JOHN POUND ROAD AREA COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN
Town of Tillsonburg
Tillsonburg gateway Community Improvement Plan
Enacted on April 23rd, 2007, by By-law #______
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JOHN POUND ROAD AREA COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN
Town of TillsonburgCorporate Offices – Town Centre Mall
200 Broadway, Second Floor
Tillsonburg ON N4G 5A7 / Telephone: (519) 842-6428
Fax: (519) 842-9431
Email:
Website: www.town.tillsonburg.on.ca
Background:
The Town of Tillsonburg has been involved in a number of Community Improvement initiatives since the beginning of the 1970’s. With the assistance of previous programs, such as the former Ontario Downtown Revitalization Program, Commercial Area Improvement Program (CAIP) and the Ontario Neighbourhood Improvement Program, the Town has undertaken a variety of projects aimed at redevelopment and rehabilitation of both commercial and residential neighbourhoods.
In terms of Tillsonburg’s Downtown area, the most recent community improvement plan was adopted by Tillsonburg Town Council on September 25, 2006 for the Downtown Core. This plan provides incentives for the downtown core to ensure redevelopment in the downtown and the lands immediately surrounding the downtown.
1.0 Introduction
· The Town wishes to build on its previous community improvement initiatives through the adoption of a Community Improvement Plan specific to the gateway and entrance to the town from the south being the former industrial area on John Pound Road. This will provide a broader range of financial tools to ensure the continued revitalization and health of this area. Feedback from recent public consultation and the policies of Town Council, as articulated through both its Municipal Strategic Plan and the Official Plan, identify the entrance to town along John Pound Road was an area that required significant cleanup and would make a perfect recreational area.
The town has undertaken to make significant improvements in the John Pound Road area through the following initiatives:
· Purchasing the majority of the lands
· Tearing down of old derelict structures
· General Cleanup on the properties
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JOHN POUND ROAD AREA COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN
The past community improvement efforts have generally been associated with specific projects as opposed to being tied to a formal comprehensive improvement strategy. The intent of the Community Improvement Plan is to outline in one document the range of improvement options which may be undertaken to address these Areas in a coordinated manner. In this regard it is intended that this Community Improvement Plan will provide the basis for municipal investment initiatives and will replace any previous plans.
The purpose of this community improvement plan is to provide the context for a coordinated municipal effort to improve the physical, economic and social climates of the John Pound Road Area. The initiatives identified in this Plan are intended to outline the possible range of actions designed to stimulate private investment, property maintenance and renewal in these areas. The Community Improvement Plan is not intended to provide an exhaustive list of revitalization projects that may be undertaken to stimulate community improvement, nor is there any obligation for Council to implement all of the initiatives outlined in the Plan. Rather, the Plan is intended to provide a context for revitalization projects and to assist in municipal decision making so that actions are undertaken which, either individually or cumulatively, facilitate a positive climate for improvement. Finally, it should be noted that the implementation of any the proposed financial incentives will be at the discretion of Council and dependent on financial resources.
2.0 Area of Application
The Town of Tillsonburg designated the ‘Downtown Area’ as a Community Improvement Area by By-law #3191 at its meeting of September 11th, 2006. The lands associated with the proposed Downtown and Area Community Improvement Area are those lands designated 'Central Area' and ‘Entrepreneurial District’ on Schedule T-1 and areas immediately east and south of the ‘Central Area’ designation, which are designated for ‘Medium Density Residential’ and ‘High Density Residential’ on Schedule T-2 of the County of Oxford Official Plan. The new area consists of the area west and south of the downtown area mostly south of John Pound Road. This area is designated open space in the Official Plan and zoned open space and industrial in the Zoning by-law. An aerial photograph showing the proposed area in relation to the existing buildings and parcel fabric is attached as Figure 1.
