 3 and 4 of the EA. They agreed that the review period would be May 14 to June 14.

People can make comments to the town, or make a more formal appeal, known as a request for a Part II Order or a “bump-up”. This must be submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change by June 14.

Eventually, Minister Chris Ballard would issue an order binding on all parties. He could require additional investigation or approve the plan, allowing the town to proceed with funding requests, design and construction.

A similar Part II Order process for the Station Street bridge, dam and pond lasted more than a year.

Mullan said his team would hold another meeting of the Public Liaison Committee and meet with others to resolve concerns. He said Part II Order requests should be as specific as possible, so the ministry can ask questions of the town and consultant.

“The ministry becomes a mediator, and then ultimately a decision maker,” said Mullan.

Ainley has already responded individually to 26 letters from residents. Concerns include costs for urban residents, growth of the urban population to 14,559 in the coming decades, possible costs for rural residents and risks to the natural environment.

Mullan says public concerns have been addressed through technical studies and public meetings over the last two years, but some residents say that the answers to their questions have been inadequate.

The preferred alternative includes a gravity collection system with low-pressure pumping in some areas, a forcemain connecting Hillsburgh to Erin village along the Elora-Cataract Trailway, a plant at County Road 52 and Tenth Line using membrane technology and UV treatment, and an outlet to the West Credit River at Winston Churchill Blvd.

“We have had preliminary talks with senior governments and have received positive feedback,” said Mayor Allan Alls. “This critical project will help us build a complete and sustainable community, which will attract new jobs.” 

After major contributions from developers and funding from senior governments, the local share of the eventual $118 million project could be $20 million. If so, each serviced property would pay an average of $7,500 for construction – though the actual amount could vary per property once the allocation formula is decided. It could be financed for up to 15 years.

In addition, individual connection charges paid to a private contractor are expected to be in the range of $4,000 to $8,000, depending on the property.

Once the system is running, yearly wastewater usage fees are estimated at $500 to $600 (based on rates in nearby municipalities).

Available in the wastewater section of the town website is a Frequently Asked Questions document with information on the project. The Town of Erin Facebook page has an animated video about the costs to property owners. 

Also on the site is Mullan’s 38-page presentation to council with the April 24 agenda. It includes a capital cost summary for all elements of the wastewater system and outlines financing options.

Gravel pit operator offers concessions

Halton Crushed Stone (HCS) is offering new concessions in its bid to get town council approval for a gravel pit expansion just south of Erin village.

Councillors deferred their vote on the issue until May 15, after hearing a presentation on April 17 from HCS representative James Parkin.

His offer first came in a letter to council last Friday, just after a report from Wellington County Planning Director Aldo Salis was released, recommending approval of the expansion. The concessions are intended to reduce the impact of the pit on the community, especially nearby residents on McCullogh Dr. and Aspen Court.

Parkin said HCS would complete gravel extraction within two years of topsoil removal in the corner of its property closest to the homes – a pie-shaped zone with a radius of 185 metres from the corner of the urban boundary. It’s not clear exactly when the two years would start, but HSC has planned to mine that area first.

HCS has also agreed to a monitoring program for ground water quality near its asphalt recycling stockpiles, to plant trees immediately on the northern border instead of within one year, to apply calcium chloride annually to suppress dust on the Tenth Line and to clean up any gravel spillage on Road 52.

Coun. Rob Smith said the deferral will be “an opportunity for citizens to chime in” on whether the changes are acceptable.

Salis told council the proposed land use is “appropriate and in the public interest” and conforms to provincial and county policies. The plan to expand the pit north towards County Road 52 has been the subject of technical studies and public meetings over the last two years.

“The applicant has demonstrated that the proposed use can be carried out in a manner that will reduce potential social, economic and environmental impacts,” Salis said.

The expansion would be on 50 acres west of Tenth Line and 100 acres to the east. It includes a 60-metre setback in the northwest corner, one of several changes already made by HCS.

Many residents want a 300-metre setback, even though the land is already zoned for gravel mining. Resident Roy Val said it appears the previous owners of the pit had no intention of mining the northwest corner, and although there is no documentation, that the subdivision may have been approved with that understanding.

Salis said any contaminants from asphalt recycling would be at concentrations well below those of concern to human health. A study found there would be no impact on groundwater or the nearby West Credit River.

