Lunenburg moves ahead with planning for up to 368 new homes

Lunenburg's town council will gather more details on what a major new development could mean for local taxes before starting the process to sell public land for the new neighbourhood.

People packed the gallery of the Town of Lunenburg's council meeting Tuesday evening where Blockhouse Hill was on the agenda. 

Consultants MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects presented three options of what a new neighbourhood could look like on the back slope of Blockhouse hill, and a fourth option to leave it as a park.

Resident Heather Langille was among the six residents who raised concerns about the plan and called for councillors to consider more information before moving ahead.

"It should stay in public hands and it should not be sold for private interests," Langille said after the meeting.

The development options have a mix of semi-detached duplexes, townhomes and secondary suites in a stepped design down the slope to the Back Harbour. New roads and pedestrian-only green streets are also included, and all options would not touch the existing RV campground and Sylvia Park. 

The number of possible housing units range from none, if the land remains as is, to the highest-density option of 368 units.

Municipal staff said during the meeting that selling the land, and adding new taxpayers to the town, will help with Lunenburg's aging infrastructure and housing crunch. A recent town report said it will cost about $46 million to fix 10 buildings in need of maintenance.

A housing assessment for Lunenburg states the town of 2,300 people needs 120 new housing units by 2027, and 170 by 2032 to accommodate its growing population.

But Langille said there are other areas of town "much more suitable" for housing. A petition from more than 700 local residents has asked to pause the project.

Council, based on a suggestion from Mayor Jamie Myra, voted to delay voting on declaring the land surplus — which would allow it to eventually sell the land for development — until March to hear back from staff on the taxes implications.

"We need to have some idea of those costs going forward to make educated decisions … that are better for the residents of our community and I think that's really important," Myra said after the meeting.

There will be another public hearing before any final decision is made.

Councillors also directed the consultants to draft development rules for the highest-density option — 368 units with about 36 per cent of the site as park space — which would set out detailed requirements attached to land even after it changes hands.