Facing heated questions, P.E.I. government pauses tiny-home project in Miltonvale Park

The P.E.I. government is pausing its plan to create a tiny-home development in the municipality of Miltonvale Park, just outside Charlottetown.

That plan includes upwards of 200 tiny home units — typically defined as less than 500 square feet but containing traditional kitchens and bathrooms — to go on 65 acres of land the province owns on Sleepy Hollow Road, past the Provincial Correctional Centre.

The province applied to the Rural Municipality of Miltonvale Park recently for a permit for the first 62 units.

Announced in February, the tiny-home development is a collaboration between the province and the Construction Association of P.E.I., with Holland College students and apprentices gaining experience building the homes while helping Islanders listed on the social housing registry.

In the legislature Wednesday, Liberal Opposition Leader Hal Perry said the government failed to consult local residents in District 15 about the project.

"Islanders support building more housing, but they also expect open communication and responsible decision-making," Perry said.

"What process did your government follow in deciding to develop 65 acres in Sleepy Hollow and how were residents engaged before the decision was made?"

Premier Rob Lantz responded: "We've heard some concerns from the community. We're willing to work with the communities, so that it's a development that everybody can all be proud of."

"But that's not happening in District 15," Perry said. "This is a 65-acre development that could add hundreds of homes, so why are we hearing from dozens of residents who say your government failed to consult or listen?" 

Housing, Land and Communities Minister Steven Myers shot back, saying that it's "categorically false" to say the government was not listening to feedback. 

"We've paused development; we're going back to incorporate the feedback that we've received," he said.

"This is exactly how a government should be run. Take note, because when you guys sat over here, you didn't do any of that stuff," Myers added.

'A land-use issue'

Perry said this is not just a transparency issue.

"It's a land-use issue. This government has earned a failing grade on that for the past six years. This land was active farmland; now it's being converted into residential sprawl," he said, referring to the fact that agricultural acreage is becoming more expensive as farms give way to housing developments.

"To the minister of agriculture: You're a farmer, why are you sitting back while farmland is taken out of production to make way for another sprawling development. Doesn't this concern you?"

Agriculture Minister Bloyce Thompson replied by saying he supports protecting farmland across the Island but population growth brings the need for more housing.

"It's a balance here that we have to be very due-diligent about and I'll support protecting as much farmland on this Island as possible," Thompson replied.

How can you claim to defend farmland, then turn around and pave over it?— Interim Liberal Leader Hal Perry

Perry didn't agree, calling that a bad answer.

"How can you claim to defend farmland, then turn around and pave over it?" he asked. "How do you justify reducing P.E.I.'s agricultural land base at a time when the loss of farmland is one of the biggest concerns facing Island farmers?" 

Thompson said he's looking forward to a new pilot project to protect farmland.

"We are working with the minister of land, communities and housing to protect this farmland," Thompson said. "We've discussed this with the Federation of Agriculture, they're excited about this, we're doing a pilot project in Belfast this year."

Cost and safety questions raised

On another point, Perry said the province has not stated how much the Miltonvale Park development is going to cost.

"What is the total projected cost of the Sleepy Hollow development, including infrastructure, maintenance and services, and how has that been communicated with the public?" 

Lantz did not answer the question, but mentioned that the property inquestion has been zoned residential for years.

"This was a property that we identified at the height of the housing crisis here as a development where we would situate affordable-type homes, that missing-middle type of home, where we could provide a product for people to get into the housing market," he said.

"This was a vision to help address part of the housing market that's lacking in this province and this was something that we made a commitment to invest in for that purpose."

Perry again said the issue is about sprawl, adding that Sleepy Hollow Road already has safety concerns.

"The issue isn't about building more houses; it's about sprawling as opposed to density, which is protecting our land," he said.

"Sleepy Hollow Road already has safety concerns and we know that. To the premier: Will you commit to upgrading the road, including paving and shoulders, before this development goes ahead, and have residents been given any assurances this is going to be happening?"

This was a property that we identified at the height of the housing crisis... as a development where we would situate affordable-type homes, that missing-middle type of home.— P.E.I. Premier Rob Lantz

Myers pushed back, saying the area is under the City of Charlottetown's jurisdiction. 

"Not only is this a piece of land in Charlottetown, the roads belong to Charlottetown, the upgrades belong to the City of Charlottetown," he said. 

"We just gave them more money in their new arrangement with the City of Charlottetown. They're more than capable of making these decisions," Myers added.

"For us, we follow the process that was laid out in front of us. There's never one time we didn't follow the process. It's them who holds the public meetings, not us. It's them who receive the feedback and… we've incorporated the feedback into it."