Snow storage facility could harm Newmarket's Bogart Creek

Yorkregion.com
March 4, 2016
By Chris Simon

A proposed snow storage facility on Harry Walker Parkway could have detrimental effects on the Bogart Creek watercourse, Councillor Dave Kerwin warns.

Newmarket is currently mulling over the merits of a partnership between the town and York Region on a snow storage facility at 429 and 445 Harry Walker - a stretch of land wedged between Harry Walker and Highway 404. If the 3.47-hectare property in question is developed as planned, it will include the snow disposal and management facility along with York Regional Police and emergency medical services stations.

But there's also a rush to get the project built.

The region wants to start construction this summer, with plans to have it operating in time for the 2016-2017 winter.

That pace has Kerwin worried.

"That's a very sensitive area," he said, during a recent committee of the whole meeting. "That's where the Bogart headwaters are. I've worked on that area for 10 years. Now you're going to turn it into snow storage. With snow storage you have salt. The (Lake Simcoe Region) Conservation Authority is concerned with salt. I want that complied with. I want to see where the stormwater retention fences are and so forth. That's all very important. You could be altering Bogart, which the town has spent 10 years rehabilitating. It's vital to the Holland RIver and the Holland River's vital to Lake Simcoe.

“I know the urgency, but I want it done right."

Snow storage would take place along a 1.95-hectare stretch located at the southern end of the site.

"The snow storage facility is intended to service the Davis Drive rapidway," said Lauren Capilongo, a planning consultant hired by the region. "The applications are needed to permit the outdoor storage of the snow management facility.

“(The) region's really up against the clock on this one; they understand the sensitivity of the lands."

Meanwhile, the YRP station would open in 2017-2018. The 5,575-square-foot station would house offices, a holding cell and vehicle servicing facilities.

"The town has had, and is continuing to have, positive discussions on partnership opportunities with the region for use of this facility," development and infrastructure services commissioner Peter Noehammer said in a report to councillors. "Possible partnerships include town use for snow storage, as well as possible recreation opportunities. These opportunities will continue to be explored."

Although it’s not clear whether the region site will fit in with Newmarket’s long-term plans, a new permanent space for snow storage has been a topic of discussion around the town council table for nearly a year, after Ward 7 Councillor Christina Bisanz called for the end to dumping at the Ray Twinney Recreation Complex. A portion of Ray Twinney’s parking lot has been used as a dumping site for excess snow from the municipality’s downtown core, parking lots, courts and sidewalks for more than a decade, but neighbouring residents have complained about the noise from town trucks and the safety issues that stem from kids playing in the large snow piles.

The region proposal has been referred to a public meeting for review. Following the meeting, town staff will prepare a comprehensive report on the project.

Capilongo hopes the public meeting can take place within about a month, though council has officially called for it to be scheduled at the "earliest possible opportunity".

The town and region have no intention of damaging the environment of the area, Mayor Tony Van Bynen said, before noting “sufficient notice” of a public meeting must be given to residents.