A request to re-approve Kaitlin’s Cork & Vine subdivision in Wellington was put on hold at a special Planning and Development Committee meeting last week.

The previous approval lapsed on November 25th, 2025, five years after it was granted. Councillors voted 10 to 4 to defer re-approval to implement advice from legal counsel. 

The motion to defer was forwarded by Councillor Corey Engelsdorfer and seconded by Councillor Phil St-Jean. Councillors Hirsch, Maynard, Roberts, and Mayor Steve Ferguson were opposed. 

The motion came out of a 90-minute closed session prior to the public meeting and no further details were provided. 

Kaitlin Corporation’s Devon Daniell was on hand in open session, though, to argue for re-approval. He noted the company has paid over $12 million in up-front development charges. 

He assured councillors that Kaitlin is eager to move forward. “There’s over 12 million reasons we want to get shovels in the ground here,” he said, explaining that the application was allowed to lapse through a technical and human error.

The staff report by Planning Coordinator Samantha Deck, which supports reinstating the application, noted that Cork & Vine has cleared the majority of the Draft Plan conditions set by the County and is preparing to start construction. 

“Environmental Compliance Approvals have been granted for both sanitary and stormwater management infrastructure….The Subdivision Agreement has been signed and executed in 2024 and is prepared to be registered on title following the issuance of Final Approval,” Ms. Beck notes. 

The County has allocated most of Wellington’s remaining water and wastewater capacity to Cork & Vine. It has also nearly completed the water infrastructure required to service the new development. 

“The subdivision cannot advance until The County’s capital works projects have been completed, including the sewer trunk main and pumping station,” notes Ms. Deck. 

When the required water infrastructure is finally finished in June 2026, Mr. Daniell said his company will be able to start construction on the long-awaited project. “Everything is cleared and ready to go,” he said. “The job’s been tendered.”

The Plan of Subdivision maps four phases of construction at the site off Belleville Street and north of the Millennium Trail. About 460 residential units, including detached and semi-detached houses, townhouses, and apartments, hang in the balance.

The plan was approved by the Ontario Land Tribunal in 2020. In 2021, the OLT added that the approval would lapse by November 25th, 2025 if construction had not started by then.

Kaitlin Corporation, owners of Cork & Vine, neglected to apply for an extension on time. Realizing the error, it wrote to the County on February 20th to request that they deem the application not to have lapsed. 

Councillor Engelsdorfer wondered how Kaitlin could have let the time limit lapse, and worried that this development was on the back burner for them. 

But Mr. Daniell said planners were working with two versions of the draft plan, one of which omitted the lapse date. 

“It’s a little embarrassing, frankly,” he said. “It slipped through the cracks.” He assured Council that “this is as on the front burner as it can be.”

If Council chooses not to reverse the lapse, Kaitlin will have to start at the beginning of the planning process and submit a new development application.

In a comment from the audience, Paul Mondell of Sterling Homes said it was time to free up water and wastewater capacity for other developments. 

“We were advised in September 2024 that allocation could become available if the Kaitlin subdivision is not signed,” he said. “You owe it to all of Prince Edward County to effectively and efficiently use the capacity that is available,” he told councillors.

“We are at a point of time that it’s use it or lose it.” 

Nonetheless, Sterling does not have a subdivision application registered on the County’s planning portal.

Some Councillors expressed doubt that there will be a market for all the homes Kaitlin has planned. 

“It appears like delusions of grandeur to make me believe we’re going to have this growth,” said Councillor Chris Braney. “It just doesn’t feel feasible.”

“We do think housing is going to be a catalyst for future growth in the County,” Mr. Daniell said. 

He also noted that the range of housing types at Cork & Vine offers different price points, and the rental apartments will be “affordable” as defined by the province.