A proposal for a new 14-storey apartment building in downtown Guelph got mixed reviews at city council Monday night.
"It's just too big," said Charles Minett, an oral surgeon who has operated his business on Yarmouth Street for 35 years.
"That lot needs developing, but I think what they're proposing is too large," Minett told council.
London-based Ayerswood Development is asking for a zoning by-law amendment to clear the way for a 14-storey apartment building on a vacant lot at 45 Yarmouth St. The developer is looking to go two stories higher than the current zoning allows.
Monday night's planning meeting of council was the first opportunity to discuss and ask questions about the proposal.
"We're looking for an important vote of confidence from council," said Dave Hannam, a senior planner working for the developer. "This is a high-quality residential development."
No decisions were made at Monday's meeting, which was also the first time the public had a chance to wade in.
Minett said that Yarmouth Street has several medical-related businesses that rely on curbside parking for older and infirm patients and that the proposed apartment complex would create all kinds of parking issues.
That sentiment was echoed by Chris Bisson, who lives on Yarmouth.
Bisson and some councillors also pointed out that the proposal had to be taken in the context of future plans for the Baker Street parking lot redevelopment.
"Until we know what is going in the Baker Street parking lot, and the impact that will have, I don't think it's wise" to approve the new apartment building, Bisson said.
"Baker Street parking lot has to come first. We should delay any decision about 45 Yarmouth," Bisson said.
The proposed building would be up to 89 apartments, all of them one or two bedroom rental units. There would be a 69-space parking garage located underneath the apartments.
A line item in the staff report asking for 20 parking spots for tenants in the Baker Street parking lot was just that, a request, not part of the proposal, city staff told council.
A previous proposal to build a nine-storey apartment building at the same location over 10 years ago was eventually turned down.
Ward 1 councillor Dan Gibson said he is "modestly excited by the proposal" while his Ward 1 colleague Bob Bell said that as the request stood he couldn't support it.
Bell and several other councillors expressed concern about the side of the building that would face Baker Street and its lack of commercial space and aesthetics.
Bell and councillor Mike Salisbury also wondered if the proposal could include some form of contribution to the redevelopment of the Baker Street parking lot.
"I can't help but think that the benefit of the proposal should potentially be helping solve the problem it is potentially creating," Salisbury said of parking concerns.
Councillor James Gordon wondered if the proposal was "putting the cart before the horse" in regards to the unknown Baker Street parking lot plans.
The application will now undergo a thorough review by city staff, taking into consideration the concerns raised at Monday's meeting.
