Background and Analysis
The analysis of the Meredith Lot is dated September 21, 2023. The facts stated in the analysis are based on public information available to FMF at the time. We believe the stated facts are accurate and still valid. The analysis was distributed last fall to Council members and the MRC Prefet.
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The re-zoning and the contingent development is not the only possibility for the owner to sell the lot. Preliminary discussions with ACRE, the organization which has acquired and is managing other environmental projects in Chelsea and the region, suggest a viable alternative which would benefit both Chelsea and the owner. As of April 2024, the owner has not acknowledged our efforts to meet.
The following are excerpts from analysis conducted by the Friends of the Meredith Forest on the Municipal Council's proposal for the Meredith Lot (Lot 3 030 091). Click here for the full document. Contents include (click to jump to section):
Meredith Lot
Description
The Meredith lot is privately owned by 14348222 CANADA INC. whose Director is Mr. David Meredith. The company was incorporated on 2022-09-07.
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The lot is located along the Gatineau River and Route 105, bordered by the Chelsea Smokehouse to the south and Hall Road to the north. By road, it is 3.8 km from the Centre-Village if departing from City Hall and 2.1 km if departing from the Chelsea Freshmart to the centre of the Meredith Lot (circled in red).
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According to the municipal assessment roll, the lot covers 300,850,000 m2 (30 hectares or 74.3 acres). The property was assessed at $812,300 at the time of the analysis (as listed on the Municipal tax roll).
Sector 1 - Intact Forest
Sector 1 is the Meredith Forest located to the northwest of the lot (this sector is north of the road leading to the old quarry which practically divides the lot in two). This forested sector comprises 34.2 acres of pristine, healthy, mature mixed forest consisting primarily of conifers, maples, beech and some birch, carpeted by beds of wild garlic in the spring. The area includes numerous marshes and small streams running down from the top of the hill to the river. Several trails crisscross this section. Wildlife is active and diverse with deer, bears, and foxes with their young fawns, cubs, and kits, as well as a variety of woodland birds and vulnerable chorus frogs and painted turtles, all of which frequent the permanent pools and seasonal streams. At the extreme northern north end there is a permanent stream that is a boundary to the forest entering at a culvert under Route 105. The forest is not considered “Old Growth”, but it is a large intact forest as old as any of the woodlands that have grown since the entire Gatineau River was cut over by the first-European settlers to this area.
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Sector 2 - Former Car Scrap Yard
Sector 2 lies just south of Meredith Forest (orange triangle on map). This is a small 5.6-acre section close to 105 and wedged between Meredith Forest and the old quarry to the south. This section was occupied before 1990 by a car graveyard, a tire depot, and a garage. When this analysis was started, the area still contained many visible car parts of all sizes that litter the ground or were buried in central mounds and ramparts which border the southeast and the north perimeter.
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The current status of the groundwater is unknown but we suspect that the site may not pass standards for well water (refer to section Contamination in Meredith Lot). Over the years, plants have naturalized the space with many young trees, shrubs, sumac, juniper and grasses. Older trees exist in stands throughout this sector.
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Sector 3 - Fill in Quarry
Sector 3 lies practically in the middle of the site (yellow sector on the sector map) including an access road (Sector 6) leading to Route 105. It was formerly excavated as part of the quarry. This sector is approximately 6.32 acres in size. This section has now been filled with considerable amounts of fill consisting of various materials over the past 10 years, until it has become a feature which we refer as “the plateau”. It is bare and flat and with a steep slope of about 8-10 meters down towards what was the rail corridor, and is now known as the Voie Verte Chelsea. There are some invasive species in this fill including invasive phragmites and wild parsnip.
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Sector 4 - Former Quarry and Wetlands
Sector 4 is the former quarry. It occupies approximately 19.9 acres. A biodiverse habitat has developed in and around this quarry which includes many breeding amphibians and at least 2 types of breeding turtles (snapping and painted) and chorus frogs. The wetlands support the needs of many songbirds, migratory birds and wetland birds as well.
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Sector 5 - Proposed Public Dock
Sector 5 is the front area along the river where we suppose the public dock would be placed. It comprises 6.76 acres. There is an active beaver lodge at the upriver end of this strip and is an active nesting area for ducks and geese.
