Residents are calling on the city to reject a proposed development they feel has no place in their neighbourhood.
Coland Developments Corporation is seeking a zoning bylaw amendment so it can build an eight-storey condo building, which it is calling Club 888, at 625 and 643 Atherley Rd. and 642 Driftwood Rd.
Kathy Hunt lives next door to the property from Driftwood Road, a small street that ends near the shore of Lake Simcoe.
“It’s just not suited to the neighbourhood,” she said of Club 888, adding the current bylaw does not allow for the height and the number of units — 44 — being proposed. “It’s supposed to be compatible with the neighbourhood, but it’s basically a big, corporate-looking structure, from the plans anyway.”
The proposal calls for traffic access to the building on Driftwood Road, which raises further concerns for Hunt because the street is narrow and doesn’t have sidewalks.
The development will also lead to more congestion at the intersection of Orchard Point Road and Atherley Road/Highway 12, she said, as there are no traffic lights there and it can be a long wait for people trying to turn left onto Atherley.
Hunt also feels the project “isn’t in line with some of the bigger, long-term strategies the city is going for.”
“From what we’ve seen so far, it’s not going to protect the environment,” she said. “When the city is trying to preserve the tree canopy and trying to lower our carbon footprint with their new climate change strategy, to me, it doesn’t make sense to approve an eight-storey condo building where you’re going to have to remove every tree and vegetation that’s here.”
That concern about the environment is shared by Melissa McKee, who lives directly across the road from the property in question. She sees a diversity of wildlife at the shore, including otters and minks.
“It’s going to take some time with landscaping and tree planting for the creatures to come back and make their homes there once more,” she said. “Everything lakeside is going to be paved paradise.”
Like Hunt, McKee isn’t looking forward to the added pressures the development would put on the intersection at Orchard Point and Atherley.
The Ministry of Transportation is responsible for that road because it is a stretch of Highway 12, but it has, on a number of occasions, come to the conclusion that lights are not warranted.
McKee disagrees, saying she has seen collisions there.
“I really don’t want to see somebody die. I think we need to be proactive here,” he said.
Hunt said she and McKee are not “anti-development.”
“It’s just gotten to the point with this particular area that it’s overkill,” she said. “This area is not suitable to be zoned ‘intensification.’”
It is designated as such under the city’s Official Plan, but Hunt noted there is a plan to revert it to “stable neighbourhood” designation.
She pointed out the area is already home to Orchard Point Harbour, which has 88 units and more planned. Plans have also been approved for additional phases of development with Sophie’s Landing (46 units) and Mariner’s Pier (42 units).
She and McKee have shared their concerns with city council members and they hope more residents will speak up, too. There will be a chance for them to do so Sept. 16, when virtual public meetings will be held. People can register to take part at one of the two sessions, taking place at 2 and 7 p.m. Registration can be completed here for the 2 p.m. meeting and here for the 7 p.m. session.
“We need to make sure that the city’s listening to our concerns and stops making it about the Benjamins and starts thinking about being ecologically smart and listening to your neighbours,” McKee said.
Even residents who are not in the area of the proposed development should take part in the meeting, Hunt said.
“This is an opportunity for citizens to pay attention,” she said, adding whatever decision council makes could set a precedent for other areas in the city.
A petition against the proposed project has been created and can be found here.
Those who cannot take part in the public meeting can submit their questions and concerns in advance by emailing WSP project manager Natalie Boodram at [email protected] or project planner Mikaela Sword at [email protected].
