Downtown redevelopment brings out
crowd
Last Tuesday, it was a full house at a City
Council meeting as councillors approved the new variation of the C2 plan to
build the new main branch of the public library at a site at the north end of
Wyndham. Good news for fans of a new library, but really bad news for the
business owners and patrons of the current occupants of the four properties
that’ll need to be demolished to make it happen. In fact many of the people in
the gallery, along with six delegations that spoke at the meeting, were there
to support Ray Mitchell and his business, the Family Thrift Store, which
Mitchell has owned and operated for the last 16 years.
Despite the interest and the speakers, the
motion passed by a vote of 10-2 with only Gloria Kovach and Christine Billings
voting against. The vote seemed to come down to more a matter of supporting the
new library that’s been in the works for years, rather than being against the
businesses on that corner. In s city press release, the Mayor touted the vote
as a measure to help rejuvenate the city’s core. "I am delighted that
after years of work and study, we are moving forward with a design concept for
our much-needed new central library. This design concept is the best choice for
the library, and the best choice for the revitalization of the north end of our
downtown," said Karen Farbridge.
The property between the Family Thrift
Store and Cowboy Bar has been in limbo for the last few years as debate over
library plans raged. One of the block’s biggest tenants, Wyndham Arts, moved to
another location on Wyndham last fall, seemingly in anticipation of this
decision. As for Mitchell and other business owners, the Guelph Downtown
Business Association says that they’re going to assist displaced business
owners and tenants, but that won’t do much for the artists and musicians
renting studio space above the Family Thrift Store, or those living in about 30
affordable apartments in the same buildings. We’ll be covering this story as it
develops.
Feel like a municipal strike?
It could be in the cards as the City of
Guelph continues its collective agreement negotiations with Canadian Union of
Public Employees (CUPE) locals 241, 973 and 1946. The unions’ previous
contracts expired on January 31. A provincial conciliator has been
requested and appointed to provide mediation services to both parties in an
attempt to reach a settlement. The next meeting is set to take place on March 2;
a tentative strike deadline of Friday March 6 at 12:01 am has been
arranged. CUPE locals 241, 973 and 1946 represent approximately 550 outside,
inside and library employees.
Hanlon improvements mean
headaches for some
The Ministry of Transportation of Ontario
unveiled its latest plan for upgrading the Hanlon Expressway for the consideration
of city council in March. So you can only image what happened next. If you
said, somebody’s against the plan, you’d be either a lucky guesser or a
long-time resident of Guelph. Yes, residents on Old Colony Trail are quite
displeased with the plan which calls for a service road on the west side of the
Expressway connecting Kortright/Downey to Stone Roads, to be built right behind
their homes. The MTO says that the plans, if initiated, would not encroach on
the properties on Old Colony Trail, with the exception of three at the south
end near Woodland Glen Drive. Further, the MTO has pledged to work with
affected residents on a one-to-one basis, but they are firm in their contention
that this is the best of all options following public consultation and feedback
last Fall.
Meanwhile…
The LIMITS (Land Is More Important Than
Sprawl) press conference scheduled for last Thursday (February 19)
was postponed until Friday because the group didn’t want to compete with U.S.
President Barack Obama’s official visit to Canada.
But due to the move, the conference was held a day too late for Echo’s deadline,
so for details head to “Guelph Politico” at http://guelphpolitico.blogspot.com
for more information.
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