Burlington Council Approves Motion Directing Staff to Minimize Greenspace Impact in Robert Bateman H.S. Adaptive Reuse Project

Grateful to my Council colleagues for approving, at our March 21 meeting, a motion put forward by myself and Councillors Paul Sharman and Rory Nisan directing staff to find alternatives to accommodate additional parking in the former Robert Bateman High School adaptive reuse project that minimizes the impact to existing greenspace.

MY TAKE:

We need to find alternatives to accommodate parking that do not compromise the existing greenspace at the site. To that end, we have asked staff to leave no stone unturned to find alternatives. I thank my colleagues, Ward Councillor Paul Sharman and Councillor Rory Nisan in his role as Deputy Mayor for the Environment, for their support in drafting this motion. It also seemed out of order to engage with the public on the outdoor uses before the parking needs were addressed, and before we engage with the community on the indoor uses – that will impact the parking needs. That’s why the motion calls on staff to proceed with engagement with the public on the indoor uses first. Lastly, we need to turn our minds to accommodating alternative forms of transportation to ensure we are planning for seven generations out and for the future of our city.

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You can view a copy of the staff report here: EICS-02-23 Former Robert Bateman High School Adaptive Reuse Update

Here is the full staff direction motion that was approved by a 6-1 majority Council vote:

Direct the Executive Director of Environment, Infrastructure & Community Services, to work with the Director of Transportation, and the Executive Director of Community Planning Regulation and Mobility to report back to council by Q4 2023 with costs and timelines related to alternatives to accommodate additional parking for the Project inclusive of Phases 1 and 2 that minimizes impact to the existing greenspace, including but not limited to:

1. Amending the city-wide zoning bylaw related to parking or granting council Public Authority to amend the requirements where circumstances warrant.
2. Construct structured parking on the existing built area of the site.
3. Providing layby parking on New Street in front of Bateman
4. Exploring shared and leased parking options with nearby sites.
5. Providing time limited on-street parking signed for the community centre uses.
6. Provide additional parking requirement utilizing permeable materials.
7. Other options (SD-08-23); and

Direct the Director of Communications and Engagement and Director of Recreation, Community and Culture to pause engagement with the community on the greenspace until a fulsome public engagement plan for the project is developed (SD-09-23); and

Direct the Director of Recreation, Community and Culture as part of the upcoming Parks and Recreation Culture Asset Master Plan review to report on emerging community outdoor recreation needs and how they might be accommodated on the Bateman site (SD-10-23); and

Direct the Director of Communications and Engagement and Director of Recreation, Community and Culture to commence simultaneous engagement with the community on the indoor uses of the facility (SD-09-23); and

Direct the Executive Director of Environment, Infrastructure & Community Services to report back to committee in Q2 with an overall timeline of tender, construction, and decision points for committee and council, for both Phase 1 and Phase 2 (SD-11-23); and

Direct the Director of Communications and Engagement to provide a city wide mailout, and all other communication opportunities deemed appropriate by staff regarding public engagement for community indoor and outdoor use at Robert Bateman and provide an update in the Council Information Package (CIP) (SD-12-23).

An additional amendment from Councillors Lisa Kearns and Shawna Stolte was approved by a 6-1 majority Council vote:

Direct the Director of Communications and Engagement and Director of Recreation, Community and Culture to commence simultaneous engagement with the community on the indoor uses of the facility and create a plan to be brought back for approval no later than May 2023. The plan should include the addition of, but not limited to, a series of no less than two in-person/hybrid information and documented feedback sessions, as well as other methods to be held by end of Q3 2023 to ensure the public is well-informed and engaged on both Phase One and Phase Two of the Robert Bateman Community Hub Project.