Letter to Stantec written by resident James Coulter
Ms. Reid,
The proposed site for the Mega-hospital is poor. This Secondary Plan is at least as awful.
The population projections that are provided are outdated. The latest population forecasts I located using Google included a 2015 Ontario Ministry of Finance report that showed no population increase for all of Essex County (including the City of Windsor) out to the year 2041.
The Erie-St. Clair Local Health Integration Network’s 2016-2019 plan reports a population decline for their jurisdiction by 2041 as well.
Urban intensification through infill development, brown-field reclamation, and increased population density is the goal of modern planning and is driven home in the 2014 Provincial Policy Statement as well as the City of Windsor’s Official Plan.
Outward expansion of the city’s built foot print at this time is not necessary. Currently there are over 500 acres of brown field, identified by the city for redevelopment. Not to mention over 600 vacant storefronts, buildings and lots identified by the social media project – Vacant Windsor. The city’s six development zones are supposed to be the focus for new investment and development.
Based on the current population projections the City of Windsor will not grow significantly by 2041. Anecdotal evidence of population growth is that most new residents are retirees from the GTA. These people represent a temporary increase as they are past child-bearing years.
The cost to existing and future Windsor taxpayers will only increase if the city expands outward without significant increases in population. The cost to improve infrastructure to support the proposed hospital site was estimated by city engineers to be $250 million. The City of Windsor currently has an infrastructure maintenance deficit of $300 million. To build new infrastructure that is not required will take capital dollars away from maintenance and renewal continuing the neglect of the city’s assets.
The cost of extending transit service is not sustainable. Transit Windsor estimates a capital cost of $2 million for new equipment to extend routes to service the proposed hospital site and a further annual operating cost increase of $2 million. There is very little chance this money will ever be recouped.
Almost a year ago the international community signed the Paris Agreement. It is imperative that every effort is made to stop living as we do – car-centric development, ignoring signs of climate change and start living with the goal of at least not doing more damage.
This Secondary Plan proposal is sprawl. It is old, glory-days-of-the-car-with-no-consequences-land-use. Plans like this do not live up to the Paris Agreement, they do not improve quality of life, they do not reduce reliance on cars and fossil fuels and they do not preserve the natural environment or valuable agricultural lands.
I cannot support a plan like this. I have shared my concerns with you and I will share them with others.
The proposed site for the Mega-hospital is poor. This Secondary Plan is at least as awful.
The population projections that are provided are outdated. The latest population forecasts I located using Google included a 2015 Ontario Ministry of Finance report that showed no population increase for all of Essex County (including the City of Windsor) out to the year 2041.
The Erie-St. Clair Local Health Integration Network’s 2016-2019 plan reports a population decline for their jurisdiction by 2041 as well.
Urban intensification through infill development, brown-field reclamation, and increased population density is the goal of modern planning and is driven home in the 2014 Provincial Policy Statement as well as the City of Windsor’s Official Plan.
Outward expansion of the city’s built foot print at this time is not necessary. Currently there are over 500 acres of brown field, identified by the city for redevelopment. Not to mention over 600 vacant storefronts, buildings and lots identified by the social media project – Vacant Windsor. The city’s six development zones are supposed to be the focus for new investment and development.
Based on the current population projections the City of Windsor will not grow significantly by 2041. Anecdotal evidence of population growth is that most new residents are retirees from the GTA. These people represent a temporary increase as they are past child-bearing years.
The cost to existing and future Windsor taxpayers will only increase if the city expands outward without significant increases in population. The cost to improve infrastructure to support the proposed hospital site was estimated by city engineers to be $250 million. The City of Windsor currently has an infrastructure maintenance deficit of $300 million. To build new infrastructure that is not required will take capital dollars away from maintenance and renewal continuing the neglect of the city’s assets.
The cost of extending transit service is not sustainable. Transit Windsor estimates a capital cost of $2 million for new equipment to extend routes to service the proposed hospital site and a further annual operating cost increase of $2 million. There is very little chance this money will ever be recouped.
Almost a year ago the international community signed the Paris Agreement. It is imperative that every effort is made to stop living as we do – car-centric development, ignoring signs of climate change and start living with the goal of at least not doing more damage.
This Secondary Plan proposal is sprawl. It is old, glory-days-of-the-car-with-no-consequences-land-use. Plans like this do not live up to the Paris Agreement, they do not improve quality of life, they do not reduce reliance on cars and fossil fuels and they do not preserve the natural environment or valuable agricultural lands.
I cannot support a plan like this. I have shared my concerns with you and I will share them with others.
Looking to read more? See CAMPP's analysis by clicking here.