'It could really have a huge impact': 3 CIP applications going before Windsor council
A handful of community improvement plan grant applications are set to come before council next Monday.
Whether it’s a simple facelift, a massive residential project or a big job creator, the city’s Community Improvement Plan (CIP) aims to give people willing to invest their own money a leg up.
“It’s small support that if realized to full potential, could really have a huge impact,” said Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens during a media event Wednesday morning.
On Jan. 30, Windsor City Council will look to approve three different CIP applications.
The first is at Heimat Banquet Centre on Drouillard Road where the business owners hope to receive $32,000 to match their $113,000 investment to offset costs for facade improvements. The restaurant has already taken down the unsightly window bars, put up a new sign and repaired the brick work on the building’s exterior.
“It wouldn’t have happened without this grant actually gave us more tools to go above and beyond had in store for us,” said Heimat co-owner, Ryan Stiller.
Another application going before council is the proposed ‘Green Towers’ on Goyeau Street, a $100 million investment that could add 546 units of housing stock to the core.
“We have that goal of building 13,000 homes over 10 years. We can't build it. We don't build housing as a municipality,” said Dilkens. “We have to support the private sector, and its initiatives like the CIP and these proposed developments that actually are going to help us realize that goal”
If all goes to plan, the dual towers project could break ground in 2024 and be ready by summer 2027. The out-of-town developer is currently in the process of site-plan approvals.
But the long-vacant lot was once a car dealership and is therefore designated as a Brownfield lot. The city is looking to provide $62,000 in Brownfield Rehabilitation grant money to ensure the site is safe for development.
“Investors are looking all over the place to do what their dollars I think the city being aggressive really goes a long way to try and push along some of these projects to fruition,” said David Rompf, the project administrator for Passa Architects.
Council will also see an application from Dongshin Motech, a major EV battery casing manufacturer to supply parts for the NextStar Energy plant.
The plant is projected to create 200 jobs and if approved, the city’s economic revitalization program could provide $2.7 million in property tax incentives for the company’s $33 million investment.
“It is zero risk for the city, but it's us being a partner in helping realize those developments,” said Dilkens. “And of course, once the development is built, and the people are hired, and that operation starts paying property tax back to the city.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.