Old Belleville Fairgrounds

The “Old Fairgrounds” property is located at 240 Bridge Street West on the northwest corner of Sidney St and Bridge St W.

The Belleville Fairgrounds added a race track and horse racing in the early 1900s. In 1954, it was renamed to Belleville Fair/Quinte Exhibition and the Belleville Agricultural Society’s (BAS) signed a 99-year lease with the City. BAS held the annual Quinte Exhibition on the fairgrounds.

The property is now designated as Specific Policy Area #8 – Old Fairgrounds Area in Belleville’s Official Plan:

The Old Fairgrounds Specific Policy Area is made up of a portion of the Old Fairgrounds and the industrial uses immediately to the north of the Old Fairgrounds, and is approximately 24.5 hectares in size. In response to growing pressures for housing supply and affordability identified in the Municipality’s 2022 Growth Forecast, the land are designated “Residential” on Schedule B and identified as “Old Fairgrounds Area” on
Schedule E, and are subject to the policies of this section.

The following policies apply:

• The main objective for the Old Fairgrounds Specific Policy Area is to realize the redevelopment of underutilized lands within the Old Fairgrounds Area through a combination of compatible residential land uses, road network, and public open space, all of which have fully addressed any contamination issues and are appropriately phased-in based on servicing availability.
• A detailed strategy is required to guide the servicing and redevelopment of the Old Fairgrounds Area in a coordinated, cost-effective and efficient manner. The Municipality may prepare more detailed land use plans and servicing strategies to identify the range/mix of land uses and municipal infrastructure needed to guide development as set out in Section 8.12 of this Plan. Details on specific residential densities, municipal sewer and water extensions, road networks, stormwater management strategies, and recreational and park systems may be included in these plans/strategies.
• Development of the Old Fairgrounds Area should occur in stages in accordance with the logical extension of services and the transportation network into and through the area, after proper study. Except as otherwise provided, stages should be approved only as servicing infrastructure is capable of being extended to accommodate new development in accordance with Section 5.3 of this Plan.
• The Old Fairgrounds Area is expected to be developed through any combination of plan of subdivision, rezoning, and/or site plan approval. The Municipality will encourage development in the Old Fairgrounds Area provided the the development proposal has met the policies of the Official Plan and relevant design guidelines, there is sufficient municipal servicing capacity available, and all environmental matters related to site contamination have been addressed.
• To ensure that development proceeds in an orderly and economical manner, as a condition of development approval, the developer will be required to execute an agreement capping the development to the approved number of dwelling units, the 100 Appendix A to By-law 2021-180: City of Belleville Official Plan square metres of non-residential floorspace, and the population equivalent that are the basis of servicing flows. Furthermore, as a condition of development approval, no above-grade building permits will be issued unit the Municipality has confirmed that there is sufficient servicing available for any approved development.
• Through the redevelopment of the Old Fairgrounds Area, this Plan encourages the Municipality to identify opportunities to enhance public access to open spaces. The Municipality may, in accordance with the Planning Act and the policies of this Plan, acquire lands in the Old Fairgrounds Area to:
  • i. Provide open space for parks or other public recreational purposes;
  • ii. Connect with other lands acquired for park or other public recreational purposes; and/or,
  • iii. Consolidate areas of open space into larger more usable areas.
• Residential development in the Old Fairgrounds Area will be in accordance with the densities in Section 3.10 of this Plan; however, residential development shall consist primarily of medium- and high-density residential uses, with a modest amount of low density residential development, all in accordance with the detailed land use plan/servicing strategy identified in (b) above.
• Mixed use development is permitted only if medium- or high-density residential is developed with commercial and/or retail use(s) on the ground floor of the building fronting onto an arterial or collector road.
• The Municipality will utilize the following approaches and tools to promote transitoriented development:
  • Allowance for reduced parking rates;
  • Allowance for shared parking arrangements; and,
  • Requirements for enhanced streetscape and active transportation facilities in accordance with the detailed land use plan identified in (b) above.
• Development in the Old Fairgrounds Area will be encouraged to take part in any active program of the Municipality’s Community Improvement Plan that offers incentives for affordable housing development and brownfield redevelopment.

A portion of the property has been found to have contaminated soil, slowing potential development.