The owners of a four-plex at 24 Meadow Park Drive, which sustained a fire in 2022, have been given a green light to move forward with the redevelopment of the site with a 12-unit, three-storey building.
The lot has an area of approximately 1,701 square metres and about 37 metres of frontage on Scott Street and approximately 42 metres of frontage on Meadow Park Drive.
While the density being proposed is over what would have been permitted in the zoning for the property by two units, Huntsville manager of planning Richard Clark noted that: “This development is intended to provide long-term rental accommodation units and the owners have been open to providing community benefits to the surrounding neighbourhood to support this added density.”
Those benefits include the addition of sidewalks, which Huntsville Mayor Karin Terziano tried to push beyond sidewalks only associated with the building when the application was heard by planning committee in January, as well as enhancements to Meadow Park. Planning staff are expected to negotiate those enhancements with the applicants.
Clark said the layout of the development will ensure density is set back from the adjacent low-density development on the other side of Scott Street and will be oriented instead to the west where there are already higher density structures.
He said the building is also designed with a compact footprint of 271 square metres, including units which would be located below grade, effectively hiding some of the density. Clark also said vegetative screening areas would be used between the building’s parking area and Scott Street.
Several objections have been made by members of the public related to the height and density of the proposed development considered out of character. Other concerns included the impact of traffic and parking overflow as well as the exacerbation of historical drainage problems in the area.
Planning committee asked staff to address the concerns expressed through the siteplan approval process.
The three-storey, plus a basement, building proposed would have four units below grade, four units at grade, and four units which would take up the second and third floor of the building.
Savas Varadas, planning consultant for the applicants, said there would be a small amenity space for the residents as well as balconies and patios, and noted that Meadow Park is located within walking distance of the proposed building.
The applicants, Carolyn and Tim Cestnick, were before planning committee in January and said they were long-time seasonal residents with year-round family members in Huntsville. Tim Cestnick said given the lack of rental housing in Huntsville, he and his wife decided to expand on what had been on the property. “We do care about what the neighbourhood looks like. We care a lot about the character and what we’d be putting on the property,” he said, adding that the couple arrived at a stacked townhouse concept design for the building and are committed to providing a community benefit as part of the development which would include pedestrian links. “If there are things that we can do for the park, that would be good too, but we’ll have more conversations with the Town as we get into the site plan agreement approval phase.”
He also said more trees would be added around the building to make the development look attractive, which will include a landscape plan.
In terms of concerns expressed regarding flooding and water absorption in the area, Cestnick said hydraulic modelling would take place. He also told committee they plan on having some affordable apartments as part of the 12 units proposed. “We’d like to make some of them affordable units, that will partly depend on doing the number crunching and figuring out from a financial perspective what we can afford to do there, but we do want to have some affordable units as part of the 12.”
In the end, committee approved the planning approvals required to move to the site plan approval stage, approvals which were ratified by Huntsville council. Planning committee also instructed planning staff to work with the applicants to address the concerns expressed by surrounding neighbours.
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What are the odds that when the numbers are crunched there will be no room for affordable units. I do not foresee any affordable units coming to Huntsville in my lifetime, the costs are just too high in this area.
Adding requirements for zero emissions heating and cooling and plug ins for electric vehicles would be consistent with Huntsville commitment to fight climate change. All new building development should include such requirements as retrofit is much more expensive. A standard for affordability as a percentage of the build and selling price range for affordable units would be more meaningful and effective in meeting affordability goals. And yes that area has had recent past drainage work so it is hoped increased density will be sustainable in that respect.