Winona Wal-Mart divides councillors
No agreement on development plan
July 06, 2009
Nicole MacIntyre
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/BreakingNews/article/595077
A contentious big-box proposal in Winona is now dividing councillors, much like it has the community.
An attempt to allow the development to go ahead with conditions failed this morning after a tie vote at the city's planning committee. The matter will now be decided at Thursday's council meeting.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger appeared at the meeting to oppose the application. He said wanted to be consistent with his previous position that the land should be used for employment, not commercial.
Penady, the developer, wants to build an approximately 440,000-square-foot development, including a Wal-Mart, near Fifty Road and the QEW.
The proposal has divided the rural hamlet with residents arguing the shopping complex is either too big or desperately needed.
At a previous planning meeting, the committee voted to defer the application until more studies were complete. Penady argued the delay was unreasonable and threatened to appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board.
Yesterday, Councillor Brad Clark put forward a revised motion to permit the development with several holding conditions and new agreements about a transit hub and storm water management system. He said the new conditions eased his concerns about the development.