Following a closed session discussion on March 28, Huntsville council emerged with a resolution instructing staff to retain professional services to defend its decision not to provide a zoning amendment to a taxi dispatch business at 190 Chaffey Township Road.
Independent Taxi is currently operating out of the property. Shawn Bouillon was before Huntsville’s planning committee on January 18 asking for a zoning bylaw exemption to recognize the taxi dispatch service on his property, which has an area of 6,718 square metres and 35 metres of frontage on Chaffey Township Road.
Staff was recommending that the amendment be denied. “The use was established unlawfully in 2019 and charges were subsequently laid under the Planning Act,” Huntsville’s manager of planning, Richard Clark, told committee. “To address the issue the applicant has submitted this zoning bylaw amendment application and wishes to continue using the single detached dwelling on the property as a residential dwelling unit alongside the taxi dispatch service business.”
Committee concurred with staff’s recommendation and denied the zoning bylaw exemption request.
The applicant has appealed the decision to the Ontario Land Tribunal.
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If this taxi company was serious about keeping its business open it would have done things the proper way and made sure this was legal. Most people I think understand this was done hoping they wouldn’t get caught and be allowed after the fact . If you give into this company who will be next.
The comment as written by Reuben Pyette makes no sense unless maybe they mean “floods” instead of “floors” but even then a lot of the story must still be in the background.
It is a bit curious as in this day and age one can or maybe could operate a taxi dispatch business from a cell phone and laptop located almost anywhere, not necessarily even in this town or Province.
The actual physical “taxi” would of course need a place to park while waiting and a place for maintenance but that could be in any industrial area, of which Huntsville seems to have plenty.
I’m left wondering what the issue is for the town here in the first place?
People seem to forget why it is we moved here in the first place. Perhaps if they goggles the floors created by the property that swamped our business and a half dozen others. They would understand why we are here. The Town Building Standarts failed to act and we lost thousands. While CRS Cranes had a million dollars in damages.