Aurora Mayor Tom Mrakas has used his strong mayor powers to veto the men’s shelter motion passed at last night’s council meeting.
Councillor John Gallo’s motion, calling on York Region to resubmit its proposal for a men’s emergency and transitional shelter at 14452 Yonge St., was passed during the council meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 25.
But on Wednesday afternoon, Mrakas issued a written notice that he was using his strong mayoral powers to veto that motion.
“As head of council, it is my opinion that any alternative use of the property at 14452 Yonge St., beyond what was identified in the York Region June 13, 2019 report, could compromise its strategic purpose and may interfere with the delivery of infrastructure to support housing,” Mrakas wrote in his notice.
“This site is critical for current and future infrastructure needs, including essential municipal services that may be expanded to support housing growth and that may be necessary for future development in southwest Aurora and the Yonge Street corridor, both key growth areas in the town’s updated official plan and both which would assist the town in meeting its provincial housing targets,” he added.
Mrakas had voted against the motion during Tuesday’s meeting, which passed by four votes to three, citing the location’s proximity to the Henderson Sewage Pumping Station, a regional pumping station.
“Regardless of the outcome of this motion, no form of housing should be or will be developed on this site, as this site has been identified as a strategic location for current and future infrastructure needs, as well as municipal servicing that will support housing growth in southwest Aurora,” said Mrakas during Tuesday’s meeting.
The hotly debated shelter project has proved contentious among Aurora residents, culminating in, at times, heated council meeting on Tuesday, with well over a hundred residents in attendance.
The shelter proposal was initially voted down during a planning committee meeting last February. In the wake of the vote, a community advocacy group, Aurora Cares Housing for All, was founded, with the goal of having the proposal revisited.
Mrakas was not immediately available for comment.