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Sector 6 - Access Road to Plateau
Sector 6 is a gravel road that begins about one km south of Hall Road, from Route 105 and runs down the Gatineau River. It divides the whole lot in two. This road occupies approximately 1.57 acres in area.
The Meredith Lot in the Context of the Master Plan
The zoning of the Meredith lot is currently REC (refer to map in section Meredith Lot Description). The densely wooded area, which we believe, is the focus of the proposed zoning change to RUR-C, is located outside the residential densification zone. It is completely within the aquifer protection zone. The proposed change would appear to contradict the municipal bylaws with respect to protecting rural areas, mature forests and the aquifer.
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This proposal by the Municipality contravenes two important commitments of the Municipal Master Plan by-law which are to concentrate residential development within urban perimeters to preserve natural environments outside them, and conserve 30% of natural environments.
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Acreage required to build a residence in Meredith Forest
A lot designated REC is protected from higher density development. According to the urban plan grid for zone REC2, a minimum of 4.6 acres are required to build a recreational residence on this lot.
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If the zoning were changed to RUR-C , it would then be possible to build an average of one house per acre, this would equate on paper to a maximum of 34 residences. However, a more realistic number with setbacks, roads and wetlands protection, would reduce the number to about twenty (20) residences that could be built in the Meredith Forest.
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The logic to understand the different grids is difficult to follow. We wonder why, in rural areas, where the primary objective would be to protect nature from urban sprawl, would we allow rural consolidation of one house per acre without major conservation compensation, as is the case in urban cluster developments? Nor do we understand how this zoning designation could support the main objective of the Master Plan.
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Precondition for a Change of Cadastre Designation
As a precondition to the approval of a plan involving a change in a cadastre designation, a property owner must transfer to the Municipality, free of charge, a surface area equal to ten percent (10%) of the total surface area of the land covered by the proposed plan for the purpose of developing a park, playground, or natural area. The transferred land must be in an area that the Municipal Council deems suitable for the establishment of a park, playground, or natural area. In lieu of the land transfer, Municipal Council may require the property owner to pay an amount of cash equal to ten percent (10%) of the recorded property value according to the municipal assessment roll for the land involved in the cadastre operation.
Concerns about Capacity of Aquifer and the Environment
The capacity of the Chelsea aquifer has been a concern for the last three decades and is likely impacted with the global warming. The Meredith Forest or Section 1 is entirely within the aquifer. Environmental groups have long been calling for a new study of the Chelsea aquifer given the last one was done in the early 90s.
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We submit it would be wise to have a professional independent study on the capacity of the aquifer as a precondition to developments relying on wells and septic fields. We submit that studies by consultants could be construed as conflict of interest.
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We believe that an environmental review of the ecological value of the forest should be conducted prior to changing the zoning. With recent development along Scott Road, along the Route 105 in this region and in Old Chelsea, the wildlife usage of these areas of forest and wetlands may be more essential than it was when last evaluated. We urge the Council to implement the survey under the supervision of the Advisory Committee on Environment, Durability and Climate Change.
Contamination in Meredith Lot
A major fire occurred in 1990. To put out the out-of-control fire, the ground was bulldozed towards the extremities to form a triangular rampart and sand dumped on the smoldering fire. The site is listed as a contaminated site under X0700079 in the directory of contaminated sites for the province of Québec. The directory indicates that no decontamination has taken place and that the surface is contaminated with light hydrocarbons, petroleum hydrocarbons C10 to C50, and metals. While no contamination is indicated for the aquifer for the Meredith Lot, it seems doubtful that any residential construction would be allowed in Sectors 2 or 3. We are unable to assess the costs of decontaminating this lot, and we note that decontamination is an open-ended operation that cannot be costed accurately in advance.
Concerns Regarding Development of Public Docks
One of the commitments of the Master Plan Municipal by-law is the provision of public access to the Gatineau River. We fully support in principle the proposal of having a public dock in this location. However, we have concerns about the size, scope, and specific location of any landing place, dock or docks.
