WIITBY FRElE PRESS, WEI)NESDAY., JANUARY 21, 1 I , PAGE 3 Port residents given alternative plans ranging from status quo to futurism Port Whitby residents were given a glimpse of what the future may have in store for them at a meeting held last week to discuss the future of the town's southern exteme. Approximatley 50 area residents gathered in St. John's Anglican Church for the second in a series of public meetings dealing with the future of Port Whitby. Peter Walker of the Toron- to consulting firm of Mc- Pherson, Walker, Wright Associates, who were retained by town council to conduct the study, presented three alternatives for the development of the oldest part of Whitby. Public meeting The next public meeting in the Port Whitby study will be held sometime in mid- February according to Town of Whitby planning director Bob Short. Tenativel'2y, the meeting will again be held at- St. John's Anglican Church at the corner of Brock Street South and Victoria Street. According to a spokesman for the Toronto consulting firm of McPherson, Waker, Wright Associates that is conducting the. study, land use plans for the area will be available at the meeting. Peter Walker also said that, "We will also have an engineering analysis from Tottens, Sims, Hubicki and Associates." "Because we're getting a number of comments in," Short said that the town did not want to set a date for what will be the third in a series of public meetings. Proposal rejected At their meeting last week, Whitby Town Council rejected a proposal to build seven houses on a 35 acre lot west of Heron Road on this side of the Whitby- Scugog Township border. William Burgess, the developer, had applied for an amendment to both the Durham Regional and the Town of Whitby officials plans, however, when his application was referred to the administrative commit- tee they recommended that it be denied. Burgess' proposaI was op- posed by the Candian Pacific R.ailway whose rail line formed the southern edge of the development site. According to a report submitted to council, CPR's opposes the amendment because "residential land is not compatible with their operations. " In 1978, a Central Lake On- tario Conservation Authority Cloca î study said that the property in question was "highly" environmnen- tally sensitive." The first alternative would "provide no incentive for new development," while the third would create a "bit of a dream world" accor- ding to Walker. The first alternative plan would call for a population of between 1,500 and 2,200 which is between two to three times the current population. Under this plan there would be open space west of Henry Street near Watson Street and to the west of the harbor. The industrial zone bet- ween Charles and Rowe Streets south of the Pringle Street (including the area surrounding McNamara Marine) would be kep. Commercial development would be confined to the nor- th-west corner of Charles and Watson Streets. The residential area would be located south of Victoria Street to Charles and Wat- son Streets and include lan- ds west of Dufferin Street to Pringle Creek with no change in housing density. Walker told the residents that the alternative would not provide an incentive for new development. He added that, "The historical quality of the port would be lost because there would be no money to move historical buildings or fix them up." This alternative would also preseve the status quo of the area Walker said ad- ding that it "would not provide a sufficient tax base to justify major expen- ditures on the harbor and marina on one hand, or on the Port Whitby community on the other fiand." The second alternative that was presented would provide a population of bet- ween 4,500 and 5,400 and calls for the redevelopment of the McNamare Marine site for residential use with the possibility of adding a private marine and a "boatel." IT also calls for the development of land south- east of Victoria and Gordon Streets for both resident and commercial uses and the development of the north- west corner of Victoria and Henry Streets of high- denisty housing. Residential development would also begin between Watson and Rowe Streets and the commercial area would be confined to the nor- theast and northwest corner of Charles and Watson Streets. This alternative would also upgrade the perfor- mance standards for housing developments and create a water-oriented open space area on the west side of the harbor. The final alternative was dubbed "Walker's dream world" and was described as a "funturistic long-term version of the second alter- native." This alternative would allow for the greatest possible use..for the harbor including a Whitby Yacht Club expansion, a full marina, commercial and residential developinent, unorganized water recreation areas and recreation facilities. "The population exceed the suggested 5,000 in the of- ficial plan, which may be undesirable to some," Walker said. Responding to a question from the residents, Walker said he did not knovf how long it would take to start work on any of the three alternatives. "I wouldn't want to put a time on any of them," he said. "It may be five years or it may be 20." When asked which of the three plans they would prefer, the residents were spilt between the second and third alternatives in a show of hands. McALLISTEK(S JANUARY SALE of Beautiful Handcrafted Furniture Continues Savings f rom 10% -50% p McAmLLSTElfS Wh!er e Di men Pe-o%,m An lovsmn Beau. 70ROSSLAND RD W. OSHAWA 576-6465 Mon. Tues,.Wed 10-6 - Thurs. 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