CBS outlines issues for developers of ‘towers’ to address in report

By Craig Westcott

CBS council has approved the list of issues that the developers behind two proposed apartment buildings in Long Pond will have to address as part of a Land Use Impact Assessment Report.

The proposed 6.7-acre development is located at 215 Conception Bay Highway, near the Dawe’s Plumbing building, and consists of two six-or-seven-storey towers containing a total of 300 apartments and commercial space. The developer is BGI Group of Toronto acting on behalf of Revive Church.

“Some of the things that the proponent will study in detail will be things like flood risk, impact on adjacent waterways… whether water and sewer capacity in that area can support that building, impact on traffic flow, shade and shadow impacts, noise generation, and they will also be responsible for holding their own public consultation,” said councillor-at-large Rex Hillier. “We’ve had this out in the community for some time, and we’ve had people come back to us, and some of the things that they’ve asked that probably won’t need the same degree of analysis, but some of the things that they’ve asked and that we will be asking the proponents deal with things like impact on property values, assurance of target market, whether this will be all seniors, a proportion of seniors, the proportion of lower income (renters), and so on. There have been questions about landscaping. This property will be adjacent to the T’railway. There have been questions about the impact on the T’Railway and snow clearing and snow collection on property.”

Hillier said those matters won’t get the same degree of analysis as the issues required by Town of CBS staff, but will still get some attention in the study.

 “So, it’ll be a significant piece of work, and we will look forward to seeing that sometime months down the road,” Hillier said.

Ward 3 councillor Gerard Tilley said the LUAR guidelines are among the most comprehensive that he’s been involved with.

“And contrary to sometimes what you see or hear on social media, the decision has not been made,” Tilley cautioned. “This is just part of the process. We encourage everyone to voice their opinion, whether it’s positive or negative.”

Tilley said many people in CBS are looking for affordable housing options. “So, we’re going along with the process as we’ve done with just about every other project. So, if you want to say (something), now is the time to say it, and we’ll certainly take everything under consideration.”

Councillor-at-large Joshua Barrett agreed with Tilley on the strength of the terms of reference, adding some of the perspectives raised by the public were used in drafting the guidelines for the study.

“This is a big piece of work and I’m looking forward to seeing what that has to say to help guide these decisions that my colleagues have noted already,” Barrett said.

Like Tilley, Mayor Darrin Bent stressed council has not made up its collective mind on whether to approve the buildings.

“We go to the public first on these things, and then we gather all the information and all the required background and the land use impact assessment and all that,” Bent said. “Then we make a decision. That’s how it works. So, no decision has been made… When we get all the information, that’s when the decision will be made. I’m looking forward to that and looking forward to the land use impact assessment and seeing what it says and what it’s guiding us to do.”