It's anticipated 2023 will be another quiet year at the former Holmes Foundry site in Point Edward.
Crews started removing trees and overgrowth from the 16 acre property in 2020, and the buildings at the site, at Christina and Exmouth streets, were demolished in late 2021.
The village's Chief Administrative Officer Jim Burns said the work being done now will help determine if any parts of the property can be developed right away.
"Testing for water contaminants and different types of contaminants that may be on the site," said Burns. "That's all part of the phase two environmental assessment work, which is ongoing and may take 18 to 24 months to complete."
Burns said that's not the only work going on in the background.
"At the same time, there's some planning work going on. But again, it can't be finalized until they know what the results of the environmental assessment work is," he said.
"I don't anticipate seeing a whole lot of work on site in the coming year because I believe most of the testing has been completed already. But again, these things kind of evolve as you get results from the test work, what gets done may change."
Burns said he's pleased the property is "in the hands of someone [who's] making a good effort to develop it in a way that's appropriate for the area."
"We're excited to see what may come of that property. There was a lot of concern around safety. There were people in those buildings that shouldn't be there, lighting fires, so our firefighters were responding, putting the firefighters in danger. So, with the buildings gone and the site cleaned up, it's a safer setup for the village now."
Burns said while nothing's carved in stone, the developers are interested in mixed residential uses.
"Affordable housing, rent geared to income, condos, long term care, retirement homes. They're looking at everything to see what the best fit is and what the demand is in the community."
Burns said the property would also likely include some commercial and retail opportunities to support the residential component.
"Whether it be a small grocery store, variety stores, restaurants, who knows. Again, it all depends on the mix of people that are there."