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Between 50 and 60 residents spent Saturday afternoon near the intersection of Cornwall Road and Ford Drive, protesting an Amazon delivery station planned for the area.
The protest was organized by a group known as R4LO (Residents for a Liveable Oakville), which has spent the last several years fighting plans by the online giant to move into a vacant warehouse at 2175 Cornwall Road.
That property, near the northwest corner of Cornwall Road and Ford Drive, is directly across the street from a residential neighbourhood.
“We still believe there can be efforts made to have Amazon look at a different location for their operation,” says long-time area resident Peter March.
Amazon’s plans require the site’s parking lot to be roughly tripled to create up to 689 parking spots, along with the addition of a second driveway.
As many as 200 employees will unload incoming tractor-trailer trucks and load parcels into vehicles for delivery to residences across Oakville and beyond. According to a traffic study filed to support necessary modifications to the property, the result will be more than 1,500 vehicle trips in and out of the property each day.
The town has granted draft approval for the project and is working with property owner H&R REIT and residents to finalize an acceptable site plan.
Details of site plan discussions can be found on the Joshua Creek Residents Association (JCRA) website, which has been working to mitigate the impact of the facility on residents, says president Elizabeth Chalmers.
Town council approved the project last January after town staff concluded that Amazon would be using the property as a warehouse as permitted under the site’s zoning.
In exchange for that approval, the company offered to reduce the number of requested parking spots, enhance landscaping, provide new turning lanes on Cornwall Road and build a noise wall to insulate neighbours from the beeping sound of reversing trucks.
But R4LO says the decision was a misstep on the town’s part.
“Amazon doesn’t warehouse anything,” says March. “They’re going to bring trucks in and trucks out.”
On its website, the group argues that the development is incompatible with the adjacent residential neighbourhood and should have been assessed as a transportation terminal rather than a warehouse. A transportation terminal would not be allowed based on the property’s zoning.
R4LO is also working with Conservation Halton about concerns with flooding due to the additional pavement added to the property, as well as the impact of the salting required for the property.
Other Amazon hubs of this size are all in industrial parks, adds Dyanne Dumas.
“Why are they putting this 20 metres from someone’s back door? This needs to be in an industrial area.”
She added that residents don’t plan to give up the battle.
“I don’t think Amazon will want to be in this area when they catch wind of residents protesting – and we will continue to protest – and if they move in, we’ll be there with our signs.”