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Neighbours object to mansion proposed on farm land

As designed, 22,000 sq. ft. home could be one of largest in Niagara BY REBECCA LOTT Special to the VOICE Just how big can a house be in the Niagara Escarpment area? Niagara is about to find out.
Schrompf house drawing
Design illustration by Richard Wengle Architects. SUPPLIED GRAPHIC

 

As designed, 22,000 sq. ft. home could be one of largest in Niagara

BY REBECCA LOTT Special to the VOICE

Just how big can a house be in the Niagara Escarpment area? Niagara is about to find out.

A group of concerned neighbours from Ridgeville can’t believe what is in the works in their own neighbourhood. They have been carefully following a development permit application for a property at the northeast corner of Effingham and Sixteen Rd. since May 2017.

The 22,000 sq.ft. home is being proposed by owner Matthew Schrompf. It is set to be a two storey with two garages, a pool, a bridge and some trails. If allowed to go ahead by the Niagara Escarpment Commission, it could potentially be one of the largest homes in Niagara. The property includes 60 acres of prime farm land. Currently there are old grapes and corn on the property. The address is designated in the escarpment protection area.

To give you an idea of how large this home is, 24 Sussex Drive, where Prime Ministers have lived, is only 12,000 square feet with four outbuildings. That property is only 4 acres and assessed at $7,400,000. Canada’s largest home is currently in Haileybury, ON, about 140 km. north of North Bay. It is 65,000 square feet, sitting on 43 acres along the shores of Lake Temiskaming. It has a golf course. In 2010, it had a price tag of $25 million. It’s about the same size as Bill Gates’ property near Seattle. The White House pales in comparison at a mere 55,000 sq. ft.

If this application goes ahead, the local community is worried what it might mean for the surrounding area. They are turning to the Niagara Escarpment Commission to protect the land and their interests. The NEC’s mission is to protect unique ecological areas, historic areas and to maintain the open landscape character of the Niagara Escarpment by such means as compatible farming and preserving natural scenery.

The neighbours, who won’t view the new house from theirs, attended a July 14 meeting at the Town of Pelham, another one on August 4, and again on August 16. Since then, the applicant has met some conditions, made some changes and dropped the tennis court.

An NEC staff report dated August 16 stated, “as the size of the dwelling is substantial, there was a visual impact concern identified early in the process by NEC staff.”

While the neighbour group has no issue with someone building a single family dwelling on the property, they feel the size of this one isn’t appropriate for their area. Currently the largest home in the neighbourhood is around 5000 sq. ft..

Since the property was purchased, the neighbours feel they have been left guessing. They have heard it will be a multi -generational home with visitor parking and a car collection. But they still feel like there is more to the story than they are being told.

“It’s out of place there,” said neighbor Duncan McNaughton, who emphasized he had no trouble with a house going up, but that this feels out of balance.

“It’s going to stick out... The size of it just seems way out of proportion.”

If the NEC approves this application, the group’s worry is it will set a precedent for other parcels of farmland in the Niagara Escarpment area. They are thinking about an appeal if it gets the nod.

It will be an uphill battle. As of August 15, the Town of Pelham, the Region, the NPCA, Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Hydro, Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks all had no objection to the build.

“After a house this big, a farmer would not be able to buy it in the future,” said neighbor Craig Smallman. “It would be 60 acres lost and developed.”

In an interview, the group expressed that their opposition to the size of the home is not out of envy, but that they don’t want to see the erosion of farmland. They aren’t sure how they will stop a development of this magnitude with this type of momentum.

Neighbor Laura Smallman was hopeful the Niagara Escarpment Commission would help to safeguard the protected land. However, the NEC voted 10 to 3 in favour of the plan late last week.

Once a decision is rendered on any NEC Development Permit application it enters into a mandated 14-day appeal period during which applicants can appeal the decision rendered to the Niagara Escarpment Hearing Office (NEHO).

“Not sure if we are going to appeal at this point,” Smallman said.