Nine years ago, when we bought our property, one of the reasons we bought here was because there was a 200 foot ecological nature preserve surrounding the development, which meant there were large trees directly in front of our house, as well as a large loop which surrounded the entire development and right in the middle of it runs The Pretty River, which was part of a farmers land, or at least, ran between two parcels of famers lands. In the spring and summer, the trees rustle just outside our window, creating a natural type of whisper to me. Birds aggregate in them and they bring a sense of life to the area for me.
So, when I saw a For Sale sign go up a few years back, rumours spread fairly quickly that a developer was interested in the property and sure enough, both pieces of land had been purchased and the old farmhouse has since been torn down.
This opened up the 35 acre parcel of land and allowed me to start walking through it and much to my delight, I found that The Pretty River ran directly in front, or off to the side, of our house, probably less than 500 feet away so Yim and I started to visit last fall and found that salmon spawn up through the river, much to our wonder. Boys fish the river in the fall. It’s a little bit of natural wonder…
Since then, I’ve had the chance to discover and review the proposed development slated for the land and start a bit of a crusade to change the dynamics of the proposal by drawing attention to the beauty of the area with our neighbours and by getting a town councillor involved by listening to the concerns of the residents with the hope that we can get enough local interest to help change the development for the better. There’s a lot of good reasons behind what I am hoping to achieve, such as the fact that the proposed development would be built on a flood plain and all of the residents which live nearby the development already have water table issues, but that’s only one part of the problem.
To start the process, I contacted the Nottawasaga Conservation Authority and the engineering firm which is working on the project and made it clear to them that we, as local residents, were opposed to the development as it was presented and we would be seeking significant revisions.
In my initial counter proposal, we suggested the stormwater pond be relocated and a walking path be integrated within the development. This was highly appreciated and supported by the community. We are also concerned about the Berm area behind the 12 or 13 homes situated along the southern section of Lynden Street and the fact that the land that the proposed development is being suggested to be built on is partially a part of the legal property of those residents.
My next goal is to work with a local neighbour and architect to develop a proposal which may help save some of the wetlands as well and help create a pathway and possibly a community type nature area which residents can enjoy in the area outlined in red on this screenshot above. It’s a long shot at this point but this is right behind our house and I want to do what I can to help preserve it.
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