CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — The City of Charlottetown announced Monday that its public consultation process for planning and heritage applications will resume with a limited in-person component.
However, the biggest hot-button issue facing city council — a proposed short-term rental bylaw — is on hold indefinitely.
Coun. Mike Duffy, chairman of council’s standing committee on planning and heritage, said that issue will require renting a meeting space and allowing more people to take part that public health restrictions will currently allow.
“Restrictions will have to lift a lot," Duffy said Tuesday. “We are anticipating and thinking very seriously about renting Memorial Hall at the Confederation Centre of the Arts for that event."
For public meetings the city thinks will draw a crowd, space at the Rodd Charlottetown on Kent Street or the Rodd Royalty on Capital Drive is rented. Duffy said a public meeting on the short-term rental matter needs a much bigger space.
“We just couldn’t physically handle the crowd that we’re expecting because that would probably be the biggest public meeting we’ve had in the city in a couple of decades. It’s a very sensitive topic."
Public health restrictions now allow the city to hold public meetings for a maximum of 50 people, including members of council and support staff. The city is also permitted to have an overflow room with a capacity for another 38 people.
A meeting will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 7 p.m., to hear comments on a proposed rezoning and redesignation of the property along Norwood Road/Friar Drive to allow for the development of a modular home neighbourhood consisting of 59 lots on the vacant property.
Duffy said these parameters won’t suffice for a meeting on the short-term rental bylaw. The planning chairman said the city held a meeting on the UPEI student residence issue that included a virtual component, and it was challenged before the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission. The commission ruled in the city’s favour.
“We’re going to wait until we have a broader parameter to work with," the councillor said, referring to the short-term rental issue.
Need to know
The following information applies to upcoming public meetings:
- Residents who want to attend in-person need to contact the planning department at [email protected] or 902-629-4158 before 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 22.
- The meeting will also be streamed live on the city’s website at Charlottetown.ca/video.
- Participants must provide name, phone number and/or email for contact tracing purposes.
- Staff will contact interested participants no later than noon on Monday, Jan. 25, with details on how to participate in the meeting.
Dave Stewart is The Guardian's municipal reporter.
