Plans for a co-habitation property in downtown Brockville, Ont., were up for public scrutiny again this week.
Those who oppose the project showed up en masse to make their voices heard at a public meeting on Tuesday.
“I understand it, but they’ve got to do a few things differently,” Brockville resident James Shipley said.
The property at 86 John St. in Brockville has been a hot topic for residents of the area in recent months.
An Ottawa-based company, Mirabel Consulting, is trying to put a four-unit co-living space in the building that would act as affordable housing for some residents being priced out of the local market.
When the plans came back with revisions that would see three three-bedroom units with one co-living unit, some of those in opposition say it wasn’t enough.
“I would like to know if there’s going to be a staff presence. Without it, it’s a no-go for me,” said Shipton, who has lived directly next door to the property for 15 years.
“Our main concern is just the complete lack of facilities in the building, zero parking and eight other exemptions that they’re asking for,” said David Duc, another resident who opposes the project.
It’s a precarious situation for Brockville city council, which, like many other municipalities in the country, is going through a serious housing crisis.
Coun. Jeff Earle says there’s no question they need housing, and that he doesn’t have too many issues with the proposal outside of the lack of parking.
“If we can find a way to get some parking in, if that were to happen I would probably be OK with this thing,” Earle said.
For Andrew Hamilton, director of operations for Mirabel, the feedback has been helpful. He said he understands the parking concerns, and they are part of Miribel’s considerations.
“On either end of our street, there is public transit, and in vetting our tenants, we don’t have to put tenants in place that all drive vehicles, right?” Hamilton said.
When it comes to concerns locals have shared about who could be living there, Hamilton said there are safeguards in place for that as well.
“We actually have a vetting process for our tenants, which includes things like credit checks, employment status checks, reference checks, et cetera. We’re not just looking to put anybody in there,” he added.
Hamilton also said that Mirabel operates its own property management company, which would look after the property on John Street.
With the second public meeting come and gone, it’s now a waiting game for both sides to see how council proceeds when it comes back in front of it, which could be as early as March.
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