Looks like a fight is about to ensue... I do agree with the developer's statements about downtown Burlington -- aside from the big festival weekends, it's pretty quiet most of the time despite some great restaurants and unique retail establishments.
What kind of downtown do we want in Burlington? THAT QUESTION has never really been explored.
http://www.thespec.com/news-story/59...condo-project/
Quote:
Burlington council has agreed and unanimously rejected a developer's applications for an official plan amendment and a rezoning.
But all of that hasn't stopped the Adi Development Group from advertising extensively, in the ward and elsewhere, that its 26-storey condo project, proposed for the corner of Martha Street and Lakeshore Road, is slated for occupancy in late 2018.
That may still happen. But only if the project — or a smaller variation of it — wins Ontario Municipal Board approval in hearings set for March 14.
...
Tariq Adi said advertising still-to-be-approved projects is common in the development industry. He said the more than 4,000 citizens who have expressed interest in the project have been advised of its status. He would not say how many deposits the firm has taken.
"There are a lot of developers who go out there without their approvals, but they have a good feeling about whether what they are proposing is realistically approvable. What we're doing is nobody's risk but our own risk. We are not withholding anything from anybody.
"If we never achieve our approvals it is as simple as giving the money back (to those who put down deposits)," he added.
Adi is confident the more than $100-million Martha Street project will win OMB approval.
Adi said 21 businesses left downtown Burlington last year partly because there are not enough people living in the core.
"You have an aging population, there are snowbirds in Florida. They are not spending money. Come December to April, downtown Burlington is a ghost town.
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