The expansion would be on prime agricultural land, but Salis said aggregate extraction is acceptable since the land will eventually be restored to agricultural use – similar to rehabilitated land on the HCS property.

The Town hired WND Associates to review a visual impact study. They said proposed improvements to berm heights plus tree plantings are “adequate” for visual appearance, for screening the pit from second-storey views and for screening views further north on high points of the Tenth Line.

Coun. Matt Sammut has a conflict of interest because his home is near the pit, so he did not participate in the debate or vote. At the March 6 meeting he had Mayor Allan Alls read a statement saying he “will not influence Council or members of the public on the future decision.”

He has registered a notice of objection with the Ministry of Natural Resources to the HCS plan. He said, “I have been advised by both Municipal Affairs and our Integrity Commissioner that I can be an objector as a homeowner while being in conflict as a councillor.”

Train stations remembered as community hubs

As published in Sideroads Magazine

In the railroad boom of the late 1800s, four companies built an ambitious web of steel among villages between Georgetown and Orangeville.

The local train station became the new community hub – a meeting place where farmers and millers would ship products, visitors could arrive without a grueling stagecoach ride, shops would receive efficient deliveries and residents might gather to get election results by telegraph.

A scale model of the CVR station at Forks of the Credit, part of a model 

landscape created by Erin rail enthusiast Steve Revell. Photo - Phil Gravelle

As rails emanated from the economic powerhouse of Toronto, the first train station in Peel County was in Bolton. It was on the Toronto Grey and Bruce (TG&B) line that headed west starting in 1869.

In 1908, Bolton became a major junction point for a new line running north through Palgrave and up to Sudbury – an all-rail route to the western provinces.

In order to reach Caledon Village, TG&B builders had to climb Caledon Mountain. They designed the Horseshoe Curve, where the rail line doubled back on itself to gradually gain altitude. Trains could only climb with five rail cars per engine.

The Great Horseshoe Wreck killed seven people in 1907 when a Canadian National Exhibition excursion special came down the Curve too fast and derailed.

The TG&B brought passenger rail service to Orangeville in 1871 and it was to last 100 years. Within six months, Orangeville was shipping up to 16 loads of grain a day as well as timber, lumber, and fence rails. In the 1880s a stagecoach ferried visitors to and from the railway station on Mill Street and the hotels and businesses along Broadway. 

A scale model of the Orangeville CPR station and rail yard 

created by Steve Revell. 

The Orangeville CPR Station was moved to Armstrong Street in 1989 

and is now home to the Barley Vine Rail Co. restaurant and bar. 

Photo - Elizabeth Willmott

The smoke of three steam engines can be seen as this train blasts north 

out of Orangeville in the mid 1950s. The extra horsepower was needed 

for the steep grade up to Fraxa Junction. Photo - Robert Sandusky

The TG&B was taken over by Canadian Pacific (CP) in 1884. In 1907, they built a new Orangeville station on the east side of the rail yard on Townline. The distinctive conical roof resembling a witch’s hat covered a waiting room that once had separate sections for men and women. It is one of only three stations in Canada constructed in this exact style. 

In 1989, to avoid demolition, it was moved to Armstrong Street and converted to commercial use. The nearby rail yard bunkhouse and lunch bar, built in 1943, burned down in 2006.

Just past Orangeville was Fraxa Junction, where a northern branch of the TG&B carried on through Shelburne, reaching Owen Sound in 1873.

A scale model of the Fraxa Junction station on the TG&B line
just west of Orangeville, created by Steve Revell.

Elizabeth Willmot, in her book Meet Me at the Station, says people would gather along that line to see the Steamship Express headed north. This train was considered glamorous because passengers would later sail out of Owen Sound harbor, headed for Sault Ste. Marie.

The passenger office at the original two-storey Shelburne station, 

on the Orangeville-Owen Sound line. It was replaced during Canadian 

Pacific’s modernization and upgrading program, carried out in the 1910s.

Photo - Dufferin County Museum

About 10 miles north of Orangeville was Crombies station, a tiny board and batten building where travellers would wave a green and white flag to get trains to stop. It is preserved at the Dufferin County Museum.

The Crombies flag stop station north of Orangeville.

