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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPD-139-92 THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWN OF NEWCASTLE DN: ROYAL.GPA Meeting: General Purpose and Administration Committee File # Res. # Date: Monday, June 1, 1992 # #: PD-139-912Ie #: PLN 15.4 Subject: REGENERATION: TORONTO'S WATERFRONT AND THE SUSTAINABLE CITY: FINAL REPORT OF THE ROYAL COMMISSION ON THE FUTURE OF THE TORONTO WATERFRONT is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1. THAT Report PD-139-92 be received for information. REPORT: 1. On May 14, 1992, the Honourable David Crombie, Commissioner of the Royal Commission on the Future of the Toronto Waterfront released his final report, Reqeneration: Toronto's Waterfront and the sustainable City. The final report builds on an extensive series of background papers prepared by or for the Crombie commission, specifically related to issues surrounding the Greater Toronto bioregion from Burlington Bay to the Trent River. 2. The report is over 530 pages and summarizes the Commission's work and makes over 80 recommendations. Attached is a copy of the Press Release and an extract of Regeneration related to the Town of Newcastle. 3. Staff is reviewing this document and will be preparing a report for Committee and Council's consideration. In the interim, if member of Council wishes to view the document, . . .2 :) HECYClED PAI'IER PAPEH RECYCLE TlHS IS PRINTED ON nECYCLED PAPER REPORT NO.: PD-139-92 PAGE 2 it is available in the Planning Department. Respectfully submitted, cJ~~ Recommended for presentation to the Committee ~~uaw 6711 Lawrence E. Kots~ff Chief Adminisb(..~a~i.ve Officer .~, Franklin Wu, M.C.I.P. Director of Planning and Development CRS*FW*jip 25 May 1992 Attach. r- !1 ") J tL -, = Royal Commission on the Future of the Toronto Waterfront 1\\ .'f'''''; -" ; ,l :~ '\? "t"" '~""'\ A ttachment =IF 1 ,~;' C '~~< I!J 't~d. ; is ion royale sur ,"d.';;) 'i1t r u 1:-,0\'1- secteur verain de Toronto A..,.n.t vlAY 20 1~;'J2 . Press Release , TOW~ OF Nf#O~:rH: PLANNiNG "DU A~n/,i:NT TORONTO - David Crombie, Commissioner of the Royal Commission on the Future of\the Toronto Waterfront, today released his final report, Regeneration: Toronto's Waterfront and the Sustainable City. The document builds on the Commission's extensive series of background reports and issue papers, with specific suggestions for improving our bioregion's waterfront from Burlington Bay to the 1rent River. The Commission defines the Greater Toronto bioregion as the area bounded by the Niagara Escarpment to ~e west, the Oak Ridges Moraine to the north and east, and Lake Ontario to the south. , In the'three and-a-half years of its existence, the Commission has sought the expertise and views of elected and appointed officials from all levels of government; members of the business, labour, professional and academic communities; environmentalists; com- munity leaders; and members of the general public. The 530-page document, Regeneration, summarizes its work, philosophy, and conclusions, and makes some 80 recommendations. It is difficult to imagine a time of greater need for waterfront regeneration and a better opportunity to do it right. We view regeneration as a healing process that restores and maintains environmental health, as well as anticipating and preventing future harm. This means striving to ensure that existing land uses and activities are adapted, and all new development is designed, to contribute to the health, diversity, and sustainability of the entire ecosys- tem: the physical environment, human communities, and economic activities. - Regeneration Am~ng the Commission's key recommendations: · regeneration of the environment and economy of the bioregion using an ecosystem approach, based on nine waterfront principles (that it should be: clean, green, con- nected, open, accessible~ useable, diverse, affordable, and attractive); · new ways of doing things: round-table processes to bring agencies, the public, and business toge~~r; integration of environmental and land-use planning; and partner- ships to implement plans and projects; , · improvements to water quality in the Great Lakes and their watersheds by giving greater prioritY to ,the work of the International Joint Commission, the Municipal/Industrial Strategy for Abatement (MISA), and the remedial action plans (RAPs); c' A '7 I, t! " ,-} ...~ ,-) . the waterfront as the keystone of a green way system that would link existing open spaces to create a green net; this, the report says, would be valuable to both people and wildlife, in an increasingly urbanize,d metropolis; . a plan for shoreline regeneration to protect and restore habitats, integrate cultural her- l'tflge, a.ddress the ne.e?s and methods for lak~filli~ and erosion control, and enhance n\creation opportumties, The report includes an essay describing ways to heal an urban watershed, using the story of the Don as an example. Guidelines for watershed regeneration include protecting nat- ural a'nd cultural features, using topography and countryside to define urban form, ensuring that development enhances environmental health, maintaining rural traditions, and intensify- ing development. The Commissioner also outlined further wox:k on six projects currently' being under- taken by the Commission, at the request of the Province, which will be continued by the ,Waterfront Regeneration Trust in coordination with interested parties. They include: . negotiating partnership agreements among local, provincial, and federal governments