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Official Plan changes could derail condos in Heart Lake
Thursday October 25 2007
- Brampton Guardian
The City of Brampton has put up another roadblock to a controversial proposal to build six highrise condominiums in Heart Lake.
"This is another nail in the coffin of that application," said Mayor Susan Fennell at Wednesday's council meeting. "It is another layer that they (the developers) have to conform to."
Councillors approved amendments to the city's Official Plan this week that restrict new residential development to four storeys or less on sites like the one in Heart Lake on the corner of Sandalwood Parkway and Conestoga Drive.
The Interim Growth Management Policies have been put into place while staff conducts several studies to conform to the province's new Places to Grow Act.
That exercise is expected to take two years, at the end of which, the interim measures, with changes and amendments, are likely to become permanent city policy.
"The long-term vision of the city is for intensification in the downtown and along the corridor," said city planning director Adrian Smith. That has been the city's vision for some time, and it is not expected to change, he pointed out.
Smith called the interim measures "another layer of policy to direct development" in Brampton.
The Places to Grow Act has a 2009 deadline for cities to conduct eight key studies, including inventories of greenfield and employment lands, a review of built and planning densities, a look at opportunities for intensification, and a close study of existing infrastructure and future needs.
The city will also work with Mississauga and Caledon to meet the province's intensification targets, which were set at a regional level.
The Heart Lake proposal is a staged development over 10 to 15 years, and it is still many months away from any recommendations coming forward to city council, Smith said.
However, with six buildings ranging in height between 18 and 32 storeys on close to 5 hectares, it "clearly" is not consistent with the interim control policies, according to Smith.
News that the city has tightened the rules on intensification of infill in established residential neighbourhoods would be welcomed by residents in the Heart Lake area, according to Ken Bokor, co-chair of the group Citizens for Managed Development in Loafer's Lake, which is opposed to the highrises.
Smith called the interim measures "another layer of policy to direct development" in Brampton.
The Places to Grow Act has a 2009 deadline for cities to conduct eight key studies, including inventories of greenfield and employment lands, a review of built and planning densities, a look at opportunities for intensification, and a close study of existing infrastructure and future needs.
The city will also work with Mississauga and Caledon to meet the province's intensification targets, which were set at a regional level.
A staged development
The Heart Lake proposal is a staged development over 10 to 15 years, and it is still many months away from any recommendations coming forward to city council, Smith said.
However, with six buildings ranging in height between 18 and 32 storeys on close to five hectares, it "clearly" is not consistent with the interim control policies, according to Smith.
News that the city has tightened the rules on intensification of infill in established residential neighbourhoods would be welcomed by residents in the Heart Lake area, according to Ken Bokor, co-chair of the group Citizens for Managed Development in Loafer's Lake, which is opposed to the highrises.
Smith said the interim policies oppose such intensification in similar situations all over the city.
The interim changes restrict development along major corridors and transit nodes to eight storeys with 200 units per net residential hectare.
Along Queen Street and Hurontario Street-- the primary routes for AcceleRide-- the maximum is increased to 10 storeys and 200 units per net residential hectare.
Can't exceed four storeys
Everywhere else in the city, intensification must be compatible with the surrounding neighbourhood, and cannot exceed four storeys.
However, downtown Brampton and the Queen Street Corridor, where council wants intensification, are exempt from the restrictions.
Fennell hailed the step as another example of how Brampton has the tightest growth policies anywhere.
"We don't just talk the talk, we walk the walk," she boasted.
She said other communities look to Brampton as a leader in growth management, and pointed out the city is a finalist for a World Leadership Award in the Town Planning Category. The award winner will be announced in early December in London, England. "You can't get around our rules," Fennell said. "We're very serious about what we do.
"The old story that, in Brampton, you can do whatever you want, that went out of style, well, I've been mayor 7-1/2 years, so 7-1/2 years ago. I don't think it was the style before that, either," Fennell said.
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Heart Lake & Brampton