Photo - Elizabeth Willmot

The Credit Valley Railway (CVR) served an area west of the TG&B. It had a route from Streetsville through Cheltenham, Inglewood and Alton, ending at Orangeville. Alton had a CVR station in the village, plus a TG&B station a mile’s walk away. 

CPR steam engine 183 rolls into Forks of Credit station in 1905.

 The station was between the tracks and the road, near 

the trestle bridge over the Credit River.

The handsome brick union station in Inglewood, 1954, serving both 

the CNR Milton and the CPR Streetsville subdivisions. 

Published in Steam at Allandale by Ian Wilson, 1998.

Photo - Robert Sandusky

Cataract Junction Station in the 1890s, published in 1980 by Boston Mills 

Press in Running Late on the Bruce, by Ralph Beaumont and James Filby. 

This was the point on the Credit Valley Railroad line to Orangeville 

where a branch line split off towards Elora, passing through Erin, 

Hillsburgh, Orton and Fergus. It is now the Elora Cataract Trailway.

At Cataract, the 47-km Elora Branch of the CVR split off towards Erin and Hillsburgh. The CVR was never financially secure, and like the TG&B, it was taken over and revitalized by CP in 1884. In Orangeville, the CVR station on East Broadway in the Credit flats was abandoned in favour of the TG&B station.

For the past 18 years, Cando Rail Services has used the old CVR route to run scenic Credit Valley Explorer excursions and freight deliveries between Orangeville and Mississauga. The firm recently announced it is ending these services, and a new operator is being sought.

The arrival of the railroad prompted incorporation of the Village of Erin in 1879. The simple wood frame train station was a combination passenger and freight depot, with a grain elevator and coal dealership nearby.

In the early 1900s it was often busy with train excursions for sporting events, dances, boating and cottaging at Stanley Park, a major tourist attraction.

Erin CPR station in 1909, as published in Early History of the Township of Erin 

by The Boston Mills Press.

“The railway was more of a convenience than a stimulus for economic growth,” said Steve Revell, in A Brief History of Erin Village. “Passenger service was limited after the Crash of 1929 and abandoned in 1958. The station was demolished in 1971, the last train left in 1987 and the rails were lifted in 1988.”

The Hillsburgh station was built on the west side of the millpond created by the Gooderham and Worts dam. A station road and bridge had to be built over the dam to connect with the village. 

The Hillsburgh station and grain elevator in 1884. 

Published in 1977 by The Boston Mills Press, in Steam Trains to the Bruce 

by Ralph Beaumont.

The station burned down in 1932, and a new small building was erected in 1933. In that year, service on the branch was cut from four daily trains to two, one going from Orangeville to Elora at 11:30 a.m. and one returning about 5:00 p.m.

In its later years, the HIllsburgh station became a flagstop on the CPR branch 

line from Cataract to Elora, which opened in 1879. 

The rails were lifted in 1988.

The Caledon area was also served by the Hamilton and North-Western Railway line running through Georgetown to Barrie (later owned by Grand Trunk and CN) starting in 1877.

Along what is now the Caledon Trailway, there were stations at Terra Cotta, Cheltenham, Caledon East, Centreville and Palgrave. There was a “union station” at Inglewood (Sligo Junction) where it intersected the Credit Valley line.

With a gas lantern lighting its train order board, the Cheltenham station 

was typical of those on southern Ontario branchlines. In October of 1952, 

it saw two daily passenger trains. Published in Steam at Hallandale 

by Ian Wilson, 1998. Photo - Robert Sandusky

The Caledon East Grand Trunk station in the mid-1950s. 

Published in Steam Scenes of Allandale by Ian Wilson, 2007.

Photo - William Flatt

The Grand Trunk Railway built a Georgetown station on its Toronto to Guelph Line in 1858 with attractive stone construction and unique woodwork. It was taken over by CN in 1923.

Steam engine at Georgetown CN station in the 1950s. 

Published in Steam Scenes of Allandale by Ian Wilson, 2007.

Photo - Keith Simon

In his book Steam Scenes of Allandale, Ian Wilson reports that Georgetown remained busy through the 1950s with 14 passenger train arrivals and departures on most days. It became a VIA Rail station in 1977 when CN and CP merged passenger service, and GO train commuter service started the following year.

The Georgetown train station remains well used today.

The role of train stations has certainly changed, but they are key to understanding how small rural communities once flourished as industrial centres in a bold new country.

