The sale of two lots in a Timmins park has been put on hold, according to the Mattagami Region Conservation Authority (MRCA).
Recently, two lots —213 and 221 Pearl Ave. — were put up for sale in Flinstone Park. Bordered by Pearl Avenue, Rea Street North and Vimy Avenue, the park features a small playground, a creek and green space.
The two lots are in the northwest corner of the park where the green space is. Both are 50 feet by 140 feet in size and listed for $40,000.
After the for sale signs went up, an online petition was started to stop the sale of the land. People opposed to it were also asked to email the MRCA, mayor and ward councillors.
MRCA regulations officer James Fefebvre said the mayor's office has "reached out and requested that we hold off on the sale of land so that they can further assess whether they have any interest in acquiring the land and, of course, we were happy to oblige."
He said the MRCA "has not decided against the sale of land".
The lots are currently zoned as open space and are being created for residential development. The properties, said Lefebvre, are not in the flood plain and are suitable for development. The area is about 10 per cent of the original parcel of land, said Lefebvre.
It was Ariane Flamian who started an online petition against selling the lots. To garner support, she has also been going door-to-door in the neighbourhood for people to sign a paper petition.
She is pleased the sale of the lots has been put on hold.
"There has been email communication with the MRCA and the City of Timmins," she said.
"We are looking forward to knowing the next steps on how we can work together to find solutions to keep this green space undeveloped. In the meantime, the online petition is still open and we continue to go door to door for petition signatures. We are at 626 signatures as of this morning. A great number of people in the community clearly want to keep the space green for healthy leisure activities."
