Comments on: Goderich council petitions province for funds to redevelop key downtown corner

By: Heather Lyons

Heather Lyons — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 23:15:20 +0000

The vacant lots could have easily occurred as a result fire or other……so just as well if stakeholders could put aside the cause and focus instead on ‘opportunity’ and ‘creative options’ that present themselves. The Planning Partnership charrets described an excellent option. Name this footprint of brownfield lands – a Community Improvement Project. BIAs, property owners, municipal corporations have partnered on such ‘projects’ within an ‘improvement area’ with great success. The footprint is within Goderich ‘BIA’ and the ‘Community Improvement Area’. It’s in the map area of the historical business distric – so goals and objectives of each of these three ‘mechanisms’ align – & apply to this formation of vacant lots. Logical stakeholders include property owners, nearby businesses and residents, but also the public municipal corporation – as it would definitely benefit our tax revenues for many decades….to see it revitalized and re-purposed to best maximum use instead of stay vacant as lands have done at other locations in the core…for many years.. A ‘design workshop’ facilitated by a heritage professional could result in 2 or 3 alternative designs/renderings to illustrate possible options meeting core area needs. Bulk, mass; building and zoning codes; complimenting the conservation plan – including choices of building materials – could all be considered as goals and be context with each adjacent property owners concerns. BIAs have done community improvement projects that affect multiple property owners and borrowed money from or ‘through’ their municipality for at least the ‘formula and drawing concepts’. Seed funding for this or for further project partnerships would be paid back over a very long time, or written off over time. Everyone could win with a good ‘plan’. The options and criteria could vary on 2 or 3 different design renderings. Could include residential accommodation on upper stories (rental or condo) and underground parking. A purpose built rental space for more cost effective Police Facilities should be on the ‘design list’, as lease up for review and current facilities insufficient and land locked. Public washroom facilities and better positioned BIA office could be an option; holiday accommodations for tourist or executive stays, main level space for visual arts/galleries/displays. All these are potential criteria on a design list that have come up on all the BR&E’s and other studies as far back as the 1970s. The PEAC, BIA, Municipality could partner to participate in a design workshop specific to this vacant land. Disaster funds, EDGE or EC/DEV funding from Huron County….all have shared mandate that could result in “Plans’ and enable ‘promotion’ to attract investment from existing or new property owners.

By: K.john Hazlitt

K.john Hazlitt — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 22:10:10 +0000

Goderich Town Council, our council, just has to look internally and at themselves to recognize the problem .

By: Paul Carroll

Paul Carroll — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 13:05:04 +0000

It needs to be stated, sensitively, but directly, that the town administrator’s (therefore the town’s) rejection of support and guidance from the on-site (Canada’s foremost) restoration architect and engineer who conducted the initial damage assessments of the buildings on the ‘flagship’ corner entrance to the town Square, (and in other heritage designated areas), was also a rejection of broad funding support from federal sources including the Heritage Canada Foundation.
A later ‘disinvitation’ of the board members of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario from offers to help during a board meeting, held in September of that year, at the Bedford Hotel also sealed the fate of any funding support from a number of provincially-based heritage sources.
Sometimes the desire to ‘go it alone’ does not lead to the best outcomes for the whole community.
In this case the late August 2011 decisions to act in the absence of advice and guidance from federal and provincial heritage experts has cost the town dearly – in respect of its heritage, its heritage reputation, and financially.
It is unfortunate that Mayor Shewfelt was unsuccessful in his own initial quest to use these resources.

By: Melissa Peterson

Melissa Peterson — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:19:02 +0000

I have to wonder what is possibly going on in council’s thick skulls. Could it possibly be ignorance to the fact that there are families still displaced from the tornado that are in extreme need of help? Or perhaps they have been away on an extended vacation and haven’t had the time to read the stories printed about those same families needing help? I just don’t understand why it could possibly be ok for the Gov’t and the disaster relief fund committee to earmark and hold monies so that the square looks pretty for the tourists, and not hold back monies for anyone who either was not aware of the deadline or could not make the deadline due to the fact that their claim is still unsettled? Also I have to ask that when this was all going down at council, if anyone (including the author of this story) took the time to mention the fact that there are PEOPLE out there who also would benefit from this money, and not just buildings, and what would the fine elected people of Goderich be willing to do for them?

By: Ann

Ann — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 14:26:17 +0000

Long shot is right. Although, with a new leader/premier waiting in the wings and a potential provincial election on the spring horizon maybe the premier will spend even MORE money they don’t have on promises that we can’t afford.
Also, if the future of tourism is dependent on that corner, and we already know that the government is cutting those dollars back, it makes this long shot become even a longer shot and one I doubt that even race guru Councillor Donnelly would handicap:-)