Two and a half years after Creemore Springs Brewery announced its intention to expand its facilities, and four months after the Ontario Municipal Board suggested mediation take place before a full-fledged hearing begins on the file, a settlement has been reached between all parties.
An announcement on the subject was made by Clearview Township Mayor Ken Ferguson Monday night, after Council emerged from an in-camera session during which the Mayor and Township clerk Bob Campbell were instructed to sign the Minutes of Settlement. Creemore Springs and the two appellants, Paul Vorstermans and Austin and Christine Boake, have already signed. The other party, Simcoe County, will not deal with the settlement until its next Corporate Services Committee on March 14.
Counsel for the brewery is now notifying those who signaled that they would be participants at the hearing that an agreement has been signed. It’s unlikely that the agreement will be made public until it goes back to the Ontario Municipal Board.
All parties will jointly present the settlement to the OMB at a two-day hearing on March 19 and 20. Participants will have a chance to make their comments to the Board at that time.
At this point, parties to the agreement are fairly mum on its contents, but Christine Boake did tell the Echo that she’s happy with the outcome.
“The power of Creemore as a community has come through again,” she said. “It was important to do everything we could to preserve the village nature of Creemore, and I think everyone came around to that in the end.”