“Egregious over-intensification,” “unsuitable” and “totally inappropriate.” Those are some of the words used to describe a proposed 493-unit development planned for a portion of the former Victoria Park West Golf Club site during a Monday evening public meeting.
If approved as-is, Village Park Inc. will build 308, four-storey stacked townhouses in 12 buildings around the perimeter of the 2.37-hectare lot known as 12 Poole St., with a six to 10-storey apartment building with 185 units in the centre. Each of the four-storey townhouses would include two stacked units.
In order for the development to go ahead, the owner wants city council to change the official plan designation for the property to high-density from the current low density, as well as increase the maximum height allowed from six to 10 storeys. It’s those requests which was the subject of Monday’s public meeting.
City council will formally consider the proposal at a later date, following a review and recommendation from city planning staff.
“It is totally inappropriate. … This is higher than the density downtown or at Clair/Gordon, both areas with access to transit options and easily walkable to a range of amenities,” reads a statement from Coun. Dominique O’Rourke, read aloud by wardmate Coun. Mark MacKinnon in her absence from the meeting.
“High density is not a suitable designation for this area,” her statement adds, noting the proposal for this block is more than was planned for the entire 39.3-hectare subdivision in 2010, at 489, and nearly three-times as the number of units for the site approved by the then-Ontario Municipal Board in 2013.
The first phase of the subdivision was registered with the city in 2017, with the second phase registered this past September, minus the block currently proposed, outlines a planning report from the developer posted to the city’s website.
“I think this application is going to have to go a long way before I can push the ‘approve’ button,” commented Coun. June Hofland, who echoed a number of concerns raised by fellow council members and area residents.
Chief among them are the impact of this development on already hectic traffic – especially turning left from DeCorso Drive onto Victoria Road, heading north – as well as lack of parking availability for visitors in the area, exacerbation of already “busting” enrolment at nearby schools and the potential for negative impacts on wildlife.
“That’s a lot of homes squished into one spot,” said area resident Carrie Vincent. “Nothing good is going to come from an eight to 10-storey building.”
Vincent acknowledged development of the site will happen and said she’s not generally opposed to the idea, but this level of density is too much.
“Nature didn’t stop in 2017,” added nearby resident Kieve Pires, referring to environmental studies conducted in support of the project. “A lot changes in five years.”
Both he and Vincent pointed to increased water flow through the site and listed off numerous animals known to roam there.
Pires presented council with a petition signed by 125 area residents opposed to the development.
Speaking on behalf of the developer, Tracy Tucker of IBI Group, insisted the project “will not increase adverse impacts to the environment” and as the second phase of the Royal Village subdivision is built out, additional roads will be built that could provide on-street parking.
Tucker also suggested the inclusion of more units than previously proposed will help address the housing crisis by providing some lower cost options for first-time buyers.
“There’s obviously a lot of concerns,” Mayor Cam Guthrie said in closing the public meeting. He encouraged the developer to meet with area residents to discuss the proposal, noting such efforts have proven successful with other developments.
“That would probably be some good advice to take.”
