Proposed high-rise towers on Baseline Road move closer to becoming reality
Nepean Barrhaven News, Jan 29, 2015
By Alex Robinson
Developers have submitted a site plan for a high-rise residential development on Baseline Road, almost four years after it was first proposed.
Brigil Construction has applied to build three high-rise condo buildings and one mid-rise building on two parcels of land at the corner of Baseline Road and Sandcastle Drive.
The developers first proposed building four towers at 2940 Baseline Rd. in 2011, but revised their application to spread out the development to include the adjacent property, 2946 Baseline.
Initial proposals were met with significant community opposition because of concerns about increased traffic and shadows the towers would cast on neighbours.
The developer made a number of revisions from the original application, but some residents said they were not enough.
Hugh Mullington, who lives nearby, said he felt discussions between the community and developers were a “waste of time,” and feels his concerns about increased traffic were not taken seriously.
“They’ve doubled the capacity of the property with the stroke of a pen,” he said.
“The developers and municipal politicians are hand in hand.”
College Ward Coun. Rick Chiarelli, whose ward includes the proposed development, said the community got many significant concessions from the developers. He said if the developers had not changed their application to include the two properties, Brigil Construction potentially could have applied to build a mirror development on the second property, which would have doubled the number of units.
“The community had a list of things they wanted. They got most of them,” Chiarelli said. “If the alternative is just to say no to everything, they (the developers) would take us to the Ontario Municipal Board and we would end up with none of those concessions. It’s a compromise.”
In addition to the revision that would spread the development over two properties, developers agreed to include a grocery store in the complex.
The new plan includes 492 units total, down from the original 588. The three towers – originally proposed to be 12, 14 and 16 stories – will now be 10, 13 and 16 storeys.
The 13-storey tower will have the grocery store at its base and will be the closest to Baseline Road. The mid-rise tower will be eight storeys and would be to the south of a retail building that houses a Dollorama store, medical offices and a convenience store.
Representatives of nearby community associations worked on a steering committee to get these concessions out of the developers, Chiarelli said.
ROADWORK
The city is also considering a number of small alterations to Baseline Road as part of the project. They include extending the westbound left-turn lane on Baseline Road, building a new northbound right-turn lane on Sandcastle Drive and creating a northbound left-turn on Sandcastle.
The development will replace a one-story light industrial building that sits at 2940 Baseline Rd.
Last spring, city council approved the developer’s application to rezone the industrial land so residential buildings are allowed.
Brigil Construction plans to build the complex in four phases and has already put condos in the first tower up for sale. Construction on the first phase could start as early as next fall, Chiarelli said.
The public can provide comments to the city about the proposed development’s site plan until Feb. 11.
http://www.ottawacommunitynews.com/n...oming-reality/
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