Industrial Parks

[UrbanWaterloo]

Cambridge expects to allot $7.5 million for business park
KEVIN SWAYZE, RECORD STAFF - CAMBRIDGE - January 19, 2008
http://news.therecord.com/article/297389

With only three hectares (12 acres) of city-owned industrial land available for sale, city staff want to spend $7.5 million to create a business park east of the Toyota auto plant.

It can't come too soon for John Whitney, president of J.J. Barnicke Whitney commercial realty. "It's a phenomenal parcel of land," he said.

"It's been a long time coming. We're literally running out of sites."

What's most encouraging for Whitney is that the land -- an 89-hectare (220-acre) area -- is in a large block, where parcels in the four-to eight-hectare (10- to 20-acre) range could easily be sold.

Today, he's certain the region is losing potential investment because companies are bypassing this area as few such lots are on the market.

"If you told me you needed a 15-acre parcel of land, I might be able to show you three of them across the region," he said.

The Boxwood industrial park is part of the proposed 2008 city budget. It's no surprise to city councillors, who approved the land purchase in 1999 from the provincial government, but saw the development process held up by planning studies in north Cambridge in recent years.

In July, Delcan Construction of Kitchener was hired for $384,328 to do preliminary work on the area, such as sorting out how much of the city-owned land can be carved into lots, how much will go for roads and how much is environmentally protected.

It's likely that only 61 to 69 hectares (150 to 170 acres) will be available for sale once the area is developed.

If council approves and everything goes as planned to get land preparation underway by summer, the first lots could be on sale late this year.

"There's been a pent-up demand for industrial lots in the city. I'm sure we won't have any trouble selling them," said Don Smith, city chief administrative officer.

In January 2006, Cambridge actually ran out of industrial land.

It wasn't until fall of that year that 55 acres of land was ready in the Pinebush business park expansion near Townline Road and Highway 401. Demand was so strong that city staff took multiple proposals for most of the lots, then rated the applications and picked a preferred buyer for council to consider.

Today, there's one city-owned lot left in the Pinebush industrial area and two others in the Cambridge business park west of the Toyota plant.

The $7.5 million proposed in the 2008 budget to develop the business park will be repaid as the land is sold, Smith said.

The current city selling price is $210,000 an acre, he said, but that's not necessarily going to be the Boxwood price.

That price will be set once all development costs are known, so they can be entirely recovered and put back into the "revolving fund" the city uses to create industrial parks that bring in new tax money.

Cambridge has been buying empty land, putting in roads and sewers, then selling it to industry since it was created in 1973, Smith said.


Boxwood Industrial Park - Class Environmental Assessment
http://www.cambridge.ca/economic_dev...tal_assessment

CLASS ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE PROPOSED SERVICING OF THE BOXWOOD INDUSTRIAL PARK

The City of Cambridge has commenced the Class Environmental Assessment for the Boxwood Industrial Park. The intent is to develop the Boxwood Industrial Park for industrial land uses in order to help meet the demand for serviced industrial lots. These lands are designated for industrial development within the City's Official Plan. The subject property comprises some 88 hectares (220 acres) of City owned lands within the Hespeler West community. The site is bounded on the north by Maple Grove Road, by Boxwood Road on the west, by Speedsville Road on the east, and by Royal Oak Road on the south. The project is being planned under Schedule B of the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment process.
A Public Open House Meeting was held on Wednesday, November 14, 2007. Documents, displays, and exhibits were available for public review at the meeting regarding options for servicing the City owned lands for Industrial uses. Exhibits displayed at this meeting are listed below under PIC No. 1.
A second Public Information Centre was held on Thursday, May 28th, 2009. At this meeting, the preferred Concept Plan was presented, along with background exhibits. These exhibits can be viewed below under PIC No. 2.
On July 20th, 2009 Cambridge City Council approved the "Boxwood Industrial Subdivision Class Environmental Assessment Environmental Study Report dated June 2009" and accepted the Preferred Concept Plan. The components of this document can be viewed below under the section "Class Environmental Assessment-Environmental Study Report - June 2009".
A Notice of Completion was published effective July 20th, 2009 and the Class EA documentation of the process undertaken and conclusions reached have been placed on public record for 30 calendar days in accordance with the Municipal Class EA. The 30-day "Review Period" began on July 20th, 2009 and ends on August 19, 2009.
If after reviewing the document, you have questions or concerns, or you wish to submit written comments, please contact the City of Cambridge or Delcan Corporation by August 19, 2009.

Mr. Miron Docev, P.Eng.
Project Engineer
City of Cambridge
50 Dickson Street
Cambridge, Ontario, N1R 5W8
Telephone: 519.740.4682, Ext. 4540
OR
Mr. Ken Hodges, P.Eng. Project Manager
Delcan Corporation
675 Queen Street South
Kitchener, Ontario, N2M 1A1
Telephone: 519.883.7883
E-mail: Boxwood.Subdivision@delcan.com

If concerns regarding this project cannot be resolved through discussion with the City of Cambridge, a person or party may request that the Minister of Environment order the project to comply with Part II of the Environment Assessment Act (referred to as a Part II Order).
Requests for a Part II Order must be received by the Minister in writing at the address provided below. A copy of the request must also be sent to the Clerk or the Project Engineer for the City of Cambridge.
If no request is received by August 19th, 2009, the City of Cambridge intends to proceed with detailed design and construction. Requests received after the 30 calendar day review period which ends on August 19, 2009 will not be considered.

Minister of the Environment
12th Floor, 135 St. Clair Avenue West
Toronto, Ontario M4V 1P5


Cambridge Business Update Year-End Review 2009 - February 2010, Page 10
http://www.cambridge.ca/relatedDocs/...ter%202009.pdf

Future Cambridge Boxwood Industrial Park
The City’s next industrial park will feature eco-sensitive development. Of the 200 acre subdivision, approximately 100 acres will be developed for industrial site development while the balance of the space will be reserved for buffers to protect sensitive woodlots and creek valleys. Trails and stormwater management features will be designed to complement the nearby natural areas and protect water quality. The street layout will create lot orientations that will favour buildings that can take advantage of solar energy.

Purchasers of lots in the Boxwood Industrial Park will be encouraged to incorporate LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) features into their building plans. Features could include green roofs, energy efficient lighting, water-saving plumbing fixtures and alternative heating systems or other energy efficient attributes.

Construction of the roads and services is anticipated to begin in 2010 with completion by 2011. The Boxwood Industrial Park will be a model for green industrial development and fill the void for serviced industrial land in Cambridge. It will promote economic development that will have a smaller impact on the environment and be more people friendly - all in an effort to promote the well-being of the Cambridge community.




Maps/Lots - Industrial and Commercial Search for Available Land
http://www.cambridge.ca/cs_econdev/r...=0&tp=0&grid=0



The Boxwood Subdivision is located just east of the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada assembly plant and is easily accessible from Highways 401, 24, 8, and 7.

The Boxwood Subdivision is scheduled for construction and development in the year 2010 and will provide lots ranging from 1 to 20 acres. It is the next phase of the Cambridge Business Park expansion, and land will be zoned M3 for general industrial use, allowing manufacturing, processing, production assembly, warehousing and some office uses as permitted under the zoning by-law.

Price of land is yet to be determined and lots will be rough graded and serviced to the lot line with lateral water and sanitary connections.

Click here to download a PDF map of this area.