Erin gets wastewater pep talk

The Town of Erin got an enthusiastic endorsement of the benefits of developing a wastewater system, from a similar community that is “now dealing with a growth explosion”.

The pep talk came from Jane Torrance, a councillor from Mississippi Mills, located about 20 minutes west of Ottawa. She was the guest speaker at the bi-annual Mayor’s Breakfast, March 28 at the Erin Legion, with about 100 business people and community members attending.

Mayor Allan Alls said the recent trend of allowing the severance of rural properties “has pretty well come to an end”, since the province has imposed a prime agricultural designation on most land previously classed as secondary agricultural.

“Our growth has to be in the urban areas, and we need wastewater to make that happen,” he said.

Torrance said her town’s 75-year-old sewer system had reached full capacity.

“Our challenge to growth was wastewater – we were saying no to development,” she said. With ten years of planning, one third funding each from the federal and provincial government, and the use of development charges, they were able to complete construction of a new state-of-the-art wastewater plant in 2012 for $28 million. It is operated by the Ontario Clean Water Agency.

 “There are more kids moving in – we’re focusing on a family population so we can be sustainable in the long term,” said Torrance. Their town banned estate lot subdivisions many years ago. “We can’t just build one type of housing. What type of housing is good for families? And bungalow townhouses are popular with seniors.”

More local employment means fewer commuters, and people who grew up in the town are more likely to move back.

Mississippi Mills has similarities to the Town of Erin, with a population of 13,500, including about 5,000 in Almonte, their largest urban area (and the only one with sewers). There are several other communities in their town including Pakenham, site of a major ski hill.

While Torrance described the growth as an explosion, it has meant only about 1,000 new residents since the new wastewater plant was completed. More significant, however, was the arrival of six substantial business developments including a mall, providing employment and revenue.

“Expanding the tax base means spreading the cost over more people,” she said. “All of the municipality is benefitting from Almonte’s growth.”

Mississippi Mills has been aggressive with social media and traditional promotion to attract visitors, and all of their materials stress the beauty of their river.

Unlike Erin, Almonte was starting with an existing sewer system, so did not have to install collection pipes or house hook-ups. Also unlike Erin, they had a hospital and a long-term care facility (now expanding). Being in a growth phase, their challenge is to keep up with demand for services such as childcare, and to add enough municipal staff to handle the activity.

There has been a library expansion, trail development, a downtown that promotes its charm, popularity with cyclists, a desire to protect a rural and mill heritage, and growth in home-based businesses.

“Councillor Torrance today showed our community what Erin could become if we build a sewage treatment facility – a healthy and vibrant community,” said Mayor Alls. “Her story is proof of the positive economic benefits that a facility could bring, including new jobs and diversified housing options.”

Alls said upcoming revisions to Erin’s Official Plan will determine exactly where new housing will be allowed, and define “what we want to be when we grow up”.

Lack of trust holding town back

As the Town of Erin prepares to embark on a major expansion, it needs to deal with a chronic lack of trust between the municipal corporation and the residents it currently serves.

Of course, people know that the roads will be plowed, the water supply will remain of high quality, the ice will be ready for hockey players and the tax bills will arrive without fail. 

But most people just don’t care about how local government works, and they are under no obligation to do so. Many feel it is an out-of-control system that takes a lot of their money and only gives a little in return.

As an independent observer, I don’t think the town is out of control. Local municipal projects are often very expensive, very slow moving and highly controlled by provincial regulations and funding. 

Yes, the town should be aggressive in finding ways to be more efficient and innovative. But it also needs to do better at communicating – regaining trust and building up its image.

I spoke recently with Garland Williamson, a farm owner and businessman. He has no specific objection to construction of a wastewater system, but is concerned about the town spending millions of dollars and lacking expertise.

He wonders how the town will manage a doubling of its population if it can’t properly manage what it has now.

Often it is what people actually see when they drive around town that affects their confidence in the municipality. Williamson brings up the example of the entrance to the medical centre and Tim Hortons from the intersection on County Road 124.

The county did not want traffic coming in from that intersection, but agreed to a compromise – a sharp curve in which two cars cannot pass by in opposite directions. And the number of parking spaces is inadequate.

People don’t care how much it was the county’s fault or the town’s fault, or the fact that it was a previous council. They just know it is a municipal failure, and that they are stuck with it for a long time.

