Peterborough mayor Jeff Leal has shared a letter he received last Friday (October 24) from Ontario’s environment minister about GE Vernova’s proposed demolition of 26 vacant buildings at the General Electric factory complex in downtown Peterborough, and has issued a statement in response to the letter.
In the letter to the mayor, Todd McCarthy states that “The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks recognizes the importance of this matter to Peterborough City Council, local residents and others who have a strong interest in protecting community health and the environment.”
“The ministry has not yet received a detailed demolition plan from GE Vernova. Once received, staff will carefully review the proposed plans and provide technical comments and recommendations to ensure the demolition process meets provincial regulatory requirements and protects public health and the environment.”
“The ministry will continue to offer its participation in technical discussions and remains open to collaboration with the City of Peterborough, community members and agencies,” McCarthy adds. “Transparency and public confidence are key priorities throughout this process.”
The mayor had written to the minister on October 15, following a 6-5 vote at city council the previous evening not to pursue a heritage designation for the buildings being proposed for demolition, effectively delisting the buildings from the city’s heritage register and clearing the way for GE Vernova to proceed.
At the meeting, city council heard from nine public delegations expressing concerns about the proposed demolition, because of known contamination of the industrial site with toxic hazardous substances over the past 125 years and the impact of a demolition on the safety of the surrounding residential neighbourhoods.
During the meeting, city staff advised council that the municipality has no authority to prevent the demolition, other than by declaring its intent to designate the buildings under the Ontario Heritage Act, and that the provincial government was responsible for regulating environmental impacts of the demolition.
In his October 15 letter to McCarthy, Leal said “the full weight of the Environmental Protection Act needs to be applied” because of the toxicity of the site, and said he would be “happy” to meet with the minister to discuss the issue.
In his response, McCarthy did not mention a meeting with the mayor. Instead, he said “Given the technical complexity, historical sensitivities and local knowledge surrounding this site, I encourage you, council members or city staff to contact David Bradley, Peterborough District Manager, with any questions or to arrange a meeting.”
In response to McCarthy’s letter, Leal issued a statement on Monday (October 27) that he is “very pleased that the Minister has responded so comprehensively, and in a manner that reflects the urgency and sensitivity of this issue for our community.”
The mayor added that the content of the letter “addresses the items that I would have expected to be raised during a meeting” and he will no longer be pursuing a meeting with the minister.
“The City will continue to communicate with the Ministry of the Environment on the environmental risk mitigation and management aspects of this matter, meeting as needed through the process to share information between the relevant agencies with their respective jurisdictions on behalf of the community,” Leal stated.