as needed; these will include development plans and implementation mechanisms and '* will support public and private initiatives; . co-ordinating waterfront-related projects, priorities, and capital budgets, both public and private, to help meet the need for econpmic recovery and environmental regenera- ~ tion in all sectors; . preparing a Lake Ontario Greenway Strategy, based on the ecosystem approach and the nine waterfront principles, for the waterfront from Burlington Bay to the Trent River, to 't achieve a healthy, productive shoreline as a setting. for recreation and economic oppor- tunities, and to implement the waterfront trail; , . refining and implementing plans for Garrison Common, which includes some of Toronto's most historic cultural, militar:y, and industrial places: Exhibition Place, Ontario Place, Fort York, and major private sector 'holdings; . devising a strategy for the Lower, Don Lands, including approaches to flooding, soil remediation, rehabilitation of the Don River, green industry, and economic renewal; . integrating environmental, land use, and transpOrtation plannihg for the Central Waterfront corridor. Copies of Regeneratiol1 , are available at federal and provincial bookstores. " , -30- FOR MORE INFORMATION CONT ACf: Charity Landon or Lisa Ohata at 973-7185. 544 Extract from Regeneration Attachment :#2 supported by current or projected market demand. The balance of the Southeast Oshawa lands were examined in a study by City of Oshawa staff. Existing land uses are primarily open space and industrial; the area includes the environmentally sensitive Second Marsh and other significant natural open-space areas. The main issues for the Southeast Oshawa study area are the need for long-term planning, soil contamination and other environmental constraints, and preservation and enhancement of natural areas, particularly the Second Marsh. The Southeast Oshawa studies are currently undergoing departmental, agency, and public review. Following this part of the process, the City of Oshawa will make recom- mendations on the future role and function of the Oshawa Harbour and appropriate land-use concepts. The region's economic objectives include maintaining Oshawa Ilarbour as a commercial port facility until studies have been completed, If these stud- i('s support transferring port activity from (lshawa to the St. Marys Cement dock facil- ity in Newcastle, the region may reconsider tht' role of Oshawa Harbour, An additional phase of the harbour sludy will entail land-use and design options ;lIld implementation guidelines. It is the (~)Illmission's view that the future role of the harbour area should be decided on in .111 appropriate environmental context; in tur 11, successfully implementing the City's rllwrging plans will depend on its ability to hring all parties together at the earliest pos- 14l>le stage, Certainly, it is advantageous for Ihr (:ity to do so from the outset: discussing .lppropriate recommendations and agreeing <Jfl "'~IYs to implement a pref~rred option by establishing consultations among various provincial ministries, the Oshawa Harbour Commission, the Town of Newcastle, and the Region of Durham, The City of Oshawa's 1987 Waterfront Development Plan has been particularly successful in providing guidance for estab- lishing and implementing a local trail . system that will eventually link the city's downtown to its waterfront. Planning for the entire city is governed by its 1987 Official Plan, This plan should be revised with a view to incorporating the ecosystem approach, and protecting and enhancing the natural environment, while promoting economic growth and community development. TOWN OF NEWCASTLE The Town of Newcastle was established when regional government was introduced in 1974; today, it encompasses three major urban areas: the villages of Newcastle, Bowmanville, and Courtice. Of these, Newcastle and Bowmanville are located near Lake Ontario. In 1794 the first settlers to the Town of Newcastle arrived in Bowmanville (known as Darlington Mills until the 1830s). The area was named after Charles Bowman, a Scots merchant from Montreal who bought the local store and considerable amounts of land in the town. Bowmanville was incorpo- rated in 1853, and became a town in 1858. By 1878, it had a population of approxi- mately 3,500; today, with more than 14,000 residents, it is the largest urban area in Newcastle. The Village of Newcastle, incorporated in 1856, was founded in the mid-1800s by people who wished to capitalize on its location close to the Grand Trunk Railway, which had been constructed from Toronto to Montreal between 1853 and 1856, The railway brought business to the village: brickyards, builders, and cabinetmakers, among them, Major fires in 1877, 1891, and 1896 destroyed several buildings and many local businesses, not all of which were rebuilt as the village struggled to revive itself. In the 1960s it had a population of more than 1,500, and it is estimated to have 2,500 people today. The total population of the Town of Newcastle excee<;ls 45,000 and is expected to be more than 65,000 by 2001. With much of its waterfront undeveloped and its hinter- land a mix of urban and agricultural areas (and some industrial uses), the Town has a great opportunity to maintain much of its current natural state, The Town of Newcastle encompasses most of the Durham Shoreline, with more ,than 30 kilometres (19 miles) of waterfront, most of it undeveloped, from McLaughlin Bay east to Port Granby, Other substantial portions of Newcastle's waterfront lands are taken up by