Calling it a historic day for the city, Mayor Mitch Panciuk says the purchase of part of the former Bakelite property will ultimately lead to more than 40 uninterrupted acres of greenspace on the water.
At a special meeting Monday, Council approved the purchase of 8.4 acres of land at a cost of $3.15 million from the owners of the east end property.
That acreage is flanked on either side by land that has been deemed provincially significant wetlands and would be donated to the city through the Eco Gift program.
The owners of the land are planning a housing development on the other 25 acres of land that was once home to the former plastics factory.
Mayor Panciuk says this current council has had a number of achievements to be proud of but, in terms of legacy and having an impact on the future, this tops all of that.
“This is really going to be something that, for hundreds of years, we will be able to enjoy as a community. Right on the lake, right in the midst of our city. It’s going to be incredible. It’s going to be somewhere you can take your kids to show them birds and fauna, insects, including butterflies.”
He called the purchase proof of the current council’s commitment to green space and says there is likely no other community in Canada that has an opportunity to add to its waterfront in this manner.
He adds this was not a rash decision as it’s something they first began talking about in 2019.
“We’ve engaged consultants to make sure that, from an environmental point of view the lands that we’re receiving are safe for us to be able to deal with. We found out what we’re allowed to do with it. And in the future, any additional uses, all that will be something we’ll have to work with Quinte Conservation on and the provincial Ministry of the Environment.”
Quinte Conservation gave its approval to the purchase as did the Quinte Field Naturalists.
While most councillors were enthusiastic about the idea, Paul Carr was the only one to vote against it saying he felt further investigation is needed to be sure contaminants on the former industrial land have been cleaned up.
Other councillors like Chris Mallette and Sean Kelly said they are convinced the owners have done their due dilligence and the property has been properly remediated.
Mayor Panciuk says the plans for the land will be up to the next council but some of the possibilities presented at Monday’s meeting include trails, boardwalks, interpretive centres, fishing areas and an ice rink on the pond in the winter.
He hopes the city can begin to build some trails on the new property as soon as next year, hopefully linking them up to the Shirley Langer trail which is due to be completed this fall.
