TRANSPORTATION PLANNING ENGINEER – Jeff Hagan, Oct. 21, 2019

I have reviewed the transportation impact study for the above-noted application (“Proposed Commercial Development, 3945 and 3985 Dougall Avenue, Windsor, ON, Transportation Impact Study” by Mike Walters of Dillon Consulting Ltd., dated March 8, 2019) and have the following comments:

  1. No issues were noted with the report. The report is satisfactory as submitted.

  2. The report notes that no off-site improvements are required as a result of the development.

WINDSOR POLICE SERVICE - Barry Horrobin, Oct. 3, 2019
My comments for this application are as follows:

The Windsor Police Service has some concerns with this application. The proposed use of the property is not dissimilar to what has previously transpired and now exists in other sections of Dougall Avenue, whereby lands previously occupied and used for residential purposes have now been gradually transformed into commercial properties. Such development evolution has generally occurred in a well planned manner to allow for a smooth transition, including no problematic impacts on public safety or police incident response capability. While similar in some aspects, a key difference with the subject application is that its placement will result in a physically isolating outcome for a low density residential property situated immediately to the north, which already has an existing commercial development on its other boundary.

The public safety impact of this could very well mean more noise and vehicular traffic surrounding the home that causes a loss in quality of life for its residents, plus more difficulty accessing their property on an ongoing basis. Such access difficulties could presumably make it less safe to come and go. From our records, the 3800 and 3900 blocks of Dougall Avenue generate a tangible quantity of incidents requiring police response and intervention. During the past two full years (2017 and 2018) plus the first nine months of the current year (2019), Windsor Police responded to 458 incidents of a wide variety, representing an average of 167 incidents annually. This is not a big surprise given the buildup of commercial properties in the immediate area but reflects a trend that is less desirable for a low density residential environment.

A reasonable solution here would seem to be for either acquisition of the residence as part of the proposed commercial development or having more pronounced buffering between the proposed new commercial plaza and the existing residence next door. If approved we will provide more specific details and requirements during the site plan review stage of the application to ensure safe functioning of the land use is an outcome.