Councillors in Dryden will debate their support for a new 24-unit apartment complex tonight.

Chief Building Official Pam Skillen is expected to present a report on a zoning by-law amendment for 175 Cecil Avenue during tonight’s Public Planning Meeting, prior to Dryden’s Committee of the Whole.

A report on the former site of the Dryden Church explains an amendment application was submitted to rezone the lots from the Institutional Zone to a Multiple Residential Zone in order to permit a single-storey 24-unit apartment complex.

The ‘Hillside Estates’ apartments, if approved, would feature one-bedroom and two-bedroom ‘barrier-free’ units with access from Myrtle Avenue and 33 parking spaces, including 3 accessible spaces and a waste collection area.

The public is invited to submit their comments on the proposal and council isn’t expected to make its decision until May 23 at the earliest.

After Dryden’s Public Planning Meeting for Cecil Avenue, Councillors will pivot to their Committee of the Whole meeting – which will also feature a potential new housing project.

The city intends to declare four vacant lots at the end of Swanson Street as surplus properties, but a plan for those lots hasn’t been detailed yet.

Elsewhere, Treasurer Steven Lansdell-Roll has a report on potentially selling the naming rights to municipal-owned assets like the Dryden Memorial Arena or Fitness Centre, like the City of Kenora – which is set to make $700,000 over the next 15 years through the idea.

Lansdell-Roll will also present a slight budget amendment after repair work at the Water Treatment Plant and a year-end financial report which shows revenues and expenses were both under budget, with the city showing a slight deficit of $420,000 or so.

The Public Planning Meeting begins at 5 p.m. and the Committee of the Whole meeting starts at 6 p.m. You can find both streams HERE.