He also raises the property standards bylaw. You can drive around town and see properties with old cars and other junk out front – apparent violations of the bylaw. There are various new homes where the landscaping is not completed until years after the house construction. There have also been many complaints about improper dumping of soil fill. There’s a general feeling that nothing is being done.

Mayor Allan Alls said the Town has to pick its battles, since bylaw cases often get bogged down in expensive court battles. Just recently, council agreed to upgrade the Bylaw Enforcement Officer position from part-time to full-time on a contract basis.

CAO Nathan Hyde and the mayor acknowledged that the town has an image problem.

“We do need to communicate a lot better with the public – we need to have positive outreach with the community,” said Hyde, who has been CAO for just over a year.

He is hoping that the recent hiring of Jessica Spina as Communications and Special Projects Officer will help with that process. There will be a Citizen Engagement Charter coming out later this year, and development of a new Strategic Plan. 

He said the staff reorganization last year was designed to improve delivery of core services, and that performance standards are in place to measure how well they succeed.

“My mission is to make Erin a future-ready community, which means ready for growth and ready for investment,” he said. “That’s us being ready for wastewater down the road. Council has bought into that vision and that’s the direction we’re going.”

All of the department heads are new in the last two years, and staff are under a customer service mandate, so let’s give them a chance to deliver.

“We want the public to have over time a level of comfort in what we’re doing, because we exist to serve them,” said Hyde.

Changes urged for Erin pit proposal

With town council expected to decide soon on whether to support expansion of the Halton Crushed Stone (HCS) gravel pit just south of Erin village, community members are renewing objections and proposing changes to the project.

A second public meeting was held March 6, with James Parkin of MHBC Planning providing an update on behalf of HCS.

“There has been a good consultation process,” said Parkin, noting that there are no outstanding objections from the Ministry of Natural Resources, Credit Valley Conservation, or the consultants who have peer reviewed HCS studies of hydrogeology, noise, traffic and visual impact.

“The proposal has withstood scrutiny, and we have made changes that are responsive to the community,” he said.

The existing pit west of Tenth Line is 300 metres from the road, but the expansion could bring it to within 30 metres. HCS says it plans a setback of 60 metres in Phase 1, in a radius from the corner closest to the McCullogh subdivision.

Other changes include increased berm heights, tree and shrub plantings along County Road 52, a noise audit, stockpile height limitations, a dust management plan and an annual water level data report to the town.

Residents Sharon Cranstone and Roy Val are urging a setback of 300 metres in the northwest corner. This is not a legal requirement, since the land is already zoned from extraction, but the County Official Plan does specify a 300-metre “yellow ribbon” setback for new zoning around urban areas.

They want the setback increased to 60 metres for the whole length of the pit along County Road 52, an increase of berm height and more extensive tree planting and landscaping. They want HCS to pave the first 300 metres of Tenth Line to reduce dust, and a setback of extraction near the Tenth Line.

They either want extraction in the northwest corner delayed until the final phase of the pit lifespan, to allow the trees to grow into a screen, or to have extraction in that area done first and completed in 18 months.

Cranstone and Val are also concerned about the environmental impact of asphalt being recycled and stored on the site. They want leachate testing and a limit on the volume equal to 10 per cent of exported gravel. HCS says asphalt is not a significant risk.

They also want to know why various provisions in the 1976 Ontario Municipal Board ruling that approved the original pit, and the development agreement that followed, were never enforced.

These include requirements that the pit owner pave a section of Tenth Line; create turning lanes where the Winston Churchill Blvd. haul route meets both County Road 52 and County Road 124, and reconstruct/maintain Winston Churchill to county standards.

David and Caitlin Piva, who live close to the existing pit, said there is a problem with gravel trucks parking on the Tenth Line and using their back-up beepers prior to 6 a.m. They are also concerned about rocks that fall onto the road from loaded trucks, and say that with high stockpiles of gravel in the pit, existing berms are not adequate.

Even though Credit Valley Conservation is predicting the expansion will not affect groundwater, they are still concerned about their well water.

Resident Karen Maxwell said dust from the pit on local properties remains an ongoing problem. She also reminded council that the 1976 OMB ruling approved the original pit with an assumption that extraction would take place prior to construction of a nearby subdivision.

Councillor Matt Sammut did not attend the meeting, and has declared a conflict of interest since his residence is in that subdivision.

