After a four-hour public meeting that heard from detractors and supporters of a long-running paintball business that wants to make its return to Cambridge, the fate of Flag Raiders lies with city staff who will return to council with a report and recommendation next month.
Close to two dozen delegations voiced their opinion on the issue during a virtual meeting Tuesday.
Joe and Corey Kimpson want to save their 2022 season and return to the property they owned and operated under a number of temporary use exemptions between 2001 and 2008.
The Kimpsons have owned 1500 Kossuth Rd. for more than 20 years, but purchased it without knowing it wasn't zoned for recreational use.
Zoned as prime agricultural and natural open space, it contains a wetland recognized by the Grand River Conservation Authority.
But as senior planner with the city Bryan Cooper told council Tuesday, the Kimpsons' luck ran out in 2007 when they applied for an extension of the temporary zoning and were refused by council.
After their 2008 appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) failed, they were forced to look for another home for Flag Raiders and eventually found it next to Bingemans in Kitchener.
In 2020, they were asked to leave that location when it was sold for development.
Hearing their plight, the city agreed to organize a statutory public meeting last month and waived the $12,000 application fee for a temporary use zoning by-law amendment to try and accommodate the business in time for the summer season.
But any approval by the city is still subject to an appeal by neighbours to the Ontario Land Tribunal, successor to the OMB.
Knowing that, the Kimpsons have asked the city to endorse a Minister's Zoning Order which, if granted, would allow them to bypass typical planning procedures to get approval for the land-use change directly from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
The move has angered many neighbours, who've since retained the same law firm that represented them at the OMB 14 years ago.
They say nothing has changed to make the paintball business viable on the property.
“It’s a non-starter,” said Steven J. O'Melia of the law firm Miller Thompson. “All bylaws passed by council must conform to the official plan and the proposed use does not conform to the region’s or the city’s official plans.
“It’s crystal clear this is not a permitted use at this site,” he said, adding residents who had to endure the business in the early 2000s “certainly don’t want to go back there.”
Bruce Brown, whose firm acted as planning and environmental consultants for neighbours at the OMB in 2007 and 2008, said they shouldn’t suffer because the Kimpsons were naive and didn’t do their due diligence before purchasing the land.
They operated illegally until they were stopped by the city, he said, and were told by planning staff then there was no way they’d be able to make an application to have the land rezoned for that use.
The temporary use was simply to allow them to find a more suitable site, Brown said.
Now that Flag Raiders has grown significantly, he feels any activity that would be allowed to happen there today would have far greater negative impact on neighbours.
He pointed to a site plan showing a parking area capable of holding 220 vehicles, and plans to expand their hours throughout the week and into the evenings, citing a nighttime zombie hunt game on the Flag Raiders website that had 98 participants.
They have way outgrown this site, he said. "There's no way it can be shoehorned into that area."
Brown added the land is in “horrible shape” and has not been rehabilitated in any way in 14 years, with paintballs still littering the wetland.
Referring to claims by the Kimpsons that the portion of the property they use for paintball isn’t suitable for farming, Brown disagreed, adding it had been farmed for decades before they took ownership.
For them to say it’s not suitable for agriculture is akin to someone who murders both parents looking for sympathy as an orphan, he said.
A neighbour called into the meeting to confirm the property was once farmed said the only reason it doesn’t look like viable agricultural land now is because they’ve dug ditches and built berms.
But for paintball enthusiasts like Gavin Sharma, any criticisms about the business or the sport did not ring true.
He said he’s played for 25 years, travelled across the country to play and “nothing compares to the Flag Raiders site” on Kossuth Road.
Echoing what many supporters had to say in praising Flag Raiders, Sharma said the sport has contributed to his physical and mental health over the years and has evolved into something he now plays with his teenage daughter.
Apart from the benefits of the sport, he says the business would be a significant booster to the city and local economy.
“We need all hands on deck to grow our economy and our region," he said.
Neighbour Erin Panek, who lives "one field over" from the property, says she and her family have no problem with the sport of paintball.
"That’s not the point," she said. "It doesn’t fit on this property."
