Motion for planned housing on contaminated sites narrowly defeated

Two housing projects will remain in limbo, according to Rideau Vanier Coun. Stephanie Plante as her bid to help developers secure funds to remediate contaminated land failed by one vote.

The motion would have exempted two applications from a policy enacted last December that hit pause on the brownfield grant program until staff finished a review.

That review, originally expected in spring, is now not set to be tabled until November, adding additional waiting time for applications submitted in what Plante calls a "grey zone" between the municipal election and the beginning of the program's indefinite hiatus. 

"I agreed that a brief pause of five months or two quarters is reasonable. Now 10 months later, I'm a little concerned," said Plante on Wednesday. "Enough time has passed. We need housing to be built."

Plante argued that the proposed townhouses on the site of an old school — and before that a municipal dump — at 200 Baribeau St. and the proposed 21-storey building behind the Rideau Centre at 70 Nicholas St. would be the win her community desperately needs. 

'We made this mess'

In the 15 years that the brownfields program was active it approved $150 million in grants, but paid out far less. 

At the time it was suspended, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said the city needed to figure out if it was subsidizing developers unnecessarily. He stood by that argument Wednesday, saying a decision on the projects can wait until after the report is reviewed. 

• City of Ottawa pauses grants to developers who de-contaminate sites
• City of Ottawa approved $90M in brownfields grants in 5 years

Programs that provide grants or tax breaks for developers have become a political hot potato in recent years with public displeasure reaching a zenith when councillors approved $2.9-million in relief for a Porche dealership in an economically depressed area. 

Several councillors said this needs to be a nuanced discussion.

"No one's getting in the way of this application. They can build this right now. The debate is whether or not we subsidize it with public tax dollars or not," said Coun. Shawn Menard, who put forward last year's motion. 

But many around the table were swayed by Plante's plea for help.

 "If our concern here is that the polluter should pay on a brownfield site, well, the polluter is the city," said Coun. David Hill, who referred to these as "textbook" applications. 

Coun. Matthew Luloff echoed that point, saying: "We made this mess. We should clean it up."

A report prepared for developer Park River Properties said soil contaminated by an oil furnace from the former school needs to be removed as part of environmental remediation. 

Towers could help housing crunch, argues Plante

In her final appeal to councillors, Plante said the towers from developer Cadillac Fairview will provide one- and two-bedroom units that are affordable to university students — which will "remove some of the pressure" on Sandy Hill. 

And she bristled against the suggestion that these grants use taxpayer money to line the pockets of the wealthy. 

"These are not some sort of big grants that we give developers that they run and go on holiday in Maui," she said. 

"The point is to clean up the site and encourage people to clean up these sites, which right now are standing empty, with these shovel-ready projects ready to go." 

Because this was a reconsideration of an earlier council decision, passing the motion required 19 councillors — three-quarters of those in attendance — to vote yes. The final tally was 18 to 7 in favour, with councillors Bradley, Troster, Curry, Menard, Desroches and Leiper, along with Mayor Sutcliffe, voting no. 

But the decision is not the end of the line for developers; several councillors pointed to the possibility of a new motion for an exemption when the staff review is received.