Tag: Real Estate

Sidbrook, Brookside and 93 Albert

John Draper

There are now at least three Heritage buildings in Cobourg which their owners may be trying to demolish by neglect although hopefully the owners of Brookside (the Province) will move quickly to dispel this possibility.  In a letter to Council, Keith Oliver raises the issue – details below.  Separately, at Monday’s Council meeting, Councillor Adam Bureau gives notice of a motion to ask the Province to use Brookside as a winter homeless shelter.  If that happened, then at least minimum maintenance would be done on Brookside.  If the Province is slow to act and heat is not provided, then it could quickly get to a similar state as Sidbrook – see video below. But it seems to me that the… Read complete articleSidbrook, Brookside and 93 Albert

What’s Happening Downtown Cobourg – Jan 2022

John Draper

Not all properties for sale or rent in Cobourg’s Downtown are listed on MLS but after searching the Internet and looking at information on the Town’s Economic Development page, I have a list.  Listings on the Internet may be misleading since some properties are now off the market (sold or withdrawn) and if a building is for sale, it does not mean the tenant is moving or changing.  However from the available information we can get an indication of what’s happening Downtown.  Real Estate is sold through Real Estate Agents but Cobourg’s Economic Development Department actively helps – the list below indicates which ones they help with.  Also shown is which Agent should be contacted.  Where available, I’ve also provided… Read complete articleWhat’s Happening Downtown Cobourg – Jan 2022

Demolition by Neglect

John Draper

An architectural gem that is gradually being demolished by neglect is the property on King Street East known as Sidbrook.  It has been empty since 2002 and is in bad shape.  Efforts to force owners to keep it in good repair have gone nowhere  – see link below to my report in 2018 on “Stopping Demolition by Neglect”.  But now, there is another example and Council made it clear that they have no sympathy for owners who try to demolish by neglect.  At the Committee of the Whole (CoW) Meeting on Monday December 6, the owner of the property at 93 Albert Street asked the Town for permission to demolish the building because it’s in really bad shape but the… Read complete articleDemolition by Neglect

Licensing Airbnb in Cobourg

John Draper

At the Council meeting on June 28, 2021, Cobourg resident Anne-Marie Jackson complained about problems from an Airbnb establishment on Blake Street.  She had concerns about parking, parties with loud and disruptive guests, drug and criminal activity  (and as a result, increased police activity) and noise. Complaints to Airbnb went unanswered.  She also included a petition from 35 residents.  As a result, Council directed staff to investigate regulating Short Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) and present their report at the November 15 Committee of the Whole (CoW) meeting.  The Agenda for the October 25 CoW meeting includes this report – it’s early!  Staff reviewed the options and recommend both a revision of the Zoning By-Law and the establishment of a requirement to license… Read complete articleLicensing Airbnb in Cobourg

Tannery Master Plan once again before Council

John Draper

The Tannery Project has a long history.  The property at the north end of George and near the railway line originally was home to a factory for James Crossen to build railway carriages and subsequently as a place for tanning hides – hence the name.  But the building was abandoned and the Town eventually took ownership because of unpaid taxes and tried several times to ask developers to take it on (see Stephen Peacock’s background report in links below).  This did not work so the Town expanded the scope and decided that the area should be subject to a CIP (Community Improvement Plan) and a secondary plan which mandates a residential sustainable development.  This too has been slow to be… Read complete articleTannery Master Plan once again before Council

William Academy Expanding

John Draper

The private school now occupying what used to be CDCI West wants to build accommodation for its students.  They have bought adjacent properties – 125-129 King St. W. and 209 Hibernia St – and want to demolish them and build new buildings in their place.  The King Street property was previously “Sleep Made Simple” and the Hibernia property had a succession of businesses on the ground floor and a rental unit upstairs (see photos below).   The application for demolition was presented to Town staff and staff recommendations were presented to the Heritage Advisory Committee who endorsed them and will ask Council to endorse them at the next Committee of the Whole Council meeting. Basically, they agreed to the demolition but… Read complete articleWilliam Academy Expanding

Planning Update – Summer 2021

John Draper

One of the more interesting things to learn from Council meetings is the status of projects going through the Planning and Development Department.  The Councillor with the Planning portfolio is Nicole Beatty and once again she gave a comprehensive report at Monday’s Council meeting.  You can see her full report in the Links below but with 42 items, let me summarize highlights.  For some reason, there are a lot more projects than usual or expected this year. The dollar value of “planning applications in the Planning & Development Services Division already sits at just over 121% of revenue budgeted for all of 2021”.  And in the middle of this surge in work, Director Glenn McGlashon has announced his retirement effective… Read complete articlePlanning Update – Summer 2021

Zoning of Rehabilitation Centres

John Draper

In July 2020, Council was asked to approve the use of the (mostly vacant) Medical building at 316 King Street East (opposite the High school) as a rehabilitation centre for patients with drug or alcohol problems.  There was a lot of concern expressed by councillors and the public due to proximity to the school so the issue was deferred pending a study of zoning of such facilities (see link below).  A contract was awarded to Meridian Planning Consultants to report on this subject and their report was presented to Council at Monday’s Committee of the Whole meeting.  Their basic conclusion was that such a use should be possible but subject to case by case decisions which would include collecting public… Read complete articleZoning of Rehabilitation Centres