On Jan. 28 councillors here supported the rezoning required for three more farm dwelling severances.
The decision followed three public meetings – one for each of the properties: 7033 Second Line (former West Garafraxa), 6798 First Line West (former Pilkington), and 6722 Fifth Line (former West Garafraxa).
Each of the three public meetings lasted about 10 minutes with few, if any questions, posed by councillors.
Councillors Kelly Linton and Walt Visser were absent.
The rezonings switch the properties from Agricultural and Environmental Protection to Agricultural Exception and Environmental Protection.
The intent of the change is to restrict residential uses on the newly created lots – to prevent a home from being built on the severed farm property.
Planner Brett Salmon explained because of provincial regulations, it has become a requirement to place this restriction on severed properies.
Neither Wellington County nor the Grand River Conservation Authority had any objections.
The meeting regarding 6722 Fifth Line also restricted the number of animal units to five or fewer on the severed lot.
Salmon said the only twist to the severance was that the farm property is being sold to another farm operation. The severed lot contains the house and a barn which the owners intend to keep.
Salmon said Centre Wellington’s bylaw is written in such a way that livestock operations are allowed on prime agricultural land.
He said some municipalities have special rules about hobby barns, but the local bylaw just “recognizes that if it is a farm property, it does not matter if it is two acres or five acres, you are allowed to keep some livestock.”
Salmon said that since the property is shrinking from a large farm to a small rural residential lot, the number of livestock would be reduced.
“We’ve chosen five or fewer as the cutoff to prevent people from being forced into nutrient management plans.”
