A now vacant lot backing onto Sixth Street near Division Avenue on the Southeast Hill is the subject of a zoning hearing at Monday's council meeting with the goal of placing a four-plex on the irregular lot.--NEWS PHOTO COLLIN GALLANT
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
A proposal to build a four-plex on a now-bare lot on the Southeast Hill will be subject to a council hearing Monday, when the developer will argue it will improve the community and meet city development goals, though neighbours say the oddly situated lot is too small.
The lot at 29 Fifth St. SE sits beside a former church converted into a business beside a busy intersection with Division Avenue.
It is the first low-density residential lot beside mixed-use zoning in the area, including the Division Avenue Safeway, and essentially backs onto a sliver of alley that joins Sixth Street.
That main route joins cross streets on a skewed angle just outside the Herald Redevelopment plan boundaries.
That plan calls for set zoning to be honoured while encouraging population density, though it has come in conflict with council goals of approving new, higher value construction projects quickly.
The applicant, Gas City Ventures, submitted plans to build a four-plex on the site after demolishing an aged detached home this spring.
“It will improve the area, meet council goals, and meet the needs of people with affordable housing,” said spokesperson Craig Elder, a partner in a local real estate development and leasing company.
He told the News the project would be modern “craftsman” style construction with enough parking, four required stalls, off the alley.
Neighbours however, have their doubts.
Kara and Jason Crawford own the house next door to the lot and say while they are happy to see the former house, a rental unit, torn down, they are concerned about the impact of a four-plex.
“We’re not opposed to even a duplex, but four units? That will make things just too busy in an already busy spot,” said Jason Crawford. “This could set a precedent and it’s not a precedent that a lot of people on the Hill will like.”
Kara says parking will be an issue on Fifth Street and worries, in general, what a larger building project will mean for the street.
“There are lots like this all over the SE Hill,” she said. “If council allows this, what does that say?”
Another neighbour, Diane Rose, said this spring the city council approved a zoning change to build a single home on a multi-family lot, and will now be asked to do the same in reverse fashion.
Elder said to some degree neighbours are typically wary of change, but his project would conform to development guidelines and the land should be developed to its potential.
Elder says the plan would be to market the units as rent-to-own, or potentially be sold to a resident landlord.
“It’s a very walkable community with great amenities nearby,” he said.
The report by planning staff presented to the municipal planning commission last month states the project aligns with council’s goal of spurring infill development, but also states the lot doesn’t meet minimum requirements for width or total area required for multi-family construction.
That could be overcome by issuing variances at the development permit application stage, it concludes.
Duplexes are a permitted use in low-density residential zones, according to the city’s land-use-bylaw, but single buildings with three or four units need to be zoned for medium density, for smaller multi-family housing projects.
Monday’s council meeting will be held virtually to encourage compliance with COVID-19 related health orders. It can be viewed on the city’s website and anyone wishing to take part in the hearing may do so via teleconferencing options available from the city clerk’s office.
