Proposed residential development on land currently owned by the Elgin County Railway Museum is an opportunity to revitalize that portion of downtown St. Thomas, stresses Doug Tarry.
The St. Thomas developer made that observation almost three years ago, and this past Tuesday (Feb. 20) city council unanimously agreed to declare certain parcels of land that partially comprise Jonas Park to be declared surplus to the city and those parcels will be sold to Doug Tarry Limited (DTL) for future residential development west of the Elgin Country Railway Museum.
Back in the summer of 2021, Tarry sought to purchase eight acres of railway land immediately west of the museum at $300,000 per acre for a low-rise residential development that would front onto a new street to be created off Ross Street and north of Jonas Street.
Tag Archives: roundabouts
‘I will say that it was my intention to continue to be in St. Thomas but sometimes opportunities come up.’ – City manager Sandra Datars Bere to depart for top job in London
We got wind of this just over a week ago and the move was confirmed on Tuesday of this week. City Manager Sandra Datars Bere will assume the same post up the road in London, effective at the beginning of May.
Her last day at city hall will be at the end of April.
She returned to St. Thomas as city manager on Jan. 10, 2022. So, for the second time in about 15 months, the hunt begins for a new city boss.
Datars Bere stepped in following the retirement of Wendell Graves at the end of February 2022.
She served as the city’s director of social services from 2006 through 2010, before moving on to continue her municipal career in London and Bruce County.
Mayor Joe Preston admits the city has big shoes to fill.
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A Brantford development firm has become a solid St. Thomas supporter
Vicano Developments this week closed a deal to purchase 67 acres of industrial land on the southeast corner of Highbury Avenue and Ron McNeil Line, adjacent to the city’s new 1,500-acre industrial park, now known as Yarmouth Yards.
Vice-president Paul Vicano says they are working with Whitney and Company of Cambridge to find tenants for the site.
“This was the kick-off to our leasing campaign with Whitney, our listing team, to look for a tenant for either a single-use building or smaller tenants of multiple units or buildings.”
Space is available up to 1.4 million square feet for one large operation.
Sister company Vicano Construction was involved in building the city’s social services and housing hub at 230 Talbot Street.
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The 2024 St. Thomas draft budget comes in at under a 4 per cent increase. Can city council whittle this down further?
City council begins 2024 budget deliberations on Monday (Dec. 4) and the adjusted tax levy comes in at a 3.76 per cent increase.
Keep in mind this is a preliminary look at the budget and in recent years, council has been able to shave up to a percentage point off the initial levy figure.
The proposed levy for the coming year is a shade under $69 million, which is an increase of $4.2 million over this year.
When you factor in $1.7 million in additional growth-related tax, the levy increase drops to $2.4 million, which is a 3.76 per cent increase over this year.
Contractual increases in wages and benefits – $2.5 million – and wages and benefits for new positions next year – $1.4 million – are the biggest contributors to the tax levy increase. Continue reading
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Date announced for 2nd public information centre to map the road forward along Hwy. 3 corridor west of St. Thomas
Since the announcement back in March of this year that Volkswagen had selected St. Thomas as the site of its first EV battery plant in North America, the majority of attention has centred on the new industrial park which will house the massive complex.
However, before the facility begins production in 2027, its impact will be felt in a major realignment of area roads and highways.
We’ve already dedicated space to the widening of Highbury Avenue and its extension to the Hwy. 3 bypass.
But a much more significant undertaking is the shape of things to come on the highway corridor between the city and Talbotville.
Announced this summer, it cancels a much smaller road project that would have seen a roundabout installed at the intersection of Ron McNeil Line and Hwy. 3, west of Wellington Road.
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The good, the bad and the concerns expressed about life in St. Thomas
What do you feel are the two most important opportunities and two most important issues facing the City of St. Thomas?
That was one of several questions posed to participants of three town hall meetings held in September and October of this year to garner input on the refresh process of the city’s strategic plan.
Climb Consulting has been retained by the city to undertake this plan update.
The meetings attracted those who live, work and access services in St. Thomas.
The information is contained in a report before council for Monday’s (Nov. 6) meeting.
Looking at the city’s strengths, participants lauded the strong sense of community and pride in St. Thomas.
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National Human Trafficking Awareness Day in Canada is a ‘trigger day for me’ – Kelly Franklin
Tuesday morning (Feb. 22) a flag-raising will take place at 10 a.m. in front of city hall in St. Thomas in recognition of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day in Canada.
The day was proclaimed as such in the House of Commons in February of last year and coincides with the 2007 declaration condemning all forms of human trafficking and slavery.
At last year’s inaugural flag-raising hosted by Victim Services Elgin, Christina Hoffer, crisis intervention specialist at Victim Services Elgin, explained trafficking exists in several not-so-obvious forms.
“Human trafficking involves the recruitment, transportation or harbouring of individuals for the purpose of sexual exploitation, forced labour or organ removal.”
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St. Thomas municipal council asked to renew its commitment to addressing discrimination in the community
Members of council will receive a report for Monday’s (Feb. 7) meeting that unpacks the experiences of discrimination in St. Thomas and Elgin county.
It contains the results of a survey undertaken by the St.Thomas-Elgin Local Immigration Partnership (STELIP) and we spotlighted last week a pair of online presentations to be held this coming Tuesday highlighting the results of that survey.
Delving into the report should prove uncomfortable at times for our elected representatives on two broad fronts.
First, and foremost, the report points out “Discrimination is happening in locations that are managed by the City of St. Thomas and this reality needs to be addressed.”
Secondly, the report states the obvious, “With no immigrants, visible minorities, nor Indigenous People represented on the City of St. Thomas Council, this report can help all of us better understand how these groups are experiencing life in our community.”
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