HomeMy WebLinkAboutCAO-06-017 - Economic Development Advisory Committee East Side Community Development Recommendation1
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REPORT
Report To: Finance and Corporate Services
Date of Meeting: March 6, 2006
Submitted By: Rod Regier, Executive Director Economic Development
Prepared By: Kathy Weiss, Director Business Development
Ward(s) Involved: All Wards
Date of Report: February 27, 2006
Report No.: CAO-06-017
Subject: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE
EAST SIDE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
RECOMMENDATION
RECOMMENDATION:
That Kitchener City Council requests Regional Council to expedite the development of the East
Side Employment Lands in order to ensure that the strength of the local and regional economy
will not be impacted negatively because of lack of available, serviced employment lands and:
That City and Regional Councils make every possible effort to persuade the Province to
expedite construction of the new Hwy. 7 between Kitchener and Guelph in order to
accommodate these new employment lands as the businesses who will locate there must have
transportation infrastructure for the purposes of moving people and goods to and from the
Business Park.
Outside of this recommendation, the City of Kitchener has concerns regarding the future
availability of smaller lots, based on past and current sales, and believes there needs to be
flexibility in the diversity of lot configuration on the East Side lands.
REPORT:
The Region of Waterloo, in cooperation with the City of Cambridge, City of Kitchener and
Township of Woolwich is currently developing a structure plan to support the expansion of the
urban area boundary in the Regional Official Policies Plan as required to provide for the
designation of 300 net hectares of fully serviced land.
The Region of Waterloo Industrial land and Business Park Vacant Land Inventory and Demand
Analysis which assesses the supply and demand for employment lands in the Region forms the
basis for the proposed expansion. This report will be presented to the Regional Planning and
Works Committee meeting on March 7, 2005. The report was compiled over several months
with input from the Prosperity Council, Economic Development Departments, KW Chamber of
Commerce and private industry.
A key consideration to the development of the East Side lands is the Provincial Places to Grow
initiative. The Places to Grow Act, authorizes the Province to prepare growth plans to address
population growth, economic expansion and protection of the environment, agriculture lands
and other valuable resources in a coordinated and strategic way. With the Region forecast to
experience robust population and employment growth through the planning period, and a limited
supply of greenfield employment lands available over the medium to long term, the provision of
new employment lands is a strategic issue for both the regional and provincial economies.
EDAC is concerned that the Region of Waterloo expedite the process of expansion on the East
Side lands in light of anticipated shortages of industrial land in the Region.
COMMUNICATIONS:
N/A
Kathy Weiss
Director, Business Development
Rod Regier
Executive Director,
Economic Development