‘We know there’s urgency’: Tiny Township extends interim control bylaw for 1 year to finish shoreline protection study

The intent was to give the municipality a year to develop rules for shoreline projects to protect dynamic beach environments. The bylaw didn’t stop any projects that were already in progress.

Extending the interim control bylaw will give the municipality’s staff, and its consultants, the time to complete its study that is reviewing options to regulate retaining walls and other structures in proximity to the shoreline and prepare the necessary bylaw and policy tools.

Judy Sullivan of Aqua Solutions 5 Inc., the lead on the study, said the intent is not to stop development but to protect dynamic beach ecosystems — which also provide erosion and flooding protection for the development that is behind them.

“There are a lot of concerns in the area of the social and environmental impacts of development on the shoreline,” she said. “There is a recognition that there is still development, but the protection of the actual feature is very important.

The municipality also has a legal liability in creating a dynamic beach bylaw, she said.

“That natural feature, when it’s left to do its own thing, will provide the protection,” Sullivan said. “The dynamic beach needs enough space to be able to do its own thing.”

Even areas not considered dynamic beaches, which she estimated at about 10 per cent of the shoreline, are also important for flood protection.

“Just because it is not a dynamic beach does not mean other hazards do not apply,” she said.

While it may seem excessive to waterfront residents who want to develop to have a wide area of protection, it is necessary for the health of the beach and dune system, Sullivan said.

Extending the interim control bylaw did come with some concerns from the public. Local contractor Cody Morden urged council to move ahead on creating a committee of interested stakeholders — including contractors — for input into the bylaw.

“Local residents rely on the income of the (contractor) trade network, and doing a blanket interim bylaw affects local trades, local people, local taxpayers,” he said. “Waterfront owners contribute a lot to the local economy by building, by maintaining, by constantly appreciating their properties — which grows their taxes.”

Chief administrative officer Robert Lamb indicated local contractors and other stakeholders will be consulted once a draft policy is prepared.

Morden noted municipal staff have been good to work with, adding contractors are looking for defined rules.

“Most contractors want to do the right thing, we just need to know… the rules to follow,” he said, noting that with a blanket interim bylaw, and how it covers areas not considered dynamic beaches, “it makes it difficult to know where to do things, and where we’re not allowed to do things.”

Mayor Dave Evans noted that the nature of an interim control bylaw makes it “a bit of a sledgehammer.

“It is overkill to some degree,” he said, adding the eventual solution should be amenable to the majority of the community.

However, Evans emphasized, it was necessary to preserve and manage the natural features that are important to the municipality’s brand.

“I look at this as a partnership between Tiny and nature,” Evans said. “Even though it might be a broad net, I’m fully confident the public consultation process will come up with a bylaw that’s representative of what we’re looking for.

“I’m very excited to start the public consultation process to get a broad range of support, comprehension on both sides, and a consensus.”

The township’s planning consultant, Jamie Robinson of MHBC, emphasized to council the interim control bylaw could only be extended for one year.

“Our proverbial feet are to the fire to get this thing done within the next year,” he said. “We know there’s urgency, and we’ll be working hard to get answers.”