All three of the proposed developments discussed on our website are on parcels of land with mature tree stands which provide valuable climate resiliency for our community. In January 2020 City Council declared a climate emergency. The City’s “critical first step” to that emergency was the creation of the Net -Zero Strategy (NZS). We believe the City is contravening its own climate strategy by developing on these greenspaces.
Low-carbon Transport
The NZS provides different ways of achieving a net-zero Thunder Bay. According to Table 1 on page 10 of the NZS, under the focus area “Low-carbon transport”, the City states “65% of trips within the city are done by transit, walking, and cycling by 2030.” That’s only four years from now.
Although the three developments do have some access to transit, the stops aren’t all within an easy walking distance, not all have bus shelters for protection from inclement weather, nor do they always offer efficient and timely service. For example, the lone bus servicing 791 Arundel St only runs every 30 – 45 minutes and does not go east of Toledo St. Yes, public transit is an option, but not one that the majority of people will choose or can choose given the infrequent service and how time consuming it is to get to major destinations, including one’s workplace.
Cycling infrastructure in the city is a mix of multi-use trails and unprotected bike gutters on existing roadways, basically a painted line protecting a rider from vehicles. These bike gutters, including the Active Living Corridor, are not maintained by the City year-round. Cycling, as a means of transportation for errands and commuting to one’s workplace 12 months of the year is not a viable option.
For those who are physically able to, walking is also not an option. The locations are not close to major employers, services or amenities that can easily and safely be accessed by walking. The Arundel St development is completely car-dependent and doesn’t even have consistent, connected sidewalks on its residential streets, including on Hudson Ave and Arundel St.
Although the City has an Accessibility Plan, it doesn’t adequately address the lack of continous and connected sidewalks in neighbourhoods across the City. For those using assistive devices for mobility, navigating the neighbourhood around the Arundel proposed development is quite frankly, dangerous. Sidewalks start and then end for no apparent reason, or they may continue but on the opposite side of the street. This patchwork of sidewalks forces pedestrians of all ages and abilities onto the road and puts them at risk from passing vehicles.
Land Use and Natural Areas
Under the focus area in the NZS entitled “Land use and natural areas”, 90% of new development occurs inside a targeted intensification area near the central city”, and “100,000 trees are planted within the municipal boundary by 2050.
The intensification area identified in the NZS is almost the entire City area. Although the term “central city” is not defined in the NZS, one can assume it means the core of a city, normally the downtown areas. At approximately 5 to 8 kms away, none of the three developments are close to either of our downtown cores.
The NZS states a need to plant 100,000 trees in the next 24 years. Why would the City sell off three parcels full of mature trees, only to have them completely denuded in order to allow development? It makes no sense to cut down trees and then plant more to replace them somewhere else. In the City’s never-ending quest to destroy greenspace for development, instead of building on existing and empty infill lots, they will never meet the goals of the NZS.