Vaughan residents blast Country Club developer over proposed makeover

'How can you define 660 homes as low density?'

Yorkregion.com
March 27, 2018
Tim Kelly

It wasn’t hard to read the mood of the room last week as more than 300 mostly angry residents let a developer know what they thought of its plans to redevelop a Vaughan golf course.

Homeowner after homeowner in the area of the Country Club (formerly the board of trade) course in Woodbridge vented to the army of consultants at Emily Carr High School.

They expressed their frustration over the plan to build more than 600 detached residential units and 60 townhomes on the 50-year-old course adjacent to their homes, worrying about loss of house values, increased traffic, density, noise and other concerns. The plan has already been presented to the City of Vaughan, but is still in its earliest stages and is a long way from being approved.

The meeting got loud and it got testy at times.

Yet the consultants did keep their cool and collective level heads, especially Mark Yarranton of KLM Planning Consultants who tried to speak calmly to a crowd that wasn’t too interested in hearing explanations.

“I’d like to know how you can define 660 new homes as low density. I’d like to know how you can define that as low density,” said one clearly angry woman. “If you want to be transparent and honest, step up and say high density, just be honest.”

“What the official plan allows in low-density residential development in terms of built form allows single detached, semi-detached --  in terms of context, that’s the same designation that exists on many of your properties to the north and to the east,” said the unflappable Yarranton.

“What I don’t realize is why council members don’t realize the gem they have in front of their eyes,” said another crowd member. “Why can’t they take it over a build a slightly smaller Hyde Park that Toronto has but Vaughan is tearing up its land to no end,” the woman complained to loud applause.

“When is enough, enough?”

Another said, “I just want to challenge all the councillors here, speak to your fellow politicians, visit our online petition, Keep Vaughan Green, in one week we had over 1,000 residents oppose the development. This impacts more than the residents that surround the course. This is an area of Woodbridge that we enjoy."

Tony Lorini, president of the Greater Woodbridge Ratepayers Association, which hosted the meeting at Emily Carr, said he believes the “golf course green space will never ever be replicated if we develop that area.”

“This is a chance for the municipal, provincial and federal government to see how passionate the residents are to preserve what exists there. You have a mature, existing neighbourhood around that golf course. Residents feel that existing green spaces like this should remain intact,” he said.

The association plans to host a provincial all-candidates debate for Vaughan-Woodbridge candidates -- Liberal nominee Steven Del Duca and PC nominee Michael Tibollo were both at the meeting at Emily Carr — on May 9 at Emily Carr High School.

They will also hold their next general meeting at Emily Carr High School on May 30 from 7 to 9 p.m.