Recalling the “stress and disturbance” they experienced prior to 2008, she said it’s like “allowing a warzone to operate right in our backyard.”
Now she fears it would become a year-round operation complete with the loud pops from firearms, swearing, yelling, screaming, air horns and blasted music.
“We were able to hear the noise from the games even with all windows and doors closed.
“Our quiet rural community is not the Kimpson’s fall-back plan,” she said. “It should not exist at the expense of surrounding residents."
Ray Anderson agreed, saying he and his wife have come to enjoy the wildlife and the quiet, natural setting that surrounds their home since Flag Raiders has been gone. Now he fears it will all change.
And in light of the war in Ukraine and gun violence in the US, he doesn’t feel it’s an appropriate activity and doesn’t want anything to do with it.
“A gun is a gun whether it’s a toy or not,” Anderson said, adding he protested Vietnam in university and detests firearms. “Let’s not be fooled by the name paintball. This is a war game. The thought of having our weekends destroyed by the sounds of their war games is distressing.”
But neighbour Sowsan Hafuth, who lives at 1383 Kossuth Road, almost directly across from the Flag Raiders property, said she thinks the business is about bringing people together in a safe space.
“Sound and noise from paintballing has never been an issue from my house,” she said
Trevor Moss, the owner of Badlands Inc. the largest distributor of paintball equipment in Canada, said neighbourly disputes are not a new thing within the paintball world, but most businesses can work out concerns with neighbours.
He countered claims that shouting, violence and swearing is inherent to the sport by saying it's enjoyed by players of all ages and genders, calling it a very inclusive and welcoming community.
The technology has also evolved considerably since 2008, he added. Any concerns about noise the paintball markers make isn't as true today since the pressure of the compressed air used in the markers has dropped substantially.
"I would be hard pressed to believe the neighbours could hear them," he said.
He also refuted claims pellets aren't biodegradable.
Moss said they're made with pharmaceutical grade gelatine, polyethylene glycol – a prime ingredient in COVID vaccines – starch and food dyes.
"They're fully environmentally safe and biodegradable," he said. "They break down in a week or two."
Nearby neighbour Mike Reed said his only concern about the business returning to Kossuth Road was the parking, but that changed as soon as he saw the site plan.
A player himself, Reed said concerns about violence are overblown and he likened the game to a grown-up version of tag, not a war game.
He thinks the golf course across the street from him is a bigger noise concern knowing Flag Raiders has added a berm, and the dense bush between homes on Beaverdale Road buffers most sound.
"I think they should be given a fair opportunity to prove their worth to the community," he said.
Citing decibal readings taken from a tournament in Wasaga beach last summer, Corey Kimpson said the loudest reading was directly beside the playing field at 80.2 decibels. That noise diminished the further she moved from active play, down to 69.3 decibels at 15 metres from the field.
In comparison, decibel readings taken from traffic on Kossuth Road were between 74 and 77 decibels, while she measured 66 decibels from an overhead plane.
Now that an eight-foot berm on the west side of their property is heavily grown with sumac and cedars, Kimpson doesn't think sound or errant paintballs will be an issue.
Another nearby resident called in to say she's more concerned about noise and traffic generated by another neighbour who decorates their home for Christmas and attracts line-ups of vehicles every December.
Most councillors appeared on-board with the Kimpsons as well.
Coun. Pam Wolf said she believes enthusiasts of the sport when they say it promotes team building and connection, and thinks the mitigation in place to alleviate neighbour concerns will be effective if staff recommends granting the temporary use.
Coun. Nick Ermeta agreed, saying the sport offers something for everyone while praising the Kimpsons and they way they operate their business.
He wants staff to explore zoning amendments in municipalities where other paintball businesses operate.
Coun. Donna Reid said her only concern is "the legality of everything" and hoped it's all made clear in the report to council.
Flag Raiders offers "so much more to the community" in addition to providing a healthy activity, added Coun. Mike Mann.
That rural neighbourhood has changed drastically over the years and is going to continue to change, he said, adding he hopes staff comes back with "that magic bunny out of the hat" that will allow Flag Raiders to continue their operation.
