Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

BERWICK – The Sept. 8 meeting of North Stormont City Council saw a couple of interesting discussions.

As usual, council received staff reports from various departments. Deputy Mayor Densham shared that he appreciated Fire Chief Nancy-Ann Gauthier adding a breakdown to the Fire Department report showing which stations respond to each call. This change gives a better idea of how volunteer fire departments across the region respond to different types of calls.

Council received a report and approved a Zoning By-law Amendment (Z-2026-06, Mills), changing the property at 7/9 Minto Street in Finch from Residential 1 to Residential 2 classification. At a public meeting on Aug. 25, the public shared concerns relating to this development. Since then, members of North Stormont township staff and the developer have worked together to address these concerns which include parking, waste management, and privacy.

Mayor Landry agreed that the neighbourhood’s concerns are valid, stating, “I do see the risk of more vehicles and I will not lie, when you have your own property where you live … there’s always that concern and I probably would have been here just the same,” (referring to those who showed up at the Aug. 25 public meeting to express concerns).

Regarding privacy concerns, councilor Bugelli acknowledged that the developer is willing to construct a fence to work with neighbours. “I think the neighbours may be a little more open to this now with the changes,” Bugelli said. Councillor MacDonald also shared the sentiment that major issues were being addressed and that the development of residential units in Finch was positive.

A second big discussion that took place during the Sept. 8 council meeting is regarding the Crysler Trail Bridge Committee’s presentation which also took place at the Aug. 25 council meeting. Council was asked to accept an information report from the Director of Parks, Recreation, and Facilities and consider ways the project can move forward.

In 2025, $10,000 was approved and put aside in the budget to determine if existing concrete abutments from 1898 could be used to build a pedestrian bridge connecting trails on either side of the South Nation River (near Home Hardware in Finch). To complete the assessment as planned, council now needs to approve an additional $5,000. Council suggested that if the abutments are in good shape, this could be a $300,000 project, whereas if the abutments cannot be used to bridge may cost closer to $1 million, a price that would not be feasible for the township to come up with.

Council staff spoke about formulating a better plan for this bridge with oversight from the correct departments, seeing as they need the cooperation of Bell (due to an agreement involving use of the trail) and South Nation Conservation (via an environmental assessment) to get the project moving in the first place.

Council was informed that the $15,000 would be spent on an engineering study that will give all of the information needed to move forward with the project, including a site visit, measurements, photos, a property ownership review, concrete sample and strength testing, and design considerations.

Staff accepted the report as presented. Later in the meeting, councilor Bugelli put in a motion to request a report with further details on the requisition of the engineering study and approval of the extra funding.