Glen Abbey Golf Club development proposal rejected, as expected
By Lucas on Oct 02, 2017
Remember when ClubLink, the owner of the Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, submitted a development proposal with a zoning application for residential, commercial, and office space and everyone knew it was going to get rejected? It got rejected.
We’re positive that ClubLink did not expect their proposal to get approved. After the proposal was submitted, the Town unanimously voted to designate the land a heritage site, which made it nearly impossible for any application to get approved.
The proposal called for more than 3,200 residential units, 69,000 square feet of commercial and retail space, and 107,000 square feet of office space.
Oakville Mayor Rob Burton called the proposal an “attack” on the Livable Oakville Plan, which was designed to guide the town’s growth.
“The application asks us to ignore provincial, regional and town land-use policies in no small way,” says Burton. “If we did that, we would break the very social contract that we created and nurtured with our community with so much public consultation and so much time. It was years and millions of dollars in the making. We got to know each other and our hopes and aspirations very well.”
At the community meeting, more than 100 people showed up, many of them wearing pins and shirts that said “Save Glen Abbey.” The Save Glen Abbey Coalition collected 8,400 signatures on a petition to stop the potential development.
The proposal was rejected on September 27 and two days earlier on September 25, ClubLink submitted an application to demolish the course and all the buildings standing on the site. This application will likely be rejected as well since the heritage designation states that removal of the golf course is not allowed.
We understand that a golf course increases the value of surrounding property, but will this always be the case? Younger generations don’t value golf as much as Baby Boomers, and we all know most millennials can’t afford to be members at a golf club.
Yes, living on greenspace will always be a plus, but you don’t have access to a private golf course. ClubLink’s proposal stated that 54% of the site would be public green space. That’s 54% more than the public has access to right now.
“In its current form, the only people who are able to enjoy the use of this site are ClubLink members, golfers who are prepared to pay the relatively high greens fees or those who might attend during the one week of the year when Glen Abbey might host the Canadian Open — and of course, we know that Glen Abbey’s days of hosting the Open are numbered,” says ClubLink’s lawyer Mark Flowers.
Not only would the development open up greenspace to the public, there would also be a 42% tree canopy and the whole project would generate $126 million in development charges for the community.
Many locals had their concerns about actually being able to access the greenspace given the elevation changes of the natural terrain. There are also concerns about traffic congestion and neighbourhood schools already being overcrowded.
The story’s not over though, ClubLink can go to the OMB. If they no longer want to run a golf club, then they’re going to find a way to sell this land or develop it. We’re interested to see what happens!
