At Tuesday night’s town council meeting, a public meeting under the Planning Act was held to hear a proposal for a zoning by-law amendment, for lands on West Park Avenue, between Holland St. West and Miller Park Avenue.
The two blocks, owned by Mike Orsi and Mod Aire Homes, are currently zoned Medium Density Residential, and specifically, Retirement Homes.
Now, the owners are asking for an expansion of the permitted uses on Block 106, a 1.16 hectare parcel on the east side of West Park Ave., and Block 107, a 0.75 hectare property on the west side of the road, to permit construction of apartment buildings.
Since Mod-Aire homes applied for the rezoning to permit retirement residences, two years ago, two retirement homes have been built in Bradford. There is a greater need for rental options.
Two residents expressed concerns over the application in the meeting.
Grand Central resident, Joe Fluke talked about congestion in the already busy area near Chris Hadfield school, on the corner of Miller Park Avenue and West Park Ave.
“I call it West Park Speedway,” he said.
He asked for full disclosure on all safety concerns from South Simcoe Police and the Fire Department over the prospal, expressing his concerns for safety for the children and young families in the area.
Ward 1 Coun. Raj Sandhu agreed that he would like to see feedback from the police and fire departments before making any decisions.
“I still have my reservations about this (apartment proposal) but I would have to see when it comes back, what the designs are and what it’s going to cost,” Sandhu said.
Fluke moved to Bradford from Toronto in 2008 and says he never saw apartments in the development plan. He said people don’t move to Bradford to buy an apartment.
“I must have missed it where it says two apartments,” he said.
“I may be mistaken but I don’t think a lot of people from Toronto are wanting to move to Bradford to an apartment. They want homes. They ain’t coming all the way here for an apartment,” he said.
But council disagreed, noting Bradford has not had a new apartment building built since the 1970’s, and is in dire need of affordable housing options.
“You see what’s happening in this town, basement apartments, illegal conversions. This is something that’s above-board and would allow people to live in places with modern plumbing, windows and services and necessities of life. So, just saying that we have to be practical when we look at this. We need to allow for different types of housing for people,” said Coun. Gary Lamb.
“We have a lot of young families who can’t afford to buy a home and need somewhere to reside,” agreed Deputy Mayor James Leduc. “It’s a tough go here. Certainly through planning we can address these concerns.”
Another resident, Nina Magita, who is a mother that lives on Miller Park Avenue, near Chris Hadfield school said she is also concerned about the traffic in the area if apartments were to be built, and the impact on the value of her home.
"When we did purchase this home we didn’t see an apartment in our backyard. Is that going to decrease the value of our home?" she asked.
But Coun. Peter Dykie noted that development of multiple-family residences has been planned since 2008.
Council also noted that the congestion in the area would not be an issue, if more parents and students walked to school, lessening traffic.
“Let me get to the root cause. That was our whole purpose of Walk ‘n’ Wheel Wednesday,” said Coun. Gary Baynes. “To encourage people for health reasons to walk to school if they can. We have a huge problem at Hadfield but it shouldn't be there. Students should be walking to school. It’s got to happen everyday.”
Leduc added it was a “classic case of neighbourhood residents clogging their own community.”
“As far as impact to the street, both blocks are in walking distance to schools. Trust me we need apartments in this community,” said Coun. Mark Contois.
The proposal and comments were referred back to staff for review, and a recommendation to council at a future date.
