By: Christian Collington, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TheIFP.ca
A large retail warehouse development proposed by the Rice Group cleared a significant hurdle at the June 22 Halton Hills council meeting.
The proposal, which council approved, would bring a large retail warehouse membership club with an associated gas bar at Regional Road 25 and 5 Sideroad, alongside seven smaller multi-unit commercial buildings.
Aim is to open warehouse in 2027
Rice Group CEO Michael Rice noted the facilities are “always a great addition to any business landscape” and “very popular” based on the firm’s experience elsewhere.
Rice told council the project represents “a good news story for the municipality,” citing high-paying jobs, strong tax assessment and rounded-out urban form at what has been a partially serviced corner near the Milton boundary.
Rice also asked council to support same-day ratification of the application in order to keep an aggressive construction schedule aimed at an October or early November 2027 store opening.
“We are trying to make this a 2027 warehouse in this market,” Rice said. He also explained that earthworks must begin in July to allow the building pad to settle for a full year before structural construction starts in July 2027.
He added the warehouse would take four months to complete and explained that the timeline is complicated by the tenant having a blackout period for new store openings between Nov. 15 and March 15.
While the tenant has not been officially named, Rice did mention the Costco brand in what may have been a slip while answering a question.
When asked if Rice Group will be handling the construction from start to finish, he replied “sometimes we do not build the Costco building; sorry, the retail warehouse.”
Jobs, heritage and ‘rounding out’ the town
Coun. Clark Somerville highlighted that the site had been repeatedly examined in past urban boundary reviews and described the project as “rounding out the bottom corner of Halton Hills,” with servicing already nearby.
He also commended Rice Group for immediately agreeing to preserve and relocate a designated heritage farmhouse on the property, calling that commitment “upfront” and “important.”
Coun. Jason Brass focused on the economics and said that the proposal delivers exactly the kind of “jobs-per-square-foot” the town needs. He emphasized the value of hundreds of local, high-quality jobs that let residents “work and live and enjoy Halton Hills even more.”
Other councillors echoed support, citing both the job creation and the responsiveness of Rice Group to resident concerns around traffic, compatibility and heritage.
Town staff reported that major public concerns raised at earlier meetings had been substantively addressed through the planning process.
Concerns over building outside the urban boundary
Coun. Alex Hilson supported the project in concept but opposed the planning approvals on principle, noting the site lies outside the existing urban boundary.
He said residents consistently ask council to “respect our secondary plans, respect our hamlets, build where it’s approved” and warned against allowing growth to leapfrog designated areas.
Coun. Jane Fogal shared similar reservations and expressed concern that allowing major development outside designated growth areas could disadvantage landowners who invested inside the planned employment area.
Next steps
Despite the raised concerns, the proposal received 8-2 vote in support to move forward, including a procedural vote to treat the item as an immediate action and advance the necessary bylaws.
With the primary planning and zoning hurdles now cleared, Rice Group plans to mobilize its internal equipment and staff to begin site preparation and servicing work this summer.
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