Asphalt plant open house to be held at Town Hall on Tuesday

Written By JOSHUA SANTOS

Ward 5 area Coun. Tony Rosa is asking the public to show up to an asphalt plant open house on Tuesday, Jan. 15 at town hall.

An asphalt plant in Bolton is proposed by MJJJ Developments Inc., a subsidiary of Dig-Con International Ltd. The company wants to build a facility on the east side of Coleraine Drive, south of George Bolton Parkway and Parr Boulevard. It is planned to include two-stories and a 1042 square metre office building.

In order to build the plant, the company asked the Town to amend their official plan and zoning bylaws to allow the 6.87-acre development on 12415 Coleraine Dr.

“I think it's important that we get all the information and we get all of our questions answered before we can make a decision on this, said Rosa. It's very important that the public attend and I need people to stop hiding behind social media and come out and ask those hard questions. I see a lot on social media and I hope that means there's going to be a turnout. I need people to show up. That's why these meetings happen. Strength comes with numbers. I need to see the numbers out there and I've been encouraging people to participate.”

The company held an open house at Caesar's Centre last October, discussing their proposal and intent, however a Town sanction open house will be held next week.

“I think it's definitely necessary for us to have a public open house, said Rosa. It's part of the application process. The applicant has the opportunity to share with the community the situation and I think it's very important that residents that have questions or concerns be in attendance. That's what these public information sessions are about.”

Mayor Allan Thompson said he has heard from residents and businesses in the area who have questions and concerns about possible impacts to the community from this type of development.

“My views are well known, but the purpose of a public meeting is for an applicant to present their applications to the public and Council, to hear the concerns and answer questions about the applications from all parties, said Thompson. No decision has been made or will be made at this meeting.

“Following this step, staff will review all comments and input as part of their formal review process and provide a report with a recommendation to Council for consideration at a future Council meeting”

Ward 5 regional Coun. Annette Groves said she did not attend the October meeting. She said the asphalt plant is not a done deal and encourages residents to attend the meeting.

“Following the public information meeting, staff will bring back a report with a recommendation to Council at which time Council will have to vote on the application,” said Groves. 

“I encourage residents to attend the public information meeting on January 15th and have their say and also learn more about this proposal.”

Rosa said he has his own list of a dozen questions that he has formulate with discussions he had with residents and will ask for clarification to have more information.

“We have to respect the process of the application but I'm also encouraging members of the community to come out and hear the presentation, said Rosa. I think it's very important that we have attendance.”

He pointed out the previous open house where attendance from the public was not high.

“One of the things I was discouraged about was they did have a public open house in the fall that was held at Caesar's Banquet Hall and when I went there, to be honest the turnout was very limited, said Rosa. I'm hoping people will come out and ask questions and get informed before we make a decision on this application.”

He said he is interested in finding out more about truck traffic, the expectations of how many more trucks will be on the road among other issues.

“I also liked to find out a little bit about air quality, said Rosa. I'm very concerned about that. I have done some of my research as well. I'm worried about some safety issues. Sometimes during peak seasons, the asphalt plants can be producing past their capacity. I'm worried about that.”

He said it's hard to formulate an opinion until he has all the information.

My understanding is that one of the pros can be that we don't have to transport it in and out, said Rosa. It will be local so when we need asphalt, it would generate locally which will actually solve some trucking. Someone point that out to me last week and I thought that was an interesting concept.”

The asphalt plant will undergo three phases in order to be established. First, zoning by the Town must be granted. Then the site plan has to be approved. Finally, the Ministry of Environment has to authorize it, according to Citizen files.

“Through those various processes, either the Town (of Caledon) or Region (of Peel) can put additional conditions on the plant, the Ministry can put additional conditions on the plant; so, it's a good iterating process,” said Bridget Mills, senior environmental engineer for BCX Environmental Consulting during the October meeting.

Mills is the air quality consultant for Dig-Con. She said once zoning is approved, the studies will then go to the Ministry of Environment to obtain an operating permit. 

The Town will meet again on Tuesday, Jan. 15 at 9:30 a.m. to further discuss the budget.