A dog house in a shopping center? Let’s try: Westmount Shopping Center

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Nothing improves an older mall like a dog daycare.

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At least that’s what proponents of a proposed rezoning of the Westmount Shopping Center to allow for a kennel are saying.

McCor Management operates the mall and requested the change to allow Dogtopia to offer daycare, boarding and grooming services.

“It’s a great fit,” Ward 10 Coun. Paul Van Meerbergen said of the proposed new tenant. “The community wins and the mall wins.

“It is a high density residential area population who lives along the Wonderland South corridor who can easily walk to this kennel if he needs this service. Some of these residents may or may not have access to a vehicle, so it is quite easy for them to take their hairy friends for a day at the spa or a break at the kennel.”

The rezoning application is presented to City Council for approval in February.

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“It’s basically an opportunity for your dog to hang out with other dogs during the work day while you’re at the office or the store, or wherever,” said Casey Kulchycki, a private planner at Zelinka Priamo..

The proposal is for pet owners who need kennel services inside the city, Kulchycki said. Kitchener’s Dogtopia location is in the heart of downtown.

A public meeting will be held on January 31 to allow residents to vote on the rezoning proposal.

The kennel is “one of many plans” for the mall “and revitalizes the property as a whole,” Kulchycki said.

City council delayed a decision on another rezoning application last fall to allow a call center at Westmount Shopping Center.

Another animal-based business, Reptilia, was prevented from opening in Westmount in 2018 after the city council voted not to expand its business licensing regulations to allow businesses using live animals, including zoos .

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