The City of Ottawa's planning committee today carried a motion sending a new condominium development to City Council.
The 17-storey condo is proposed to sit at 224 Lyon and 324, 326 and 328 Gloucester Streets, featuring 240 residential units and 116 parking spaces.
Only one person from the public spoke out against the condominium on a matter of an error in the public consultation process.
Agusti Bordas-i-Cuscó, manager with Industry Canada, supported the condo’s development, but expressed concerns over the fact that he said he believed the developer mislead the public during the consultation process.
“In order to minimize . . . public opposition, they (the developers) doctored the model,” he said.
To make the condo appear to be smaller, Bordas-i-Cuscó argued that the developers “included three extra storeys in the building next door” to the proposed condo.
Concerns similar to previous condo approvals were made by Somerset Ward councillor Diane Holmes, who remarked on the proposed height, lack of available visitor parking and the impact the 17-storey condo would have on four-storey townhomes that face the condo from the south.The condo would include 16 visitor parking spots.
“To move this number of people on to this lot is just contributing to the whole transportation, parking situation.”
Cumberland Ward councillor, Stephen Blais, spoke out against the concerns from Holmes.
Coun. Blais explained that the same people who have been speaking out against the recent increase high-rise condo developments being approved through the city are the same people who want to spend money on the light rail service that doesn’t serve areas such as Orleans, Kanata or Barrhaven.
“We need to build tall buildings downtown because we’re spending money to improve the infrastructure down there to support it. If you’re not going to build homes in Kanata, Barrhaven and Orleans, you need to build up in the downtown,” said Blais.
Coun. Holmes responded, “Well I’m looking forward to the day where suburbia does a little intensification,” she said.
“Move it all downtown,” she said. “Let’s have lots of people living downtown but let’s not intensify suburbia.”
The application will be sent to City Council.