County of Bruce Business Investment Specialist, Energy Sector Stellina Williams addressed Saugeen Shores Council regarding the proposed Ontario Nuclear Innovation Institute August 27.

Hub Staff

A recent partnership between the County of Bruce and Bruce Power of the proposed, one of a kind Ontario Nuclear Innovation Institute (ONII) was presented to Saugeen Shores Council through a Bruce County delegation August 27. The facility is being considered for the area between the Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre (BCM&CC) on Victoria Street South and High Street in Southampton where the historic Anglican Church manse now sits.

Representatives from the County including Stellina Williams and Matthew Heade as well as Frank Saunders of Bruce Power outlined feedback from two community information sessions that were held in Southampton June 12 and July 5. Approximately 82 people attended both meetings resulting in 19 feedback forms and 22 e-mails.

Stellina Williams said that formal letters addressing information regarding the proposed facility were sent out to 2,160 homes and business in Southampton and Saugeen First Nation with additional invitations going to both BIAs, the Saugeen Shores Chamber of Commerce, GC Huston Public School, the Historic Saugeen Métis, Indigenous Economic Development officers, both two school boards, three neighbouring churches and the Southampton Craft Show.

On August 2 there was a presentation to Bruce County Council outlining the feedback that was received with Williams telling Saugeen Shores Council that a number of “inaccuracies and misinterpretations about the project surfaced during community dialogues.”

Williams showed councillors a slide of what the ONII will not include:

- it will not house radioactive laboratories or materials
- it will not be a Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission licensed facility
- it will not house medical or clinical laboratories
- it will not be an industrial site
- exhibits and installations at BCM&CC will not be controlled or influenced by Bruce Power in any way
- it will be respectful of Fairy Lake’s idyllic natural setting, beauty and esthetic value

Williams also noted that the proposed facility will have a low number of users and visitors, an estimated 40 to 50 people at the most.

The building will be height conducive to the existing skyline which, given the current footprint, is unlikely to exceed 30,000 square feet. The presentation also said that ONII will be designed to be complimentary to and ensure access to Fairy Lake and, as determined through previous consultation, a planned archive expansion for BCM&CC will be respected.

Matthew Heade presented community feedback from the June and July sessions and in addition to a few supportive comments such as furthering the future of nuclear innovation, plenty of space for parking, history and heritage retention through BCM&CC and an asset for the Saugeen Shores, there were several concerns raised.

Among them were parking and traffic congestion, concern for the preservation of the manse, a negative impact on Fairy Lake both aesthetically and environmentally, little room for expansion and a loss of tree preservation and green space. Safety worries were raised as well and citizens were concerned that the new facility would not fit with the local aesthetic with one suggesting it would be better suited in Port Elgin or Kincardine.

One person urged that Saugeen Ojibway Nation be consulted, many citizens suggested incorporating the historic manse into the new design and another expressed concern that a nuclear connection would destroy the neutrality of the neighbourhood.

Heade said that another information session will be planned for the fall of 2018 and by that time it is expected that architectural firm Reich and Petch would have developed conceptual drawings for the Institute and be able to present a number of options.

During the presentation Heade noted that the existing house located next the BCM&CC will “likely need to be removed” and added ”the opportunity to incorporate features from the house with things like the facade, brick work, pocket doors and windows into the new build represents a suitable compromise that is supported by most.”

Heade went on to note the goal is to work towards a "complete street" as defined in the Grey Bruce Public Health Complete Streets Policy and Implementation Guide. Designed for all ages, abilities and modes of travel, complete streets are created so as to provide safe and comfortable access for all users. Heade said they would work with the Town of Saugeeen Shores as well as a transportation consultant “to reduce risk to all neighbourhood users.”

Following the presentation Councillor Don Matheson said the number of people attending the information sessions was a good number “but not really something that you can base any data on." Matheson did remark that the ONII would be a great opportunity for Saugeen Shores.

