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Glenburnie residents protest planned spa development on agricultural land

Click to play video: 'Glenburnie residents protest spa development meeting'
Glenburnie residents protest spa development meeting
Glenburnie residents say they are concerned development could affect their wells – Dec 11, 2018

Between 80 to 100 people turned out to the Glenburnie United church to hear from BPE Development about their plans to build a spa at the corner of Battersea and Unity roads.

A dozen of those residents showed up before the meeting with signs in hand, waiting for the arrival of BPE Development head Ben Pilon.

The roughly 17-acre plot of land is designated agricultural, and residents say it should stay that way.

BPE’s plans for the property would represent a dramatic change to the largely rural community.

Plans for the spa also include just over three dozen cabins, a restaurant and a conference centre.

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WATCH: A proposed spa has some Glenburnie residents up in arms

Click to play video: 'A proposed spa has some Glenburnie residents up in arms'
A proposed spa has some Glenburnie residents up in arms

Homeowners get their water from wells and fear the impact such a large facility would have.

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Bill Hendry doesn’t trust the developers’ claims that residents water won’t be affected.

“When they drilled their wells really deeply and said everything was fine — yeah, right now, but we’re in climate change and talk to me in 10 years,” Hendry said.

George Caron echoes Hendry’s sentiment and worries if the development goes ahead, they’ll have little recourse if their wells become contaminated or run dry.

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“It’s not so much today or tomorrow,” Caron said. “It’s three years or four years [from now] when everybody’s gone and we start to find our water is contaminated and we don’t have enough water.”

Caron says the only option, as far as he knows, would be to hire a lawyer.

The evening meeting organized by BPE Development was not open to the media.

 

 

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