KENILWORTH – Wellington North councillors here agree with residents who believe Aletha’s Place should have a home in Mount Forest.
Council received roughly a dozen letters of support and there were many vocal champions of the work done at New Growth Family Centre during a public meeting on April 29.
A zoning bylaw amendment for the facility, located at 211 Birmingham Street West, would permit limited temporary overnight accommodations within the existing centre (Aletha’s Place).
The property is currently zoned institutional. Temporary overnight accommodations for youth is an accessory use to existing services at Aletha’s Place.
The Wellington County Official Plan provides consideration for the establishment of special needs housing/accommodation in residential areas within the urban area of the county.
The public meeting included over an hour of passionate presentations on the benefits of the work done by Aletha McArthur.
Mayor Andy Lennox asked that the bylaw specify the amount of time individuals can stay at the facility.
Planner Linda Redmond stated the times could be included as accessory to the centre and its programs. She said this would ensure that it would not be used as overnight accommodation for any other use.
Redmond noted the institutional zoning does allow for overnight accommodation for similar uses.
Councillor Dan Yake said there was a lot of information presented that night.
“I’ve known the McArthur family for a long time. I think they put their hearts and souls into what they do,” he said.
Yake added the couple are passionate about what they do and, “From the letters and support that I’ve seen over the past couple weeks, I am comfortable with this.”
Councillor Lisa Hern added “we need more people like the McArthurs in this world.” She said sometimes kids and/or their parents need a break.
Lennox said, “I believe we need this type of service and we need to find a way to make it work.”
He said a solution could be found by working with planning staff to move forward.
