Growing pains

Residents Tom Wall, Barry Mellor and Ron Thomson on Empire Boulevard at Wellington on the Lake in April.

Concessions enable residents to embrace growth at Wellington on the Lake

The way has been cleared to allow Sandbank Homes to begin construction in the third and final phase of the development—a phase that involves the construction of 153 new homes at Wellington on the Lake. But to do so, the developer must satisfy 33 conditions, many minor in nature—other more consequential.

It was rather a bumpy road for the developer— though they remained confident throughout the process they would be allowed to complete the final phase of the 30-acre development project.

They hadn’t anticipated the stiff pushback they would receive from the resident’s association. In April members of the Wellington on the Lake Residents’ Association filed into Shire Hall to press for changes to the plan that would satisfy a range of concerns.

The most urgent worry was that construction trucks and service vehicles would be accessing the new phase along Empire Boulevard, the main entryway into the western portion of the development, running by the well-used community centre.

Sandbank Homes says it was never their intention to use Empire Boulevard but an alternative access had not yet been formally established. That alternative access has now been confirmed.

The residents also worried that the plan as proposed didn’t allow for enough parkland in the new phase.

Sandbank Homes explained that parkland for all three phases was included and approved in the original site plan. They said that any addition to green space after the fact was unreasonable.

“They knew what they were buying into,” said Graham Shannon, a principal in Sandbank Homes.

In last week’s compromise, however, the developer relented and allotted nearly a half acre of parkland space to the new phase.

Some residents also complained about low water pressure. They worry that 153 new homes would put unbearable strain on the waterworks system to keep up.

In the agreement ratified last week, Sandbank Homes will undertake a study to ensure that the waterworks system is robust enough to support the final phase.

Some residents also worried about a pile of construction debris at the northwest corner of the development that has been used from time to time to store fill and other materials from the project. Sandbank Homes has agreed it will update technical reports to ensure the environment and neighbours are safe.

Nearly 300 residents filed into the Wellington and District Community Centre last Wednesday for a meeting of the County’s planning committee to show their concern for their community.

“We got everything we wanted,” said Ron Thomson, former head of the residents’ association and a former County engineer. “Sandbank Homes gets what they need. We never tried to block them from building. But the residents of Wellington on the Lake had concerns about how this might unfold. I think most are happy with this outcome.”

Sandbank Homes loses three potential building lots but gains the right to complete the development of phase three. At the rate of current build out—this deal with the residents gives a green light to about five more years of construction.