Peterborough Mayor Jeff Leal says he is using his strong mayor powers “to help expedite” Brock Mission’s proposed transitional housing project by amending the city’s zoning by-law and exempting the project from the city’s site plan requirements.
In a statement emailed from his office on Monday afternoon (February 3), the mayor says he is using his strong mayor powers at Brock Mission’s request.
“When there are opportunities to address our critical need for housing, I will do whatever is within my authority as mayor to support those projects moving forward for the benefit of our community,” the mayor’s statement reads.
Brock Mission is proposing a six-storey building in a residential neighbourhood at 738 Chemong Road, where the organization’s Cameron House is located.
Located between Chemong Road and Bethune Street, Cameron House includes a 12-bed emergency shelter for women as well as eight transitional housing units for women transitioning from homelessness. Cameron House would remain at the location, with the new building providing 52 suites for men and women transitioning from homelessness.
Mayor Leal says he has directed city staff to prepare two by-laws for city council to consider at a special general committee meeting on Monday, February 24. The first by-law would amend the city’s zoning by-law “to facilitate this project” — the mayor provides no details on what this entails — and the second by-law would exempt it from the city’s site plan requirements.
According to the city’s website, a site plan is a requirement that must accompany building permit applications to show the proposed construction and/or demolition of a property.
As part of its 2025 draft budget deliberations, city council has endorsed providing $250,000 to Brock Mission to cover the initial costs for the project, including costs associated with site planning and building permit processes.
Under the strong mayor powers of the Municipal Act provided by the provincial government in 2023 to 45 municipalities, including Peterborough, heads of council can propose municipal by-laws under provincial legislation — including the Municipal Act and the Planning Act — if they believe the proposed by-laws could potentially advance the provincial priority of housing.
“I believe that these powers are meant to be used in very specific circumstances — for planning matters that advance important housing developments,” Mayor Leal states. “This project meets that criteria. Not only will Brock Mission contribute 52 units towards the City of Peterborough’s housing target of 4,700 homes by 2031, but these units will also provide critical supportive housing to help people in our community transition away from homelessness.”
Brock Mission estimates the construction cost of the building at $16 million, which it plans to cover with federal government funding and through fundraising, with operational funding to be requested from the provincial government.
“The team at Brock Mission has made it clear to me that expediting their project will save them time and money and will put them in an ideal position to compete for funding opportunities from the provincial and federal government,” Mayor Leal states.
Describing the Brock Mission project as “a crucial next step for our community’s response to homelessness,” the mayor notes that some people who enter the shelter system or who currently live in the modular bridge housing community on Wolfe Street are ready to move into supportive housing, “but there are no available transitional housing units in our community, so these individuals are forced to stay where they are, occupying beds that could otherwise go to people who need them.”
“Municipalities don’t have the resources to build supportive housing ourselves, but using strong mayor powers to expedite the approval of this project is something that is within our control,” the mayor states.
After noting the building’s proposed location on Chemong Road is in one of the city’s strategic growth areas, which the city’s official plan has designated for intensification, Mayor Leal states that Brock Mission has “clearly signalled to me that they will operate in a way that has minimal impact on the surrounding neighbourhood,” adding that the building’s residents “will be individuals who have been in a shelter for some time and are ready to take the next step.”
A by-law made under strong mayor powers is passed if more than one-third of all council members — in the case of Peterborough city council, four out of of 11 — vote in favour of the by-law.
“This project is critically important for the future health and well-being of our community. I ask my council colleagues for their support.”
Mayor Leal’s complete statement is provided below.
PDF: Statement from Mayor Jeff Leal
Statement from Mayor Jeff Leal
This story has been updated with a correction provided by the City of Peterborough. Brock Mission’s original proposal in 2024 for a 10-storey building is now for a six-storey building, which Mayor Leal is supporting.
