Moncton approves controversial subdivision planners thought should be rejected
CBC
Moncton councillors voted to approve a subdivision city staff and the municipal planning committee recommended rejecting.
A series of 7-4 votes to amend city bylaws and plans took place for Eastgate Village without debate Monday.
The series of votes followed lengthy meetings in August and October on the issue.
Planning staff said Eastgate shouldn't be approved because it goes against an emissions reduction plan and a policy to limit sprawl.
ELCE Developments Inc.'s proposal calls for 956 housing units — houses, townhouses and apartments — off Elmwood Drive. The subdivision near Irishtown Nature Park would also feature a private school called Eastgate Academy.
Most of the 144.6 acres where the subdivision is proposed is outside an area the city defines as its serviceable boundary. Areas outside cannot connect to city water and sewer systems. The boundary set in the municipal plan is meant to discourage sprawl.
Where that line was drawn became a key point in the debate over approval. A trailer park, high school and a subdivision farther north of the Eastgate site are within the boundary.
The votes Monday amended the boundary to include the Eastgate site, as well as rezoning the property.
Moncton's community energy and emissions plan approved by council in July calls for the city to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The plan modelled no new residential growth outside the serviceable boundary.
"Adding a low-density development at the outskirts of the city will set the city further back from its emissions reduction target," a city staff report states.
Mayor Dawn Arnold apologized Monday for saying in October that it would be "not smart" to approve the plans, and she then voted against them for the third time.
Arnold had said in August that councillors were facing "political pressure" on the issue. Daniel Allain, the province's minister of local government, had lobbied for the subdivision. Allain said he was advocating for more housing in his Moncton East riding.
Bill Hennessey with ELCE Developments Inc. said Monday that he was pleased a majority of council had approved the subdivision.
Council's votes allow the company to move ahead with the first phase, expected to include 142 building lots. Infrastructure upgrades, including a higher capacity sewer line under Elmwood Drive, are required before subsequent phases.
The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) found some reasons to celebrate the 2026-27 provincial budget, but it takes issue with the amount designated for the province's Water Security Agency (WSA).
The family of an Edmonton woman who died in Honolulu last year is pushing for Hawaiian authorities to re-open the case.
It was around this time in 2020 that everything changed.
With its emergency shelter beds frequently running at 50 per cent over capacity and demand so great that it's forced to refer some women escaping domestic violence elsewhere, Gillian's Place in St. Catharines will soon be able to offer a broader range of services to more victims of gender-based violence.
The ceiling of the CAW Student Centre at the University of Windsor is decorated by flags of numerous nations — among them, Iran.
Turmoil in Iran, a major disruption in world oil markets, and stratospheric gasoline prices in Canada and beyond. What's racking motorists and governments in 2026 also faced them in 1979, sparked by the Iranian Revolution.
Five decades later, and Thunder Bay's Music World Academy remains a family-run business.
Dalton Dubois of Guelph, Ont., made history at the recent Paris Fashion Week when she became the first transgender model to walk the runway for Chanel Exclusive.
Work is scheduled to begin over the summer at the site of the former Clinton Creek asbestos mine, about 65 kilometres northwest of Dawson City, Yukon.
They may be bitter rivals in the House of Commons, but outside the chamber, recent events may have led to Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and Prime Minister Mark Carney forging a bond.
Local fans and industry insiders say the province’s move to ban the reselling of event tickets for more than their original value is a step in the right direction, but some say there are still larger issues that need to be addressed.
This First Person column is the experience of Mehdi M. Kashani, who lives in Toronto. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ.
A very quiet queue has formed in Europe where some of Canada's long-standing, closest allies are seeking shelter under France's small but robust nuclear umbrella.