Some of the concerns expressed in the Municipal survey on water access, especially in the comments section include:
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Residents want multiple small water access points all along the rail corridor on the 14 Hydro Quebec lots which the Municipality has purchased as opposed to just 2 larger ones at the Meredith Lot location and Farm Point
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Multiple docks to facilitate water access with two to four parking spots nearby would disperse users and encourage local active transportation to access the water
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A small space with limited infrastructure (only a dock), limited parking (for locals, not to create a congested destination) to encourage active transportation seem to be popular themes
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The cost to taxpayers to create a safe and accessible access point to the river at this location could be problematic. There are many submerged logs that would need to be removed, the topography of the landscape would need to be changed considerably to create a safe accessible site
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The planned capacity of the site could lead to increased cost if there is to be infrastructure such as sanitation or change rooms (cost of building/staffing) as well as costs related to parking, road maintenance/plowing, parking lot attendants, etc.
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Too large an access point could lead to a busy “destination” water access point with governance and staffing issues
Given the Municipality has already purchased many lots for access to water from Hydro Quebec, we wonder whether water access should be one of the declared reasons for changing the zoning of the Meredith lot. We believe that a complete analysis of the purchased 14 “hydro lots” should be done prior with an overall plan adopted for the Meredith lot.
Need for Conduct of Registry for Proposed Zoning Change
There is a larger issue above and beyond the proposed change to the zoning of the Meredith Lot. We are concerned that the decision might provoke a continuous dilution of the quality of environmental protection provided by the zoning by-law.
We note that comments in public consultations and the results of surveys prior to adopting the Master Plan in December 2022, overwhelmingly indicate that Environmental Protection is one of Chelsea residents' most pressing concerns.
An Alternative Conservation Option for the
Meredith Property
FMF believes there are alternative solutions for this property that can meet the needs of the Municipality, the conservation concerns of residents and the financial concerns of the owner. We believe we have a solution that would do all of the following:
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putting the forest land in long-term conservation under a land trust
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allowing community access to the river
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providing the owner with an economic valuation equivalent to selling the property for housing development (FMF was unable to meet with the owner to discuss other financing and development options.)
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finding a joint solution to understanding, remediation and restoring the contaminated zone
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respecting the intent of the Master Plan for the protection of forest and wetlands
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preventing urban sprawl to the North of Centre-Village
Stephen Woodley, the President of ACRE, has indicated that ACRE (Action Chelsea for the Respect of the Environment) is open to participate in such a solution, working with the Friends of the Meredith Forest and the Municipality to facilitate this option. In brief, ACRE would purchase the forest land as a conservation area, and the Municipality would acquire the old quarry to provide community river access. We would work together to find solutions to decontaminating and restoring the area where the tire fire occurred. Our discussions with ACRE suggest ways in which money can be raised both privately and through provincial and federal levels of government for just this kind of environmental project.
There is citizen support for retaining the forest land as a protected area, retaining the existing trails and linking them to the community trail network. This option would give residents the chance to enjoy nature even more and permit the public dock project to move ahead as there is also strong public support for residents to have access to the Gatineau River.
Conclusion
The Friends of the Meredith Forest are concerned that a piecemeal approach to zoning and subdivision changes which goes against the vision and the commitments of the municipal Master Planning adopted in 2022. We submit the Municipal Council proposal for the Meredith Lot is not in line with the strategic priorities set by the Municipality.
We believe the Municipality should first develop its urban perimeters, followed by the non-forested areas served by the water distribution network as outlined in the Master Plan through consultation of the population and that was adopted by the Municipal Council. We believe that this should be done on lots of at least two acres, as to do otherwise would be too destructive to the forest and damaging to the water table.
We repeat that we are in favour of water access for the people of Chelsea, but we do not believe that this proposal will provide water access for the municipal residents “at no cost to the taxpayer." We propose an alternative approach that will satisfy the needs of the current Meredith lot owners, the Council and the residents of Chelsea.
We believe that there is an economic alternative to the current proposal to rezone the lot for the construction of a housing development, and we encourage the Council to work with us to that end. We think that a complete analysis of the possible lots along the river for community docks and acquisition of existing docks should be done prior with an overall plan adopted.
We draw the Council’s attention to ACRE’s record of environmental projects, and the public support that underpins the association’s success. We believe that with the advice of ACRE and following its exemplary performance there is an opportunity to preserve the Meredith Forest "as is" for the benefit of future generations in Chelsea.