A proposed development of a Mennonite Church and parochial school just south of Conn could substantially increase the size of the community – at least in terms of overall acreage.
However, any rezoning of the property remains dependent on a severance application at the Wellington County land division committee, where a decision is not expected until early April.
Wellington North Mayor Mike Broomhead said, “As you’ll see here later on in the meeting, the severance has not gone through yet.” He said the project was not taken off the table for discussion that night – only the bylaw part of it.
“Once the severance is passed, the bylaw will come back at a future meeting. We don’t want to put the cart before the horse type of thing.”
The 2.8 hectare (7 acre) property is at the southern boundary of Conn and is currently farmed. The application would rezone the lands from agricultural to institutional to permit a parochial school, church and cemetery.
Wellington County planner Mark Van Patter wrote that he believes the proposal conforms to the provincial policy statement and county official plan, which directs institutional uses such as this to urban areas and hamlets.
Van Patter said the property is large enough that the uses can be situated there so they can be compatible with the neighbours to the north.
He further recommended a detailed site plan be provided so the township can get a better understanding of how the parcel will be developed. He suggested council not approve the rezoning until after the county deals with the severance application on April 8.
“The proposal is to sever a flag-pole shaped property,” he said, adding the proposal includes a 4,100 square foot church with seating for 300 people, as well as parking for 70 to 95 cars on Sunday, with no outdoor lighting and no evening use.
Van Patter said parking calculations suggest the church requires only 60 spaces. Additionally, the church would have no youth activity, no fellowship hall and no kitchen facilities.
The proposed 2,600 square foot school might not be built for several years. The school is planned to accommodate 30 to 45 students, but there would be no showers or cafeteria.
The cemetery, at 150 by 176 feet (0.61 acres), is intended to accommodate 350 plots and take roughly 80 years to fill.
Access to the property would be from County Road 14, south of the ball field in Conn, and Van Patter said the proposal would not utilize any internal roads in Conn itself.
He noted the official plan indicates that “other uses including local commercial, small scale industrial, institutional … may also be permitted where compatible and where adequate levels of service can be provided.”
While the proposal is technically outside of Conn’s boundaries, it is adjacent to the community. He said 100 feet of the southern limit of the proposed area to be rezoned is outside of the hamlet boundary.
However, the official plan takes that into account, stating, “to ensure the public interest and to prevent undue hardship, flexibility may be used to allow minor deviations from the text or map”
Van Patter said the county is satisfied flexibility is warranted in this situation and the southern portion of the area should be interpreted to be within the hamlet. He saw no point to an official plan amendment since the rezoning is already a public process.
Compatibility issues
Van Patter stated that given the size of the property and the small scale of the uses proposed, he had no concerns with compatibility in general.
He noted the lands to the west are occupied by the ball diamond. To the north, there are four dwellings, which are the most sensitive neighbours. To the south and east, the land is agricultural.
Van Patter recommended the cemetery be situated as far as possible from the existing dwellings and wells (at the southeast corner of property). The proposal will still be subject to site plan approval.
As for services, the proponent sent a letter from their engineer stating the property size is sufficient for a septic system, but did provide a preliminary draft bylaw to council to review.
“At this point, I don’t have any real concerns,” Van Patter said. No one at the public meeting had any objections.
Councillor Bob Mason added the applicants had a meeting with neighbouring residents, and a lot of questions were answered.
Broomhead was curious the proposal included no youth activities at the church. The explanation is that the church would not be used in the evening, and that the group’s youth gather in another location. The activities around the school were more defined as children activities but only during the day.
Council will await the land division committee review. As a result, Broomhead said it will be closer until the end of April before a decision will be made.
“I’m just glad you were able to find a spot and that it’s compatible with the neighbours. Nowadays, that’s not always an easy thing to do,” he said.
