Province rejects Port Hawkesbury rezoning request citing housing shortage

The Town of Port Hawkesbury wants to rezone a section of vacant land to green space, but with a shortage of housing in communities across Nova Scotia, the province won't approve the change.

The eight lots in question are owned by the municipality and located in an older subdivision called Elm Court. The lots are zoned R2 residential, which means they can allow different types of housing such as duplexes and small apartment buildings. 

But town council has said some of the lots are prone to flooding, which is affecting homes in the area below the lots. 

"The residents on Birchwood Court have gone as far as digging their own French drains to try to help the drainage issues down below," said Coun. Jason Aucoin.

"With another house or two or three houses here, it only becomes worse, and that's my concern. I don't want to see our residents have undue hardship for the sake of putting two or three houses up."

Votes in favour of rezoning

Town council voted unanimously last year to rezone the lots and sought an amendment to the land use bylaw as required under the Municipal Government Act.

However, council got word in September that its request had been denied.

In a letter, Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister John Lohr explained that using the lots as open space may not be the best use of municipal infrastructure, and by preventing development, growth might be directed further from the town centre and existing services.

Lohr's letter also expressed concern over the growing trend that people are moving to less densely populated areas due to the ongoing pandemic and said it's not clear if council is aware of how future development will be accommodated.

"The way I interpreted [the letter] personally was that we didn't do our homework," said Aucoin.

"We absolutely need a lot of housing. We probably need over 100 units right now, to be honest. And we as a council have looked at different options."

Aucoin said council is looking at options like hiring a full-time staffer to work on the housing situation, encouraging development in other parts of town and setting aside land for small home options. 

A done deal?

Many of the homeowners next to the lots thought the issue had been dealt with in 2005 after neighbours petitioned against a proposed development citing concerns with flooding.

At the time, council completed an engineering study that found development could worsen the drainage issues and remediation projects would be needed before development. Aucoin said council voted to make the lots green space, but neglected to send it to the province for approval.

The issue came to a head again during the municipal election in 2020 when the lots were slated for sale, surprising neighbours who thought they had already been rezoned.

When the new council was elected, Aucoin said councillors decided to tackle the issue once and for all.

'Mitigation would have to be substantial'

Rob O'Donnell lives in a house just below one of the vacant lots that was once used as a park. His finished basement flooded during a rainstorm on Halloween night.

"The mitigation would have to be substantial to keep it from getting worse…. Everything slopes downhill toward the whole street, but mainly this end."

O'Donnell said it's not just about the water. 

"It's a beautiful space. It's our backyards, these old trees," he said. "It'd be a shame to lose it."

The province cannot force the town to sell the land or develop it, but Aucoin said the issue needs to be put to rest for the sake of the neighbourhood.

The province's decision cannot be appealed. However, the mayor and council told the Municipal Affairs Department in an Oct. 19 letter they feel due consideration for the rezoning was undertaken and the decision was made in the best interests of residents.

The letter said the issue should be reviewed.