Puslinch councillors are disappointed the county will not be a participant in the Ontario Municipal Board hearing next month concerning the proposed Aikensville gravel pit.
Councillor Dick Visser wondered why the county would pull out so close to the hearing when its council and staff have spent so much time on the proposal from Capital Paving.
“We could have split the costs with them,” Visser said.
Mayor Brad Whitcombe replied the decision of county council was made during a closed session, so he could not comment on it.
Councillor Matthew Bulmer said he found county council’s decision “weird” and surprising, considering the upper tier officials repeatedly stated they shared the same interests as Puslinch council.
“That is unfortunate,” Bulmer said of the county’s withdrawal. He noted the decision could perhaps be viewed as flattering – in that the county trusts the township to proceed on its behalf – but he doubts Puslinch residents will see it that way.
Visser said he is concerned the decision was made by the county behind closed doors and Whitcombe said he would relay that concern to the warden.
County council voted unanimously on March 26 to withdraw from the OMB hearing. Warden Joanne Ross-Zuj said the county was not prepared to cover the cost of additional outside staff when county planning staff was already taking part on Puslinch’s behalf.
About a year ago, county council rejected a Capital Paving official plan amendment to designate 60 acres of land as a mineral aggregate area. The proposed pit is located on Concession 3, north of County Road 34, and immediately west of County Road 35.
Capital wants to extract about 1.5 million tonnes of gravel from the site over seven years. The OMB has set aside six weeks for the hearing, beginning May 27 at 11am at the Puslinch Community Centre in Aberfoyle.
