'We are falling on deaf ears': Residents voice opposition to Mount Albert fill proposal

Rice Commercial Group's proposal to fill Holt Pit on McCowan Road would add 150 trucks a day to road

Yorkregion.com
November 18, 2020
Simon Martin

A proposal to fill the old Holt Pit on McCowan Road just west of Mount Albert still faces staunch opposition from local residents. Earlier this year more than 50 Mount Albert residents signed a petition stating their opposition to the pit proposed by Rice Commercial Group.

At a public meeting last month it wasn’t much different different as residents had numerous concerns ranging from road safety to impact on local aquifers.

Resident Julie Jonas reiterated her concerns about the increased truck traffic. While Rice’s latest proposal saw the maximum number of trucks a day reduced from 200 to 150, Jonas said it is little solace for residents who have to live with the change in their environment. “I feel like we are falling on deaf ears,” she said. “We say this is not approved yet but to me it feels like a lost cause and it is very disappointing."

Another resident Diana Lumsden was more pointed in her criticism asking Mayor Virginia Hackson if she would keep her campaign promise to her of not supporting this pit proposal as long as the Mount Albert Pit was still in operation.

Hackson responded saying she will continue to watch and listen and attempting to get answers for all the questions that are still out there.

Mount Albert resident Jonathan Arnold has been steadfast in opposition to pit proposal. “Why are we doing this?,” he sasked. “My biggest concern is the greed and manipulation on this project.”

Arnold wanted the number laid out about how much Rice Commercial Group and the town stood to profit from the venture. If the proposal was really about returning the land to agricultural purposes the proposal would be 12 times smaller, Arnold said.

According to a town staff report McCowan Road has the capacity for approximately 7,000 vehicles per day. Future projected traffic on the road, not taking the proposed new fill operation into account, show the road is approximately at 10.6 per cent of capacity. The fill operation would increase that to 14.8 per cent with an extra 300 trips from dump trucks.

Many residents suggested that the entrance to the site should be on Mount Albert Road and not McCowan Road. But according to town staff, providing a driveway via Mount Albert Road was investigated and was determined to be impossible because the property is owned by another party.

Rice Group will implement improvements at the intersection of McCowan Road and Davis Drive, including a left-turn lane from Davis Drive to northbound McCowan Road. An improved, right-turn taper lane at the entrance to the site on McCowan Road.

The town also says that if the project is approved speed display boards will be displayed in both directions on Mount Albert Road as a traffic-calming measure.

A number of residents are already concerned about the existing traffic from Strada Aggregates already operating a site on the road. “500 hundred trucks a day on our isn’t safe,” Arnold said.

According to Rice Group proposal, the fill site would see 1.2 million cubic meters of fill over a three-year to seven-year period.

Rice Group said residents’ wells are up the hill from the Holt site. All fill that would come to site would be rigorously screened.

The company also said it has several measures to manage driver behaviour including cameras at site entrance, radar speed signs, and escalating corrective measures, including barring drivers from the site.

East Gwillimbury council is expected to make a decision on the application in the near future.