Cavan Monaghan faces two big decisions

A proposal to expand the Kawartha Downs racetrack and slots operation into a much larger hotel, entertainment and sports complex isn’t the first of its kind, but it is the most realistic.

It comes with complexities, as do most large-scale development proposals. In this case, the complexities call for a careful approach.

The big difference between the plan that will go to Cavan Monaghan Township council next week and past attempts at everything from an arena to house an NHL team to a hotel and entertainment/sports centre is that this one has solid private financial backing.

The would-be developer is Romspen Investment Corp., one of Ontario’s larger nonbank mortgage lenders. Romspen holds roughly $3 billion worth of mortgages here and in the U.S. and has run a successful investment fund for the past 50 years.

The company took control of Kawartha Downs after the former owner, Skip Ambrose, defaulted on his debt to Romspen.

The vision of what could be is very large-scale: expanded gambling, a hotel, indoor and outdoor concert facilities, a sports complex and a fairgrounds and, eventually, a residential subdivision with nearly 600 homes and townhouse units.

The issue with past attempts to expand Kawartha Downs has been servicing — how to develop and pay for water and sewer services for a project of that size.

Romspen is now proposing to pay the multimillion-dollar cost of providing those services. And, apparently, not just for its project.

The report company representatives will present to township council Monday says the servicing could be expanded west to the Peterborough Airport and nearby employment lands.

That would be another twist in the long and tangled history of both Kawartha Downs and attempts by the City of Peterborough and the township to figure out how to service new employment lands — what used to be called an industrial park — on the city’s south-west boundary.

Just two weeks ago township Mayor Scott McFadden offered what has been described as an olive branch. He is ready to allow the city to annex 109 hectares (270 acres) of township land, all the employment land space it would need for the next 30 years.

That’s a much reduced version of a failed annexation deal for more than 1,600 hectares (4,000 acres), including the Peterborough Airport, in return for $75 million and a commitment to service some industrial and residential lands in the township.

With the Romspen application, it appears the township hopes to keep the airport and provide servicing for township lands on its own.

However, all of that would take time. The city could service its new land fairly quickly, providing badly needed space for employers that are already lining up to locate here.

Another complicating factor is that Romspen wants the township to endorse its application for a Minister’s Zoning Order, or MZO. That would allow the province to override all township planning requirements and speed up — some would say avoid — environmental reviews and approvals.

Cavan Monaghan council is suddenly looking at two big potential decisions: whether to approve an MZO for Romspen, and whether to endorse the annexation plan with Peterborough.

As much as all this potential development is exciting, council’s best response would be to tap the brakes.

The annexation plan with the city could wait another month or two and an MZO request of this scope requires more than a snap decision.

With the Romspen application, it appears the township hopes to keep the airport and provide servicing for township lands on its own