Residents hope to avoid school closures

When Erin and Hillsburgh parents were asked what they want their schools to be in the future, their main response was “Open!”

About 100 people turned out to a workshop style meeting at Erin Public School on Feb. 28, hoping to discuss low enrolment issues.

The meeting was hosted by the Upper Grand District School Board (UGDSB), as part of the consultation process in developing a Long Term Accommodation Plan (LTAP) throughout Wellington, Dufferin and Guelph.

There will be another round of consultation before the final plan goes to trustees in June. There will be no recommendations on school closures – just further steps in a lengthy process that could lead to future changes.

There was some frustration because the meeting format did not allow attendees to make comments or ask direct questions of school board officials in the public session. Instead, people sat in rotating groups of six and were asked to describe their schools now, and what they want them to be.

 “The discussion questions last night were odd,” said Cooper in a Facebook post. “They didn't address the issues the school communities were facing at all.”

Town Councillor Jeff Duncan called the questions “lame”, since they did not deal with enrolment.

“This was an intentional attempt by Board officials, not even supported by their own trustee, to keep a lid on the community being able to voice its concern over the real issue here of the future closure of schools,” said Duncan. Residents were asked to fill out an on-line survey that closed just two days later.

There is particular concern over enrolment at Ross R. Mackay School in Hillsburgh. Its population of 90 students is expected to drop to 64 in five years, using only 32 per cent of the school’s capacity.

That rate could stay low if there is no housing growth, making it a candidate for closure. With new subdivisions supported by sewers, enrolment could rebound to 165 (83 per cent usage) in ten years.

The discussion groups were able to bring forward suggestions to help boost attendance at MacKay, including a boundary review that could increase its catchment area, and the transfer of some special education classes to the school.

There is also the possibility of making Brisbane Public School entirely French Immersion, which could result in more English-only students at MacKay.

Cooper supported investigation of such alternatives, but said the suggestion of adding Grades 7 and 8 at MacKay would not be practical. Technology courses for those grades are only feasible with higher student populations.

With sewage capacity to support new housing, Brisbane is projected to reach 107 per cent of capacity (477 students) in 10 years and Erin Public School to reach 79 per cent (423 students). Without substantial new housing, Brisbane would grow more slowly, reaching 101 per cent in 10 years, while Erin Public would decline to 47 per cent.

St. John Brebeuf Catholic School in Erin village currently has 238 students, but could accommodate more than 300. Principal Lowell Butts​ said they are holding steady, with the same number of students as in the previous school year.

Mayor Al Alls and Trustee Cooper have urged residents to support development of a wastewater system, but there is concern about the cost to existing urban homeowners. An Environmental Assessment is expected to wrap up this spring with a definite wastewater plan, but an actual system could still take well over five years to develop.

“The town has spent a large amount of money, time and energy in going through the regulatory hoops to allow for growth in our community,” said Duncan.

“I would hope the UGDSB would over the short to mid term allow this required process to play out and work with us.”

Angelstone zoning approved by OMB

A challenge to the zoning of the Angelstone Farms show jumping facility on Wellington Road 50 has been rejected by the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB).

Frederick and Nancy Gilbert who live next to the facility complained about the disruption of their rural lifestyle caused by an annual series of tournaments, attracting up to 1,000 spectators.

They argued at a five-day OMB hearing that the entertainment aspect of the events was not a proper agricultural use of the property.

Angelstone and the Town of Erin argued successfully that the farm’s primary use is horse training, and the events are a permissible secondary “value added” activity within the bylaw. They said adequate measures had been taken, as demanded by the town, to offset complaints about noise, traffic, trespassing and bright light.

The hearing was conducted by OMB member Sharyn Vincent. She ruled that the “innovative techniques” used by the Angelstone business are in the public interest, do not hinder neighbouring agricultural operations, and conform to the official plan, provincial policy and Ontario’s growth plan.

She ordered that the maximum number of event days be limited to 25 per year.

Angelstone originally held its equestrian events without proper zoning, but was allowed to continue under a series of temporary zoning bylaws. Last April, Erin council approved permanent zoning for the operation.

Former County Planning Director Gary Cousins told council he believes the show jumping, plus musical entertainment and the sale of merchandise, food and beverages, qualifies as a permitted use in an agricultural area.