City continues to eye west wharf land
Councillor says he'd like to see area protected, made open to public
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
Following the renewal of the city’s land use development and municipal service agreement with the Oshawa Port Authority, which is expected to get the final approval on June 29, Councillor Nester Pidwerbecki wanted to make sure one thing remained in the forefront of the city’s mind.
Oshawa wants the west wharf land.
“I didn’t see anything in there that we would still be trying to get that west wharf back,” Pidwerbecki said of the service agreement, which passed through the development services committee on June 15.
The city’s recommendation is to extend the current agreement with the port for the next five years. The original agreement, ratified in 2010, set out to increase compatibility between the two organizations to aid development at the harbor.
However, the city has been looking for years to get a large section of the west wharf back in their hands.
Pidwerbecki says the city would like to enhance the area and possibly protect it for citizens to enjoy, similar to what has been done at Lakeview West and East parks.
“I think the people of Oshawa and the region would be happy to know we’re still trying to enhance the waterfront for their enjoyment,” Pidwerbecki said.
Paul Ralph, the city’s commissioner of development services, said he would have no issues brining the topic forward during meetings of the city and the port authority.