Cambridge staff say odour a concern for townhouse development near landfill
Posted Mar 18, 2026 03:55:30 AM.
Last Updated Mar 18, 2026 03:21:37 PM.
Cambridge city staff are telling council to say no to a large development that would put hundreds of townhouses near a landfill “due to noise and odour concerns.”
Brynn Nheiley, Director of Planning, said the developer of the site at 1070 and 1140 Main St. has not demonstrated there’s a plan in place to mitigate the effects of having homes in proximity to a landfill. The project would include 600 to 1,000 townhouse units of various styles with a public park, an open space/natural area block, and other features.
Nearby is the Cambridge Waste Management Centre, off Savage Drive.
Nheily tells 570 NewsRadio the lands can be developed, but “it’s really a matter of ensuring that appropriate mitigation is there to address the impacts of noise and odours of being in proximity” to the landfill.
She said such mitigations could include a berm around the development, or certain architectural design solutions that could be built into the design.
A statement from the city said council should vote against the project at its March 24 meeting.
570 NewsRadio has reached out to the developer, Madison Group from Toronto, which said it has been in discussion with the region for several years, including when the municipality adopted its official plan.
“Access to the Region’s adjacent facility was not granted for the purpose of completing required testing, necessitating reliance on data prepared by the Region’s own consultants,” the statement reads. “Based on that information, measured odour impacts were determined to be infrequent, and independent industry experts retained by Madison Group have concluded that the proposed development is feasible.”
The developers also noted that there are similar lands in a secondary plan that have odour conditions, but “yet were not required to undertake the same level of technical analysis.”
Madison Group said it is proceeding with an appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal, which it said means “there will be no need for Madison to delegate at council on the 24.”
Nheily encourages all developers to take advantage of the city’s pre-consultation, so that details can be sorted out before a formal application is submitted, and that time limit comes into effect.