Darlington Provincial Park, the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, St. Marys Cement, and the Wilmot Creek Retirement Community, WATERSHED UPDATE Local Council first approved the Official Plan for the Township of Darlington in 1960 (renamed, in 1985, the Town of Newcastle Official Plan). This plan, approved in part by the Province of Ontario in 1986 and 1987, currently includes policies for the three major urban areas: environmental and commercial, industrial, and institu- tional. It does not include policies or land- use designations for the waterfront or rural areas within Newcastle, portions of which are to be developed in the short and long term, as noted in the revised regional Official Plan, In recommendations related to the Town of Newcastle, Watershed urged that approvals for proposed residential, com- mercial, industrial, tourism or recreational projects on the Newcastle shoreline be sus- pended until a local waterfront plan is pre- pared for the entire waterfront, unless such development proposals conform to the goals and objectives of such a plan and to the Commission's nine pri!lciples, Since the recommendations were made, the Town has not approved any waterfront projects. A review of the Newcastle Official Plan was begun by staff and the first public meeting on it was held in September 1991. The Commission supports the initiative to update the Town's planning policies and. reshape them to conform with the regional plan, focusing on managing growth and maintaining and improving the quality of life, A comprehensive study of the town's waterfront area is also under way and a study of the Bowmanville waterfront area is being completed, The Commission supports this approach which will help the Town guide development of Newcastle and its water- front area in a way that is most beneficial to those places and to the people in them. It believes that, in future, the Newcastle waterfront could offer an exciting mix of natural and built environments, and a diversity of land uses that are sensitive to their natural surroundings and that range from industrial to residential, mixed-use, and recreational, as well as natural and urban open spaces. ;' U ~ ST. MARYS CEMENT: INDUSTRY ON THE WATERFRONT In 1912, a construction materials company, St. Marys Corporation, was founded in St. Marys, Ontario, Today, it is an important Canadian corporation, operating in Canada and the United States, Since the late 1960s, St. Marys has run a quarry and cement plant on the Bowmanville waterfront in Newcastle, In 1973, the company was permitted to extract materials on the site under the Pits and Quarries Control Act. The following year, St. Marys acquired a provincial waterlot to create docking and storage facilities. In 1988, the plant produced approximately 500,000 tonnes (492,000 tons) of cement, about 8.5 per cent of the provincial total. To remain internationally competitive, St. Marys plans to expand the capacity of the Bowmanville plant, at a cost of $160 million, so that it can produce from 2,000 to 5,000 tonnes (1,968 to 4,920 tons) of cement per day; the company has asked the Province to sell it a 32-hectare (SO-acre) waterlot immediately west of the existing dock, so that it can enlarge its port facilities to accommodate two maximum-sized bulk carriers, Such facilities are important to enable the company to continue exporting to U,S. markets and they would also meet the bulk cargo needs of other Canadian companies, Furthermore, there is long-term potential for St. Marys to provide a deep-water port at the dock. However, expanding St. Marys dock and quarry operations would affect wildlife habitat and the adjacent residential community, The company is aware of the value of the natural environment and intends to consider the site's natural attributes in planning future operations, For example, it proposes to compensate for the loss of relatively poor fish habitat, which would result from enlarging the dock, by creating an experimental lake trout spawning shoal in consultation with government and non-government wildlife experts, Similarly, consideration will be given to ways of maintaining wetland values if future quarry expansion affects Westside Beach Marsh, a Class II wetland on the St. Marys site. By carefully designing the proposed dock, the company hopes to minimize environmental effects; it will monitor the fish shoal and potential effects of the new dock, including erosion and sediment movement. The concerns of nearby residents include impaired vistas, dust, storm drainage, noise, and vibration from industrial operations, as well as shoreline erosion, St. Marys Cement is attempting to meet these by building landscaped berms, and by good housekeeping prac- tices that will reduce dust and noise. It has expressed its willingness to work with various government agencies and the community at large to protect the environment while successfully operating an industry on the waterfront. ~ .... The Watershed report also noted that, before any recommendation could be made on future expansion of the St. Marys Cement dock facilities on the Bowmanville waterfront in Newcastle, further detailed analYSIS was needed. In 1989, St. Marys applied to the Ministry of Natural Resources to acquire an additional (32-hectare) SO-acre Lake Ontario waterlot that would give it the space needed to expand existing dock facilities through lakefilling. At the present time, the Province is considering whether the proposed fill should be subject to an environmental assessment. The recommended Great~r Toronto bioregion shoreline