Madawaska Valley’s Manager of Planning and Development, Luke Desjardins (shown above), provided MV Council with an update on various planning matters in the municipality at the Oct.3rd Council in Committee meeting. He began by providing the 2023 building permit figures (January to September) as compared to the same period last year. At 24, the number of dwelling units was slightly down compared to 27 in 2022.
Desjardins then produced a copy of MV Township’s response to County Council’s proposed implementation of Development Charges, which was in line with Council’s direction after their review of Renfrew County’s “workshop presentation.” MV’s response in summary was not to support either of the DC scenarios proposed by County, and instead put forth a third option which is not implementing any County DC Charges at this time.
While some members of the public had apparently complained to Councillor Blank that MV does not provide updates or explanations about ongoing planning applications, Desjardins proceeded to do just that in respect of several issues:
- Desjardins reported a recent meeting with community members about the proposed mosque in Hassanville that was followed by a site visit. Consultants JP2G will provide a Supplemental Report to Council.
- He then turned to several upcoming and ongoing applications listed in his report, and added there would soon be an application about Stevenson Lodge.
- Desjardins included a report from Rogers regarding an application to install a new cell tower near Dafoe Road. The attachment included diagrams and photos of the area. He pointed out that Rogers had requested mailing addresses for nearby property owners.
- On the subject of notice, Desjardins confirmed that notices for Shoreline Road Allowance sales continue to be advertised in the local paper at the applicants’ expense. As per Council’s direction, this now happens in only one local newspaper.
- On the subject of abutting property owners, Desjardins also told Council that while the Planning Department continues to send letters to those who would potentially be affecting by planning matters, MV staff had become aware that such letters were not always read. As a result the Planning Department now sends out registered letters to provide certainty that the notice is received.