Jennifer Robinson, LJI
A group of Knowlton residents opposed to development behind St. Paul’s Anglican Church is on the offensive once again to block a high-end housing project on church property that borders Knowlton’s Mill Pond. The church, which is struggling to make ends meet, has already signed a contract to sell the land to a developer for $1 million, with the view of using the money to generate income to fund church activities for years to come.
In an open letter dated Oct. 23, the group lambasted the project, calling it a ‘tragedy” and “nothing short of a money grab exploiting millions of dollars” already invested by the Town of Brome Lake and others in the Mill Pond sector.
Ken Smarzic, one of six signatories of the letter, told Tempo his group members are against any development on the site and they have come up with another plan to help the church. The group is proposing that it “lead” a fundraiser to raise money to buy the land back. The land would then be donated to a nature reserve to protect it from development in the future. Details and targets for such a fundraiser have not been developed. The group is asking to meet with church officials to discuss.
Smarzic said his group believes most people oppose development on that site. That, however, is not clear and the town’s ongoing strategic planning process so far does not have a vision for what could be done on that side of Mill Pond, which by any measure is a desirable location at the town core.
The developer, local businessman Reed Bousada, is pressing forward, and hopes to be in a position to present a formal proposal to the Town in the new year. The latest plan, https://imkor.ca/projets, first unveiled at a public meeting in June, is for the construction of three buildings, each with two luxury townhouses of about 3000 square feet. This is significantly smaller than the original 20-condo complex suggested three years ago, with fewer units, a smaller footprint, built further from the pond, fewer trees felled, and with a stunning new design that echoes Knowlton’s distinctive historic architecture.
In addition, the developer would transfer just under half of the property – almost two acres – to the Brome Lake Land Foundation so that no other building could occur closer to the pond on that property.
Since June the developer has been knocking on doors explaining the project to the 220 citizens in the neighbourhood who need to be consulted for zoning changes and to give their ok.
“We feel the consultation is going really well,” said a spokesperson for Imkor. He said that discussions with residents will continue for several weeks more. He would not comment on the letter from the residents’ group. He said simply that the plan has been significantly altered to address concerns raised by residents, and that Bousada is known for his commitment to community and the church.