regeneration plan (Chapter 4) will also help prepare a frame- work within which to guide the future of the Newcastle waterfront area, GREENWAYS The Oak Ridges Moraine, as it reaches southeast towards the Trent River, has been used as a northern boundary in describing the Greater Toronto bioregion. However, in Durham Region it becomes obvious that there is at least one additional bioregion which should also be considered: the one encompassing the watersheds north and east of the moraine (including the green links between the three regional urban areas in Durham south ofthe Moraine), up to Lake Simcoe and Lake Scugog (see Map 12.1), There is an opportunity for Durham's regional urban areas to be separated by natural areas of vegetation, and providing wildlife habitat as well as connectors to a regional greenway system, linking the major natural elements of the bioregion. To date, the Region of Durham has not been very involved in developing the Waterfront Trail endorsed by the Province, but it supports creation of a greenway system linking public access on the waterfront to the river valleys and enhancing natural features in the m<yor open-space system, working with local municipalities and other appropriate agencies to r~ach these goals, Map 12.1 Regional greenway concept, Durham LAKE SIMCOE t N it .. ~ LAKE SCUGOG ~ ~ Among the key areas in which there are opportunities to develop portions of a Dur- ham greenway system in the near future are: . publicly owned lands in the Lynde Shores area, stretcl!ing into Cranberry Marsh and the Whitby Psychiatric Hospital lands on the Whitby waterfront . Oshawa waterfront lands surrounding the Second Marsh, which could include public access for educational purposes; and · those waterfront lands for which there are development proposals, because they offer opportunities for acquiring public rights of way. The Town of Newcastle has the most potential in this respect. RECOMMENDATIONS 79. The Royal Commission recommends that Durham Region, its local munici- palities, MTRCA, CLOCA and GRCA continue to review relevant documents including official plans, secondary plans and other waterfront-specific plans to ensure that they incorporate the ecosystem approach and the nine principles described in Part 1. The review should include, but not be limited to: . a regional waterfront plan encompassing all of Durham's Lake Ontario shoreline; . a review of the Pickering District Plan; and . a review of the Ajax District Plan and preparation of an Ajax waterfront plan, Prior to establishing a compre- hensive Durham waterfront plan, waterfront projects should be approved only if proponents show that the development is consistent with the ecosystem approach, the nine princi- ples in Part I and recommendations in Part II. 80. The Commission further recommends that Durham Region, the towns of Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, and Newcastle, the City of Oshawa, MTRCA, CLOCA and GRCA participate in preparing the proposed shoreline regeneration plan, including a waterfront greenway and trail, and ensure that any other plans for waterfront areas are reviewed and/or developed in this context. 81. The Province of Ontario should negotiate one or more Waterfront Partnership Agreements with the Regional Municipality of Durham, local municipalities, other levels of government and their agencies, and appropriate private-sector bodies, to manage future waterfront activity. While different municipalities are at different stages of waterfront plan- ning, the Waterfront Partnership Agreements should be closely linked to preparation and implementation of the regional waterfront plan, and should include: . clear identification of the roles and responsibilities of various agencies in implementing water- front plans in Durham, with the Region taking the co-ordinating role; . a review of the design of proposed regional water supply and sewage facility plans along the waterfront, to ensure that they do not detract from other waterfront objectives; . strategies to protect and main- tain significant natural habitats including: _ Frenchman's Bay marshes; _ Carruther's Creek mouth; - Lynde Creek mouth; - Pumphouse Marsh; _ Oshawa Second Marsh; - Mclaughlin Bay; ,... Wilmot Creek mouth; and - Bond Head Bluffs; . endorsement and implementa- tion of the recommendations made for Frenchman's Bay, in 549 its Conservation and Sustainable Development report, after consul- tation with the public and with such appropriate agencies as the Town of Pickering, the Region of Durham, MTRCA 'and the Province of Ontario; . a regional greenway and traii strategy consistent with recom- mendations in Chapter 5. This regional greenway and trail system should extend from the Oak Ridges Moraine south to Lake Ontario and north to Lake Simcoe and Lake Scugog. The natural areas between \ the three regional urban nodes - Pickering/Ajax, Whitby/Oshawa/ Courtice, and Bowmanville/ Newcastle -- should be re-estab- lished and kept in a natural state (see Map 12.1); . transfer of the Class III wetland at the mouth of Carruther's Creek and a suitable buffer, to a public agency to be managed as a protected wetland; and acquisi- tion of waterfront lands east of the creek by the Town of Ajax or MTRCA, prior to future develop- ment; and . options and implementation strategies for the future of the Oshawa Harbour area; this . process should include infor- mtion on soil and groundwater contamination, appropriate clean-up standards for proposed future land uses, alternative remediation techniques, and cost/benefit analyses of the options.