A Grand Forks counselling and therapy business won’t be allowed to expand in a residential neighbourhood on a small dead-end street.
City council turned down temporary use and development plan applications for The Little Way Wellness and Counselling Services on Fifth Street during its meeting Monday (June 24).
The city found the proposed community center with group classes for yoga and reiki in a house doesn’t fit the neighbourhood. Plus, there are complaints from neighbours.
The business was allowed to continue the services since March while going through the application process.
Neighbour James Webb says there are parking problems and home values will plummet.
“They were parked on the street, they were then not parking, it’s just been a mess and the whole concept. When we were told about it by our neighbour, said she wanted to do this, she was talking about one-on-one counselling sessions and things like this and now they’re holding classes with a dozen vehicles are showing up,” Webb told councillors.
Kendall Ballantine lives across from the business and fears a fire could happen from cars parking on long grass on a vacant lot next door – it’s happened in the area before.
“We had a really significant grass fire caused by a vehicle. Somebody pulled a vehicle on to our property into one of our pastures. It was a five acre fire before firefighters got there,” she said.
Other residents believe their home values would suffer.
Councillors were dismayed after hearing the original proposal in March.
Councillor Christine Thompson was disappointed the proposal “evolved into something substantially more.”
CAO Duncan Redfearn told council the business will be told to stop operations immediately, though it will probably be allowed to continue its counselling service.
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