A controversial high-rise development that would tower over London’s Victoria Park has been given a lifeline.
London city council voted 9-4 Tuesday to give the planning department more latitude in its discussions with Auburn Developments over a planned 22-storey apartment building at 560 and 562 Wellington St.
READ MORE: City committee turns down Victoria Park highrise proposal
Last week, the planning and environment committee sent the proposal back to staff for more discussions because the current development plans are too tall for the neighbourhood. Under the Woodfield Heritage District Conservation Plan, the development would be limited to six storeys.
Coun. Phil Squire raised the issue of increasing inner-city residential development, arguing in favour of being more flexible.
“You can’t have it both ways,” said Squire.
“You can’t say, ‘you can’t build on the outskirts, but you can’t build on the inside either and we won’t change any rules, it’s got to be really prescriptive and the economic case for you building a building isn’t going to be there.'”
Coun. Jesse Helmer pointed out that 2016 was the single-largest year for construction in London ever, including $1.4 billion in construction value. He added the current council has already approved more land-use permits for tall buildings than the previous council.
“Whether people build buildings is up to them and the economics of each of the buildings,” said Helmer.
“What we do is deal with the land-use planning permissions.”
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Helmer said he likes the look and design of the building, along with the reputation of the developer, but the problem is the location.
READ MORE: London city council approves $2.7M grant for soil cleanup at downtown high-rise
Coun. Stephen Turner argued in favour of keeping the planning committee recommendation.
“There’s been a long history of back and forth, a lot of amendments to the proposal, but none of them were consistent with the planning policies that we have in place,” said Turner.
The proposed highrise would be located on Wellington Street at Wolfe Street, just north of Centennial Hall. The buildings currently occupying the land include a two-storey and five-storey building.
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