Is council barking up wrong tree on dog kennel issue?

Some Centre Wellington councillors feel it could be in bad faith to turn down an application that meets existing regulations.

On May 23, members of council spent over an hour discussing the merits of a dog kennel application for a property in the southern portion of the township.

The proposal for 6073 Fifth Line, meets all of the township’s current regulations required for a kennel, however area residents are opposed to the proposal.

While councillor Steven VanLeeuwen remained adamant that he is not opposed to dog kennels in general, he said the location is not a good fit for a kennel.

Further, he asked for a moratorium on all future kennel applications – including this one – until council had the chance to review and revise Centre Wellington’s current kennel licence bylaw.

Earlier this year, council opposed a kennel proposal because it did not meet planning requirements. Council’s decision was overturned by the OMB.

This proposal already meets the regulations required by the township.

Mayor Kelly Linton, on the other hand, requested another public meeting to allow residents a chance to provide input, since none were at the original meeting held to obtain input from the public.

A counter argument was made by councillor Mary Lloyd who questioned the point of having such a meeting when it will not change the outcome – since the proposal already meets what the current township bylaw requires.

Discussion of the matter will be continued at a future council meeting.

 

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