It appears the fight over the Capital Condo is not over. The developer behind the Capitol condominium project in downtown Kingston is now going to court – after the controversial condo building was denied earlier this month.
Darryl Firsten of IN8 Developments, says he is in the process of appealing the Nov. 9 ruling made by the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT).
“The team decided to pursue an appeal to divisional court to determine whether errors had been made on the interpretation of various points of law,” says Firsten.
This appeal comes just weeks after the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal decided the Capitol condo went against the city’s official plan. Those fighting the development, including the Frontenac Heritage Foundation, argued the 16-storey height of the building would far exceed the six-storey height permitted under the City’s Official Plan.
The former Capitol Movie Theatre on Princess Street was earmarked for a high-rise development to be constructed by IN8 Developments.
Firsten says the final decision of LPAT is bad for the city and the future of development in the city.
“We are extremely committed to downtown Kingston, to Kingston at large,” says Firsten. “We believe the LPAT decision is catastrophically bad for downtown Kingston. Not just for our project, but this will severely harm any future intensification.”
The denial was handed down by the Appeal Tribunal on Nov. 9.
President of the Frontenac Heritage Foundation, Shirley Bailey, wasn’t available for comment about the decision for IN8 to fight the rejection, but said in an email statement, “This comes as a surprise to us, and we have engaged our legal counsel to address the matter.”
The Heritage Foundation was in a legal back-and-forth for the past two years. They argued the height of the building would ruin the historic charm of the downtown.
“The goal really remains to make sure something is built on that site,” says Mayor Bryan Paterson.
The Kingston mayor says there was an option to appeal for IN8 if they chose to do it. He says the city’s ultimate goal is to move forward with development.
“I continue to look at the broader version of the downtown which is really to find a way where we can achieve intensification,” says Paterson.
Those improvements include not only making sure something gets built on the Capitol Theatre property, but also two other major high-rise projects that are in the middle of their own appeals as well.
Firsten with IN8 Developments says his group will file additional paperwork over the next month while they await a pre-hearing to be scheduled.
WATCH: Beyond the Headlines: What killed the Capitol Condo
— With files from Mark Ladan and Alexandra Mazur.