Prince Edward County has referred a rezoning application for a new subdivision near Picton back to staff for additional revision.
During Wednesday’s planning and development committee meeting, councillors reviewed a zoning change for the property between County Road 1 and Loyalist Parkway.
The development, named Loyalist Heights, is situated along the Millennium Trail and was planned to have 396 units. The units include 100 single-detached residential lots, 26 semi-detached dwellings, 47 townhouse units, 193 apartments, and a seniors village consisting of 30 bungalows.
In a report to the committee, municipal staff are recommending the current application be denied. In their report, municipal staff raised similar issues with the current proposal as they had at a previous meeting regarding this development. Current concerns include poor access to Millennium Trail which runs through the development, inefficient lot sizes, and a lack of public park space.
During the meeting, members of the public spoke against the application, raising several concerns with the environmental impact of the development, including risks to the local water supply and habitat loss for local wildlife.
After hearing from staff and local citizens about the project, councillors briefly debated how to proceed with the application. Councillor Kate MacNaughton pushed for more green design, with additional parkland and wild space.
“There is a very sensitive piece of property in a very sensitive location, with it attached to a very sensitive wetland that can potentially have a lot of impact,” said Councillor MacNaughton.
After the debate, it was decided to refer the application back to staff to work with the developer to address the concerns with the existing plan, and have the application return to the committee at a later date.
This is the second time a decision has been delayed on this application.
