A resident appeal opposing a six-storey retirement complex has been rejected outright by the Ontario Land Tribunal.
This is because provincial Bill 185, titled “Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes Act,” dismisses all appeals whose hearing on merits were scheduled before April 10.
In this situation, a case management conference was held on April 4, resulting in an oral decision rendered that day and a written memorandum of oral decision being issued on April 18.
Much of the Ontario Land Tribunal’s consideration centred around whether to accept April 4 or April 18, but they ultimately settled on April 4, which is six days prior to the cutoff.
This decision means that city council’s Oct. 10, 2023, approval stands, and a six-storey, 150-unit retirement complex on Algonquin Road by Greater Toronto Area-based Bawa Hospitality Group can proceed.
The appellant behind the Ontario Land Tribunal appeal is area resident Kerri-Lynne Smania, whose form filed with the province outlines her opposition to the project in five points.
- The building is too tall: “The current design fails to address a key intensification policy, and that is compatible with the existing and planned character of the area.”
- Shadow impacts: “Currently, it appears that the shadow impact is tremendously imposing.”
- Flood plain: “Currently, there is no report that accurately reflects the attention required to stormwater management and flood mitigation and control.”
- Buffering and screening: Existing trees “will not provide the desired screening through parts of the year.”
- Built form: The six-storey building “would appear fairly imposing and dominate the street line at this location, with no appropriate transition to scale.”
In a letter sent to the city for last year’s public hearings, dated Sept. 15, 2022, Smania notes a six-storey building “would be offensive,” create light and noise pollution and “traffic nightmares.”
Sudbury.com reached out to Smania for comment regarding the Ontario Land Tribunal rejecting her appeal. She declined comment, but provided a one-sentence written statement: "While we are very disappointed by the recent decision, we continue to explore further options in the interest of advocating for our neighbourhood and our community."
Although it was Smania who filed the appeal, she was part of widespread opposition to the project among area residents, which included a petition with at least 848 signatures.
City administration recommended limiting the six-storey development to four storeys, which would lower it from a height of 21 metres to 15 metres, which the developer’s representative said would eliminate 60 units in its current configuration.
In their report, staff noted that at a building height of 21 metres, the proposal “fails to address a key intensification policy, being compatibility with the existing and planned character of the area, which is essentially low and medium density residential development in a range of ground-oriented dwellings.”
However, Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc introduced a successful amendment on Sept. 25, 2023, to scale the building back up to the six storeys the developer had initially sought, which was approved by the planning committee.
Ward 9 Coun. Deb McIntosh supported city administration’s recommendation and flagged the planning committee’s decision for a vote from city council as a whole on Oct. 10, 2023. This resulted in 8-5 support for the six-storey height.
Bill 185 received royal assent on June 6, and also affected the city’s new development charges, which were allowed to be implemented on July 1 without the multi-year phase-in required under Bill 23, which Bill 185 supersedes.
This isn’t the only Ontario Land Tribunal decision in recent months that affirmed a developer’s right to build their project as proposed. Late last year, the tribunal OK’d a 179-unit residential project in Minnow Lake as proposed by the developer, which undid city council’s vote to limit the project’s building heights.
Bawa Hospitality Group is also behind the 137-unit supportive living facility on Second Avenue N in the city’s Minnow Lake neighbourhood, which celebrated its grand opening last month. The company plans on breaking ground on the project’s 110-unit second phase as soon as possible.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.