With the city of Chatham growing at a rapid rate over the past few years, the Kent Federation of Agriculture wants to see the municipality protect the agricultural area from urban development.
Newly re-elected KFA President Brad Snobelen said urban sprawl will be one of the organization’s prime concerns and an area they will focus on in the new year.
“We’re worried about taking away prime agricultural land for housing,” Snobelen said at Tuesday night’s annual general meeting. “What we’d like to see is a commitment from the municipality to build up and not out.”
Snobelen said the municipality should put a plan in place, with a commitment from council to ensure that all new development happens within all urban boundaries first, before expanding these limits, as well as a commitment to in-filling and building up and not out.
“There’s empty lots all over the city and towns and they could have a building on them. There’s services at the road, there’s water, there’s gas, all those things are already there, there’s a street and sidewalks. It would be very simple if somebody would just put a building up.”
The KFA said Windsor city council’s recent move to approve a three percent vacant home tax to encourage homeowners of vacant properties to either sell or rent out the properties to increase the pool of available housing, is a move that all municipalities should adopt, including Chatham-Kent.
Snobelen said Chatham-Kent should even go one step further and tax all vacant commercial and residential properties to curb real estate speculation.
The Kent Federation of Agriculture held its annual general meeting at the Retro Suites Tuesday evening.
Snobelen was elected to a second term as KFA president, while Jim Brackett and Derrick Leclair were elected vice presidents.
Jim Brackett was awarded the Ed Campbell Memorial Award, as the KFA director of the year, while the annual Meritorious Service Award went to Pain Court farmer Jean Marie Laprise. Laprise was selected for his commitment to agriculture locally and the community overall.