“This puts us right on par with the think tank that’s in Waterloo and Silicon Valley in California. The things that can come out of this in joint partnership with universities gives our local students something to look forward to, it’s fantastic," he said, then added that he trusted Bruce Power to look into every aspect so that it's "one of the safest places to go."

"It will be one of the most beautiful, aesthetically pleasing buildings that we have,” said Matheson.

Councillor Cheryl Grace noted that the mail-out of information to Southampton residents didn't reach everyone who lived there, including the councillor herself, as those who had opted out of receiving flyers would not have received one. Grace also mentioned the hundreds of summer residents who do not have a post office box and said the County did not contact the Southampton Residents' Association, a highly visible Southampton group.

Grace said that using 41 pieces of correspondence is a very small sample to come back with feedback results and that as of 2016, not including summer residents, there were 3,160 people over the age of 19 living in Southampton year-round. She said it would be inaccurate to release anything that indicated support for the Institution based off the limited feedback.

Councillor Neil Menage threw his support behind the project and said he could line up hundreds of people who would support the project in the proposed location. "We’ve got some neighbourhood feedback and now we need to look at the broader community, all of Saugeen Shores.” Menage requested that the next meeting be held in a more central location such as the Plex.

Councillor Dave Myette said that since the announcement he has heard plenty of discussion at various community functions and that it's been filled with “excitement and positive feedback."

Myette said people who are motivated by unfounded fears are more prone to give written feedback than people who are in favour, who Myette recognizes as the "vast majority." He then encouraged people to give feedback as “this is something that we need to get behind.”

Deputy Mayor Luke Charbonneau said that he appreciated that public consultation was done early on in the process. “I think the comments about the mitigation of concerns that you made are important and I think the majority of concerns that I have read from your report or I've heard out in the community can be mitigated so I’m looking forward to seeing the work that you do on that to make sure those concerns are mitigated," he said.

Charbonneau asked if the ONII will bring community involvement through educating the youth of Saugeen Shores. Saunders answered by saying that educating youth is on their radar and noted that there are currently no agreements with school boards but would like to use this as an opportunity for students beginning at a young age. “Hopefully they'll go off to university or other places and take science related courses so we can ultimately hire them back and keep them in the area,” said Saunders.

Councillor Mike Myatt said that most important thing to remember is that this is a wonderful initiative and that they had chosen Southampton for the location was a wonderful thing. "We need to thank Bruce Power and others for bringing this forward," he said.

Vice-Deputy Mayor Diane Huber wanted to applaud the ideas that had been brought into the conversation and said she would like to see an idea of complete streets, noting an opportunity to do something different with the way people move around. “I like the idea that this is extremely close to downtown," said Huber. "At times there are an awful lot of cars in the neighbourhood," she said.

Huber added that it would be good to imagine an entity that would put more people into the neighbourhood on a daily basis for things like lunch and coffee breaks but expressed concern about the manse at High and Victoria Street South. "I’d like to hope that you can somehow imagine through a smart architect how to work some of that in," she said. "There’s a wonderful bookend at the other end of the museum that's a heritage building too so there’s something there that I hope is possible with an architect."

Two residents of Southampton spoke to Saugeen Shores Council during the Open Forum. Pat Gibbons said he wasn't against the facility but felt that the community feedback was misrepresented as over half of the comments were against the proposed location due to parking, heritage and safety concerns. Gibbons also questioned why no other location had been considered and why no comments past July had been published.

Alison Fernandez of OCNI said that as a mother of a GC Huston Public School student she understands that the ONII has come as a shock to some residents in what it actually entails. Fernandez believed that together as an institution bringing industry within the community is so important and that bringing education in collaboration within industry can help benefit business, employment opportunities for youth and retirees.

See also: Bruce Power partners with county for nuclear innovation and research hub

Frank Saunders, Bruce Power’s Vice-President, Nuclear Oversight and Regulatory Affairs spoke to Saugeen Shores Council August 27.