City council gave its initial approval for a proposed commercial-residential development at 7171 Hart Highway, despite opposition from area residents.
In an interview with the Citizen in May, Kidd Group president Bruce Kidd said the planned Northside Crossing development will include six buildings, each with commercial space on the ground level and 60 to 75 apartments above. Kidd estimated the project, proposed on an undeveloped parcel of commercial land south of Handlen Road, would be worth an estimated $80 million when fully built out.
“The subject property is one of the remaining undeveloped parcels along Highway 97 which makes this an exciting rezoning proposal as it represents significant investment and confidence in the Hart community,” L & M Engineering planner Ashley Thandi wrote in a letter to city council, on behalf of the Kidd Group. “The mixed-use and standalone residential buildings would be tailored towards all demographics in the Hart including seniors, families and young professionals. The main floor of the mixed-use buildings would consist of commercial uses permitted in the C2 zone that are currently in need within the Hart community such as life labs, doctors office, service personal uses, restaurants, cafes etc., and the top floors would consist of apartment units.”
The buildings will be built to the city’s accessibility standards, with elevators going to all floors, underground parking for the residents, landscaped parking in the rear of the buildings and paved walkways along the front, Thandi wrote.
The project is expected to be built over a five-to-seven-year time frame, she added.
On Monday night, city council voted to waive a public hearing on the matter and approve the first two readings of a bylaw to rezone four hectares of the 5.2 ha property. Final approval of the rezoning won’t come back to council for a vote until the Kidd Group has filed a traffic impact study and servicing brief with the city.
City council received 13 letters and emails in opposition to the project from area residents, one email in support and a petition with 59 signatures on it calling on the city to hold a public hearing on the matter to allow residents to get more information and have their say.
Many of the letters raised concerns about the added traffic the project will bring to the area.
“There is a high school and elementary school which already causes traffic congestion. More traffic around the (two) schools will not be safe for the kids. We do not have sidewalks, proper lighting, and in the winter the streets get more narrow due to the snow,” area resident Patrice Moonie wrote in an email. “The proposed area is not able to accommodate the amount of traffic that it will create. I live in the Hart because of less people and less traffic.”
Tonja van der Pouw Kraan, and several other letter writers, raised concerns about Turner Road being used to access the development.
“Turner Rd is a small road which cannot support increased traffic flow, and will negatively affect those currently living there,” she wrote. “Secondly, both schools in the area are already at capacity, and the council should not approve multi‐family dwellings that creates or exacerbates a situation that will cause school concurrency to fail for this proposal and/or other approved plans. Finally, property values are likely to go down in the area if multi‐family rental apartments or condominiums are built as these types of multi‐family dwellings are inconsistent with the neighbourhoods that already exist.”
Evelyn Wolfermann was concerned about the impact on wildlife as well.
“This forested area acts as a wildlife corridor and acts as a noise barrier from the highway 97,” she wrote. “Bear, moose, fox and deer regularly explore this area in relative safety and I fear this large development will end this option for them. A wildlife impact study should also be provided before this process goes any further.”
Michael Daykin, the sole area resident who wrote in support of the project, said the project would be a welcome addition to the area.
“As a resident of the Upper Hart I believe we need more housing options for both those entering the housing market and those downsizing. We also need more retail/commercial space in the area as the current commercial space is quite limited,” Daykin wrote. “This project proposes to meet both those needs”
City director of planning and development Deanna Wasnik said city staff will have be satisfied with the results of the traffic impact study, and the developer’s plans to mitigate traffic issues, before the rezoning comes back to council for final approval. The study will look at access points to the property, traffic flow, the traffic volume anticipated from the proposed uses and other issues, she added.
Coun. Brian Skakun thanked residents of the area for sending their letters. However, after hearing that the earliest a public hearing on the matter could be held would be Aug. 15, he voted to support the rezoning without a public hearing.
“I was going to put a put a motion on to defer to have a public hearing, but then by the time this whole process got going we’d be looking at August and that’s past construction season, so I won’t do that right now,” Skakun said.
Council unanimously supported the motion.
