12-02-2016, 09:13 AM
(11-30-2016, 12:38 PM)Viewfromthe42 Wrote: Issues with this development will be:
-Doesn't use the heritage building well enough
-Too tall (between Bauer and the 144/155 developments, this loses its muster)
-Too much lot coverage (Will need incredibly good street fronting active uses, namely businesses, to make this better, lest they be forced to scale back the footprint)
-Too many cars (Site is right at an LRT stop, should be eligible for less parking. I'd buy a parking-free unit, if no parking costs were passed on to me)
-People will look into my backyards (144/155/Bauer already do, but they may push for no Caroline-facing units, or solariums instead of balconies)
-Doesn't fit with character (Character changes, we can't always try to freeze the character of an area to be 1930-style)
-Shadow impacts (Shadows will primarily fall on the funeral home and narrow side of the retirement residence, shouldn't be the worst)
-And more, until something sticks...
Heh. Yeah, until something sticks.
I think I can empathize with the mindset of some of the people living nearby who might oppose the development on one or more of those grounds. I can understand why, having lived in a single-family dwelling for potentially many years, one might not want a wall of balconies going up within view of the backyard. There are ways to mitigate concerns like that.
The problem is that some of those in opposition will be very disingenuous, and throw every issue they can think of at the wall, hoping they'll stick, whether each is truly an issue for them or not. Then how are staff and the developer supposed to realistically adjust the development to make it fit better?