Township aims to expand boundary and increase population

Row after row, new houses are being built in Stayner as the small community looks to expand its settlement boundaries and add 5,000 new homes.

"It's not the boundaries of the municipalities per se; it's of the settlement area of where we live," said John Ferguson, chief administrative officer with Clearview Township.

As the County of Simcoe determines the population each area is permitted, Clearview Township hopes to change that for Stayner, but they also need water.

Ferguson says the Township was looking at connecting to the Collingwood to Alliston pipeline, a $135 million project that would have run through the centre of town.

However, they hope to get a piece of the housing-enabling water systems fund, which could keep water flowing in town by expanding the well on Klondike Park Road.

"We're building more homes going forward to justify the amount of money that we are asking for. It's something that this community really needs, and we have a great opportunity to create growth for this area," said Ferguson.

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The Township is asking the province for more than $30 million.

"Settlement numbers right now are roughly 3,200 draft-plan-approved homes in the settlement area; some developers are able to prepay to help with the infrastructure, and others are not - if we build out more homes, that will attract more growth opportunities with developers," said Ferguson.

Some local residents and business owners praise the Township's calls to expand, saying new homes mean more businesses and jobs.

Sue Nixon has owned Hair By Sue and Tanning for 16 years and welcomes the boundary expansion.

"I would like to see more business, keeps everybody going. Staffwise, it's hard to find hairdressers who want to work. A little bit of competition never hurts anybody," said Nixon. "So I think a few more stores and a few more shops would be great for the area.".

The Township will be meeting with the County next week. The Township will meet with the County next week to learn more about whether or not these plans could be approved and what that timeline could look like.