As a resident living…

As a resident living adjacent to the lands proposed to be included in the Provincial Park in Uxbridge, I have many questions and concerns that have, to date, not been adequately addressed. I have proposed that the adjacent landowners be consulted as an identified impacted group of local citizens, perhaps in focused meetings to both listen to those directly impacted by this proposal as well as to answer questions and convey information directly. The one open house and small amount of online information is not adequate for us to provide meaningful feedback on what will be a large change to the surrounding land use for those of us bordered on all sides by these lands. Many of us moved to this area because of it's rural and quiet qualities and the possible land uses being proposed will impact our enjoyment of our property, impacting the exact thing that we moved here for. Many have said to us that a Park is much better than development, however, a Park is a change from the existing land use and does not come without impacts. If we had to choose between development and a Park, definitely a Park would be less of an impact, however, development is not currently proposed. I would prefer the existing conditions be maintained rather than a Park developed. My husband and I, as well as many of our neighbours, are concerned about the following:
1. Increased road traffic on Old Stouffville Road
2. Increased noise due to road traffic and land use (trail use etc.).
3. Increased security and property damage issues due to increased use of the road and surrounding lands/trails.
4. Increased dumping and general garbage on the road and surrounding lands/trails.
5. Disturbance of wildlife (breeding birds and nesting, Species of Special Concern that are known to exist on these lands, foraging, migration) due to traffic and trail use, due to noise, presence of people and pets, and land disturbance.
6. Vegetation and land disturbance due to increased and irresponsible trail use, as well as due to trail establishment and maintenance.
7. Safety issues due to parking on Old Stouffville Road, which is quite narrow and with blind spots in many places.
8. Lack of communication and consultation with adjacent landowners who have a long history with the surrounding lands and may be one of the best sources of information about the surrounding lands, notwithstanding being the most impacted by the proposed Park formation and are the most impacted by the proposal.
9. Lack of transparency regarding the proposal, with it being proposed for many years with no communication with the adjacent landowners. This does not give us the feeling that should the Park go ahead we would have any knowledge about how things will be done and how that will impact us.
10. Decreased property value and marketability due to change in land designation and potential constraints on adjacent lands as a result.
11. Increased taxes as a result of upkeep of a Provincial Park.
12. Reduced privacy
13. Increased use of lands by people exhibiting noisy, disrespectful, destructive behaviour
14. Timelines are not adequate for the accurate understanding of the existing environmental conditions. A minimum of two years of study should be done to verify wildlife/bird use, vegetation, aquatic and other areas of environmental importance.
15. Existing baseline condition reports have not been shared with the public for review and comment.

I would very much like to be contacted individually, and will be sending all of these same comments directly to the Senior Park Planner to reiterate that there are many outstanding questions and concerns with this proposal.