Preliminary plans to build a proposed high-rise and mixed-use development at the former Holmes Foundry site in Point Edward were shared with residents on Tuesday night, with details about environmental studies and traffic considerations.
Southcoast Developments Limited hosted a virtual open house to review proposed plans for the 16-acre site, at the corner of Exmouth Street and Christina Street North.
Nearly 70 people logged into the virtual meeting.
BDP. Quadrangle Design Director Harim Labuschagne said the site's history as an industrial area has been taken into account with the project thus far.
The current plan is to establish a new park that would be a linear east-to-west open space by the intersection of Front Street North and Exmouth Street.
He said the highest building, in the northeast corner, would act as a possible 30-storey mixed-use hotel, with a campus of care in that corner.
"Along the middle, you can see the lower three-storey opportunities for townhouses," Labuschagne said.
Conceptual plans also showed ground-floor commercial space with apartment buildings.
However, planners said it's unknown at this time if the residential space would be for rental use or ownership.
S2S Environmental Senior Consultant Riyaz Punjani said an extensive investigation has been completed at the site to prepare for the proposed development.
"We have quite literally peppered the site with investigative work over the course of the last three years and collected both surface soil samples, deeper soil samples, as well as groundwater samples across the entire property," Punjani said.
He said they wanted to identify the extent of contamination to make sure they had a proper remedial action plan to address different areas of the site. Punjani also specified that all traces of asbestos are "gone."
Punjani said data will be submitted to the Ministry of Environment for review and the entire process could take anywhere from 12 to 18 months, or even up to 24 months.
"At the completion of that, the ministry will grant what they call a certificate of property use that will then allow for the usage [proposed]," Punjani said. "We've designed a remedial plan to look at the most sensitive use, which is residential."
He further specified that the entire property will be remediated to the residential standards, even if a certain plot is designated for commercial use.
During evaluations and discussions with the ministry, Punjani said some work on the property can begin but that does not include above-grade structure work.
One resident asked if pollution levels would be considered due to the site's proximity to Highway 402.
"If you look in the Toronto area -- or any built-up urban area, having high-rises near highways, it does act as a bit of a buffer for the more interior areas," Punjani said. "We haven't gotten to that stage where we're looking at that level of detail though, so we don't have an actual plan with respect to those particular aspects. But that is part of the consideration."
Another aspect of the proposed development that will need to be revisited in the future are traffic studies.
Paradigm Transportation Limited Senior Project Manager Matt Brouwer said as a former resident of Point Edward, the project is of personal interest to him.
He said consultations have been held with the County of Lambton, the City of Sarnia, the Village of Point Edward, and the Ministry of Transportation.
Brouwer said because it is "quite a large development," it will generate traffic.
"Recommendations of the [traffic impact study] at this point include left turn lanes to be built on Exmouth Street, extensions of the turn lanes at the existing signals, and as I mentioned before -- for plans to be updated," he said. "There are a few more intersections to study."
The proposed development currently accounts for two access roads. Brouwer said there may be potential to include emergency vehicle access but that's something that would be looked at in the future.
A timeframe for the proposed project is not available at this time.
Zelinka Priamo Ltd. Intermediate Planner Taylor Whitney said there are still several steps that need to be completed before a timeframe can be established.
"There are a large number of factors that come into play here," she said. "So this is just the very first step of an application process."
Whitney stressed there will be future opportunities for public consultation.
As previously reported, the Village of Point Edward is holding a public meeting on January 15, 2025, at 6 p.m. at the Point Edward Community Hall.