3.0 Legislative Authority
Section 28 of the Planning Act provides municipalities with the authority to designate a ‘Community Improvement Project Area’, and the preparation of a ‘Community Improvement Plan’, provided there are provisions in the Official Plan relating to community improvement. Where a municipality has a ‘Community Improvement Plan in place, the Act states that a municipality may undertake the following:
· Acquire, hold, clear, grade, otherwise prepare, sell, lease or otherwise dispose of lands;
· Construct repair, rehabilitate or improve buildings on lands acquired or held by the municipality;
· Make grants or loans to registered owners, assessed owners and tenants of lands or buildings to pay for the whole or part of any cost of rehabilitating such land or buildings and:
· Enter into agreements with any government authority for conducting studies and for the preparation, implementation and financing of plans and programs.
Provided that the above actions are in accordance with the approved community improvement plan.
It should also be noted that that Section 365.1 and 365.2 of the Municipal Act also allow for the establishment of Brownfields Financial Tax Incentive and Heritage Property Tax Relief Programs, respectively. Although these programs are currently beyond the scope of this plan, they may be considered by the Town in the future through an amendment to this plan and associated Provincial Approval of such an amendment.
In considering the proposed plan, the Town noted that Bill 51, the proposed amendment to the Planning and Conservation Land Statute Law Amendment Act, is currently under consideration the Province. The amendments being proposed to Section 28 of the Planning Act will enhance the range of planning and financial tools available to municipalities to facilitate community improvement. Therefore, final passage of this Bill may trigger a subsequent review and amendment of this plan by the Town to incorporate the expanded range of planning and financial tools into this plan, subject to Provincial Approval.
At this point in time, Ministerial approval of the Plan is simply being sought to ensure the financial assistance programs outlined in this plan are in compliance with Section 28 of the Planning Act and 106 of the Municipal Act.
4.0 Municipal Policy Framework
Both the Town's Strategic Plan and the approved Official Plan contain objectives and strategies to encourage redevelopment of gateways to the community.
Strategic Plan Visions and Objectives:
· An emphasis on trails passive uses and improving gateways to the community
· Specifically creating an improved gateway for John Pound road including cleaning up some of the dilapidated areas.
Official Plan Policies:
* the designation of these lands as a Community Improvement Area.
The Official Plan also contains policies relating to Community Improvement. Section 10.4 of the County of Oxford Official Plan outlines these policies and designates lands which include the John Pound Road Area as an area eligible for community improvement. Implementation measures to achieve community improvement objectives include:
* Preparation and adoption of community improvement plans;
* Regulatory measures such as maintenance and occupancy by-laws and the use of the Ontario Heritage Act and density bonus by-laws;
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JOHN POUND ROAD AREA COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN
* Utilizing public funding available from municipal, provincial and federal programs to assist in community improvement; and
* Land acquisition for the purposes of community improvement.
This Community Improvement Plan has been developed in accordance with requirements of the Planning Act and is in conformity with the policies of the County of Oxford Official Plan. (See Appendix 1 for Official Plan Excerpts)
5.0 The John pound road area Community Improvement Plan
5.1 Objectives:
The objectives of the John Pound Road Community Improvement Plan are drawn from the objectives and strategies contained in the Official Plan and Tillsonburg Strategic Plan. It is anticipated that the Community Improvement Plan will achieve the following:
(i) Promote the long term stability and continued viability of this gateway to the Downtown;
(ii) Coordinate municipal expenditures, programs and regulatory activity to facilitate development activity;
(iii) Stimulate private property maintenance;
(iv) Enhance the visual quality of the gateway; and
(v) Create incentives to facilitate private investment for new development and redevelopment in the John Pound Road Area.
5.2 Proposed Strategies and Initiatives
This plan is premised on the belief that the John Pound Road Area is meriting of special consideration to ensure that it remains a viable community-wide resource and functions as a gateway to the Town. The Table shown in Appendix II summarizes a number of strategies and initiatives that may be pursued by the Town to foster community development.
