PERTH — A new low-rise six-unit apartment building will soon be built on Church Street in Perth.
At a public meeting held May 12, Perth committee approved a zoning bylaw amendment paving the way for the development.
Developer NorChap applied to have the property rezoned from Residential Second Density (R2) to a Residential Fourth Density Special Exception (R4-xx) zone to permit construction of a two-storey apartment building.
The proposal included two minor exceptions to the zoning bylaw: a reduction in landscaped open space from 35 per cent to 32 per cent and a reduction in parking from nine spaces to eight.
Members of the public raised concerns about those requests during the meeting.
“I am a little disappointed on behalf of the people that will be living there in that I don’t really see any kind of a green space,” said Church Street resident Kathleen Corbett.
“We live in a beautiful little town. I’m very proud to live here. I just think that you should be cautious about making decisions to reduce green space in this town,” said April Erion, another Church Street resident.
“Concerning the green space, I fully understand the concerns there. We’re trying our best to get to that 35 per cent. We also agree that we want more green space and we’re looking to do that,” said developer Adam Norwood, noting his mother lives on Church Street.
According to Joanna Bowes, director of development services, the project aligns with provincial, county and municipal planning policies encouraging intensification and a broader mix of housing options within existing settlement areas.
“Is this maybe slightly overdeveloped for the site? Perhaps, but I think of many of the projects we’ve seen, this comes pretty close to the type of development I would like to see. So I am comfortable with this,” said Bowes.
In her report to council, Bowes noted Perth has seen an increase in medium and high-density housing applications in recent years as municipalities work to accommodate growth while making efficient use of existing infrastructure such as roads, water and sewer systems.
Bowes said the development would make use of existing municipal services and support active transportation goals while helping limit expansion into greenfield areas. She also said the project is compatible with the surrounding neighbourhood in terms of scale and design. The building is proposed at a height of nine metres, below the 12-metre maximum permitted in the R4 zone.
Parking became one of the key considerations in the application. Zoning regulations require 1.5 parking spaces per apartment unit, resulting in a requirement for nine spaces. The developer is proposing eight.
“In this case, there would be $10,000 collected for the one missing parking space,” said Bowes, referring to the recently approved cash-in-lieu parking bylaw.
The reduced parking raised concerns among neighbouring property owners worried the street could become lined with parked cars during the summer months.
According to the developer, the reduction of one parking space would allow for additional green space and snow storage on the property. Norwood also pointed to a similar 12-unit apartment project built by the company.
“Concerning the visitor parking and the parking on the street, we’ve had zero issues with that at our 12-unit at Brock and Beckwith. Everybody parks in the parking lot and, again, there are two extra spaces that are never used,” said Norwood.
Committee approved the zoning amendment, allowing the project to proceed directly to council followed by the building permit stage. Due to changes introduced through Bill 23, a site plan control agreement is no longer required for apartment developments under nine units.
There were also residents who spoke in support of the project.
“I’m just here for my mother, who is one of the neighbours of the property. And we just wanted to express our support for it,” said Lindsey Blair. “It is going to be, obviously, an inconvenience to her during construction, but we did want to show up today to express support for it. These types of projects are really critical in small communities. We’ve got no issue with the parking.”
“I just wanted to say that I’m 83, and a lot of older people in Perth don’t have a car, don’t need a parking space, and yet it seems to be standard that there has to be one even if you don’t have a car. It doesn’t seem fair,” said Louise McDermott, who said she has lived in a home built by the developer and attested to its superior design and build.
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Come to George Avenue and see what the “reduced parking” did there … 24/7 cars / trucks on the street, often reduced to one lane, not just in the summer but in the winter as well. Dangerous for anyone who is walking (we have no sidewalks). Residents often have difficulty getting out of their driveways because of parked cars limiting the turning. This past winter there were days when it was simply dangerous to drive down the street because they plough had worked around the parked trucks and cars, leaving a dangerous situation.
Just looked out my window and there are two trucks and four cars parked on the street in front of my house … it is 11:35 on a Monday!