On the sixth anniversary of an in-camera (secret) meeting on May 16, 2016, when Town Council approved the Saw-Whet development application without disclosing any details including the vote count, I wanted to add a different perspective.
In regards to the background of the meeting on May 16, 2016, Regional Councillor Allan Elgar gave multiple insights to the meeting in a local news article (from another outlet) in November 2016:
- "In my opinion, being blindsided like this is a poor way to conduct the business of this community."
- "There are lots of things I would like to talk about, but I can’t…"
It is apparent that Council approved this development even though there were many technical issues with the storm water management work which had not been properly addressed.
In an email of the Assistant Town Solicitor dated June 16, 2016, obtained through a freedom of information request to a Resident, Mayor and Council stated that, "…the witnesses of the Town and the Conservation Authority have taken the position that there are many technical issues with the storm water management work which have not been properly addressed."
In another email dated August 29, 2016, to a Resident the Assistant Town Solicitor advised the Resident that, "The town’s position in this hearing had been that the proposed development was 'premature and not in the public interest' partly as a result of concerns with the supporting technical studies (related to natural heritage, stormwater, groundwater, erosion, flooding, noise, and other matters)."
A further reason why Saw-Whet should not have been approved is based on the fact that it was known in 1986 that development on the Saw-Whet site was not advisable based on a recommendation outlined in an Engineering Report from April 1986.
A recommendation was made by the Engineer for "construction of a 640 acre-feet flood storage reservoir on the 14 Mile Creek just south of Upper Middle Road and east of Bronte Road," which would have included the Saw-Whet lands.
As a Candidate for Ward 5 Town Councillor who is interested in protecting the interests of Ward 5 residents and all Oakville residents the actions of Council in approving the development when there were still many technical issues outstanding was reprehensible.
Perhaps even worse is that instead of keeping their promise to save Saw-Whet Council approved the development in a secret meeting by ignoring the engineering concerns and science in favour of profit.
This story's author, Michael Reid, is a senior law clerk with Will Davidson LLP. He is currently a running as a Ward 5 Town Councillor candidate in Oakville, after running as a candidate for the same position in 2018.
