The northwestern Ontario community is abuzz with news that Lori Santink says she's disappointed but not surprised by urban centre council’s decision to rezone two vacant properties for new accommodation developments in Thunder Bay, Ont.
Santink lives near 791 Arundel St., one of three properties sold by the Lakehead as surplus land to Terralux General Contractors and Growth Limited earlier this year. Thunder Bay isshort about 1,000 accommodation unitsto meet demand. While the Arundel and Fanshaw street proposals required rezoning — which was approved by urban centre council Tuesday night — the Tokio Street property was already zoned appropriately.
“It contravenes theNet-Zero Strategythe urban centre has, theClimate Adaptation Strategy— it just doesn't make sense,” Santink told CBC News on Wednesday about the Arundel Street proposal. Santink helped form the grassroots groupTBay Greenspace Preservation, which had more than 500 followers at publication time. She indicated the group collected more than 2,600 signatures in a petition opposing the growth and held a rally outside the Lakehead hall earlier this week that drew more than 100 participants. Among the group's main worries are loss of green space, aging sewer infrastructure, increased traffic with lack of access to public transportation during the winter and risks to species of concern in the area — including the yellow-banded bumblebee, Canadian warbler and grey fox.
She confirmed the projects have been subject to several preliminary studies so far, looking at things such as traffic, transportation infrastructure and environmental considerations, “with [an] expanded public consultation process.” She added the projects are an critical part of the city’s Smart Growth Action Plan, as “they support a range of new homes options on existing services” and “unlock underutilized public lands for accommodation to support sustainable growth.” Coun.
The Ontario government’sBill 60 (Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act, 2025)means residents can no longer appeal municipal council decisions through the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) concerning areas including rezoning and official plan amendments, Santink explained. Thunder Bay, Ont., families seek accountability as tenants at seniors' building strongly advised to leave “In situations like this, urban centre council are the final arbiters of the Planning Act matter. They have to make sure that they've done their due diligence, right? I personally don't believe they did,” she remarked. “I would love to have a lawyer who's versed in environmental law and Planning Act matters contact us, and be willing to do some pro bono work, because the only way that we could address any of the apprehension with these is probably through a judicial review, since the appeal process through the OLT is no longer an option for us.” Devon McCloskey, Thunder Bay’s manager of planning services, stated the Lakehead is waiting to receive applications from the developer for site plan control and building permits before construction can begin. Applications for the Fanshaw and Tokio street properties are expected this year, with Arundel to follow. �“The developer has made many, many changes to their proposed renderings and layout to accommodate worries that have been brought forward by the public already,” McCloskey advised. She confirmed the projects have been subject to several preliminary studies so far, looking at things such as traffic, transportation infrastructure and environmental considerations, “with [an] expanded public consultation process.” She added the projects are an critical part of the city’s Smart Growth Action Plan, as “they support a range of new homes options on existing services” and “unlock underutilized public lands for accommodation to support sustainable growth.” Coun. Andrew Foulds, who represents the Current River ward where 791 Arundel St. is located, opposed the property’s rezoning. That shared, “what I am inspired by is the level of public engagement that this particular item brought forward, [which] I have never seen in my 20-year career.” “Not only were people of [the] Current River ward concerned, but people from across the community were very, very concerned.” Leia Minaker is an associate professor at the University of Waterloo’s school of planning and director of the Future Cities Institute. Much of her research focuses on how communities across Canada are dealing with the accommodation crisis while handling competing opinions on what developments should look like. Common unease she hears about dwelling units proposals include traffic, loss of parking and privacy, shadows from tall buildings and changes to the neighbourhood culture. “One of the projects we're working on is meant to integrate data from across municipal silos, so that we can actually visualize the kinds of trade-offs and what the neighbourhood will likely look like in the future,” she remarked. “Consensus is never going to be possible, but I think that we could be a lot clearer about what the impacts are going to be, where and for whom.” In northern Ontario, where buying a house has historically been more affordable, Minaker remarked communities are projecting population growth from mining projects and other economic activity proposed in the region. New partnership between federal government, Thunder Bay aims to simplify designs for new homes builds “I think northern cities, and especially bigger northern cities like Thunder Bay, have a huge challenge in the next little while about thinking about how and where to grow,” she declared. Santink shared she’ll closely monitor the developments and hopes to see more communication from the community throughout the process. “I think it's imperative, given again that this is a city-led initiative, that the public, the general public, is being made aware of what's going on." Sarah Law is a CBC News reporter based in Thunder Bay, Ont., and has also worked for newspapers and online publications elsewhere in the province. Have a story tip? You can reach her at sarah.law@cbc.ca. It is a priority for CBC to create products that are accessible to all in Canada including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. Closed Captioning and Described Video is available for many CBC shows offered onCBC Gem..
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📍 Source: CBC News Thunder Bay · By: CBC News Staff · 🗓️ August 13, 2026 · 🏠 ThunderBay.Online
