Brownfields Interview with John Gerretsen

I've been making my way through search results for 'Kingston' in the Queen's University QSPACE database. The results comprise a plethora of documents on diverse topics ranging from the 19th century up to today - urban planning to three sermons on the parable of the prodigal son! Many of the recent documents are case studies and essays written by students in various faculties. This one on brownfields included an interview with John Gerretsen, Ontario's Minister of Environment. 

ASSESSMENT OF BROWNFIELD REMEDIATION AND DEVELOPMENT IN KINGSTON: BLOCK D AS A CASE STUDY by Jacquelyn Norris. A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Science, Honours Queen‟s University 2008. 

 "1960s – Used to be two main industries – Canadian shipping yards and Canadian locomotive

company – since mid-1950s fully familiar with both operations

- Involved as a councilor and a member of provincial parliament

- Waterways main method of transportation

- Kingston was going to be the capital of Canada, public limestone buildings built all over

the place

- Never materialized

- Harbour still used for transportation of goods

- Big change in Kingston when decision was made to have the main channel of St. Lawrence

seaway on other side of Wolfe island, need for transportation diminished, transportation

changed, rail, road, etc.

- Industries were terminated (mid-60‟s)

- Bill Teron – influential builder in Ottawa area, bought both sites, convinced council of the

time that he was going to build into a residential developed area, Block D and two blocks

beside, Harbour Place and Shipyards close to marine museum and steam museum.

- Approval where harbor place is and landmark, city of Kingston got the land immediately in

front of city hall, now city park

- Bill Teron makes arrangements with the city, whereby he is going to turn industrial into

residential land use

- Nobody understood the magnitude of developments

- Nobody had seen what 100units/acre meant then

- Became chairman of CMHC, put everything he owned in blind trust, so that accusations

could not be made that the decisions made for CMHC would directly benefit him

- Came on the scene in 1972-3 developers came along that had bought it from Teron, wanted

to make some changes to the original agreements made with council at the time (1960s)

- Utilized the best information that they had, everybody seems to forget about Block D

- Can remember in the 70s, people would not venture past Prince George hotel, derelict area,

homelessness etc.

- Early 1980s landmark and harbor place get built – built as part of separate agreements

negotiated with Teron, the units per acreage is the same as what Teron had originally

negotiated – council was not heavily involved in that process

- Too much development? Concerns at this point

- Block D lay fallow for so many years – blind trust – Maurice Rollins Construction of

Belleville and Sonia Neilson Realty of Kingston, people came up with new proposals for

development – the zoning wasn‟t appropriate for the site 

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- 1981 – tried to buy block D for the City – regrets not purchasing the property, could have

called for a development proposal that would have better integrated public uses along

waterfront with private use on the property

- Put an offer in Neilson-Rollins counter-offered, only about 300-400K difference (1.7m –

2.0m) – turned down on vote

- What is built there is much in line with what the original zoning that Teron got. Some

don‟t like high-rise buildings

- Waterfront belongs to the public, not to anyone individually – as much public access and

ownership of waterfront as possible – there are certain elements of that in Block D,

although the Admiralty place is wonderful – was a square warehouse, built into beautiful

building it is today – probably built in early 1980s – marine museum next to it and then

steam museum associated. "