It is not the intent of this Plan that the Town be obligated to implement all of the initiatives outlined at this time, as further analysis and debate by Council may be required. This list of initiatives is not intended to be exclusive or exhaustive, but rather, is intended to provide an indication of the range of actions that may be taken to foster revitalization and renewal. This Plan is also intended to be generic enough to allow for additional projects and/or programs to be undertaken as they are identified, without amendment to the Plan, provided that they are demonstrably associated with revitalization, renewal or improvement and they do not introduce new direct financial incentives which require further Provincial review and approval.
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5.2.1 Financial Incentive Programs:
This section outlines the financial incentive programs that may be implemented by the Town through the Community Improvement plan. These incentive programs are designed to stimulate and assist new development, redevelopment and rehabilitation of vacant, underutilized or deteriorated properties in the John Pound Road Area and will be funded by way of both grants and loans.
Applicant
Applicant may include: registered owners, assessed owners and tenants of land and buildings within the community improvement project area, and to any other person whom such an owner or tenant has assigned the right to receive a grant and or loan, unless otherwise stated.
The following general implementation and eligibility criteria shall apply to all financial incentive programs offered through this plan:
· Grants will only be paid out after the applicable improvements have been completed and inspected by the Town and all outstanding work orders have been satisfied;
· The taxes for a property must be paid up in full before any grant or loan is paid to an eligible property owner and shall be kept up to date during the period of time participation in the program occurs, otherwise such grant or loan shall be forfeited any grant or loan shall be repaid to the Town. Further, a property owner that is in arrears of property tax or any other municipal financial obligation is not eligible to participate in the program;
· If a property is under an assessment appeal, the grant or loan application will be held in abeyance until the appeal is resolved;
· Any program applicant may be required to provide a business plan for the proposed works as part of the application;
· Applicants will be required to enter into an agreement with the Town specifying such items as the level of loan or grant available and the terms and conditions associated with the loan or grant, including the circumstances whereby an owner would be obligated to repay the Town for any loans or grants received;
· If a building, erected or improved with a program grant or loan, is demolished prior to the expiry of the grant or loan period, or the property is not maintained in a satisfactory state of repair consistent with Town By-laws, the grant or loan is forfeited and will be recovered by the Town;
· To be eligible for any of the funding programs, the proposed work shall conform with all Town policies, standards and procedures including zoning, site plan guidelines, façade and design guidelines,, and heritage matters and will be subject to review and the issuance of all required planning and development approvals and building permits;
· In no case shall the total level of grant or loan provided to an applicant under the Community Improvement Plan exceed the cost of rehabilitation;
· All applications for loan assistance under this community improvement plan will be considered on a ‘first come, first served’ basis and will be restricted to the limit of budgeted funding. Should the number of eligible projects exceed the annual funding available, those eligible projects will be held in queue until funding becomes available the following year;
· The Town will make available a maximum annual amount to be determined annually by Council for all grant and loan programs available through this community improvement plan;
· Prior to approving an application under this community improvement plan, the Town reserves the right to request an independent audit of the applicants accounts, at the expense of the applicant, and to ensure that all other work orders or requests to comply from all other departments and agencies have been satisfactorily addressed;
· The Town may, at any time, discontinue a program, however, any participants in the program prior to its closing will continue to receive loans or grants as approved for their property until the conclusion of their project.
The following is a description of each of the financial incentive programmes being offered, together with associated implementation details.
A. Façade Improvement Loan Program
This program is intended to encourage exterior renovations which are in keeping with the historical/heritage characteristics of buildings within the John Pound Road Area.
This program allows Town Council to approve individual loans for the cost of façade improvement, on 50/50 matching contribution basis, to a maximum of $40,000 per building. The Town requires that the improvements be maintained as approved for the 10-year loan period. The repayment schedule is set up so that the greater of $1,000 or 10% of the loan amount is payable annually on tax due dates.