900 King St W | 25 fl | U/C

[taylortbb]

So maybe a better question would be: why isn't the developer satisfied with the zoning that already exists there?  If the developer overspent on the property speculating that they could convince Council to bend over and go well above the existing zoning, that's not the City's problem.

It is when the city's plan is to underzone what they actually want, and then tell developers to do zone changes. As a part of the zone change process the city gets to ask for things that wouldn't be legal if written directly in to zoning.

The document that really matters is the official plan. If the city doesn't approve a rezoning for something that's compatible with the official plan, the developer can just take it to LPAT and win.

The official plan, which talks about intensification around LRT stations, is why the developer gets to do this. Saying it's "against zoning" is really a technicality, when it is in line with the official plan.

[mastermind]

Ms Desbarats should maybe consider taking her massive increase in land value since she bought the place 38 years ago, and since the LRT stop went in, and move to a neighbourhood with no towers nearby.

[GtwoK]

There was a piledriver on site today drilling for.... piles. Does that mean this was approved?

[taylortbb]

There was a piledriver on site today drilling for.... piles. Does that mean this was approved?

The current building permits are:

21-119786 Issued Permit is for the demolition of a medical office.

21-124455 Issued Permit is for shoring only to facilitate soil remediation

So it sounds like the latter one. No other current permits issued or applied for.

[ac3r]

They're excavating the site now, though I assume this is for remediation as that is where the parking lot was, which likely saw a lot of groundwater runoff. Not sure why they've already started with the piles though unless they're very confident to receive approval.

[KingandWeber]

The above picture really shows how ridiculous the neighbourhood claims are about the building though. It is quite literally steps from (my favourite realtor exaggeration) the ION station and it has no immediate back neighbour other than a parking lot and a low-rise office building, which provides a transition buffer to Mary St. If ever there were a perfect spot for intensification, this would be it.

[Rainrider22]

The above picture really shows how ridiculous the neighbourhood claims are about the building though. It is quite literally steps from (my favourite realtor exaggeration) the ION station and it has no immediate back neighbour other than a parking lot and a low-rise office building, which provides a transition buffer to Mary St. If ever there were a perfect spot for intensification, this would be it.

agreed, good observation...

[Joedelay Highhoe]

Looks like the one neighbor with the solar roof is going to lose a few hours of direct sunlight.

[ac3r]

Very true. The building will be visible, but not from most properties surrounding it. Even the dense trees will obscure the sight of it.

[ijmorlan]

I just wish the new building would extend above the traction power substation for the LRT. There is no reason why those substations should each permanently sterilize so much land — they could easily be incorporated within the ground floor of a midrise or highrise.

[cherrypark]

I just wish the new building would extend above the traction power substation for the LRT. There is no reason why those substations should each permanently sterilize so much land — they could easily be incorporated within the ground floor of a midrise or highrise.

Legitimately asking: can they be? Understanding them to be electrical power transformers you could possibly visually integrate/hide them but there is a reason electrical substations aren't built into buildings with other purposes.

[GtwoK]

I feel like at the minimum, as part of the zoning variance request the city could necessitate the developer build a false facade in front of the TPSS like some subway systems do for venting?

[ac3r]

Why should it be up to the developer to hide? It belongs to the Region of Waterloo and the GrandLinq consortium.

[jwilliamson]

I feel like at the minimum, as part of the zoning variance request the city could necessitate the developer build a false facade in front of the TPSS like some subway systems do for venting?

If the city were capable of getting developers to build attractive facades, they should start with the actual buildings.

[ijmorlan]

Why should it be up to the developer to hide? It belongs to the Region of Waterloo and the GrandLinq consortium.

My idea is that the LRT authorities should work with the municipalities and neighbouring developers to work the equipment into new developments as they are built.

Somebody asked, in effect, if this is safe. I’m pretty sure it is. These are not large scale transformer stations such as you see where 500kV lines are stepped down to maybe 20kV for distribution. So for a tower like Charlie West or the subject of this thread I think I’m really suggesting in effect that the building would have 2 transformer rooms, one for itself and one for the LRT.