Quebec firm’s two-building plan adds to growing list of housing projects in Kanata North

David Sali

July 23, 2024

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The spate of development projects slated for Kanata North continues to grow as another builder has filed a proposal to add nearly 200 apartment units on March Road. Quebec-based developer Sina says it wants to construct a pair of six-storey buildings at 788 March Rd., north of Terry Fox Drive near the corner of Klondike Road. The two buildings would contain a total of 196 apartment units comprising 97 one-bedroom units, 87 two-bedroom suites and 12 three-bedroom apartments. The plan also calls for a total of 275 parking spaces, with 252 spots contained in a two-level underground garage and the remaining 23 spaces in a surface parking lot at the rear of the development. Other elements of the proposal include indoor amenities such as a gym, lounge and pool as well as outdoor amenity space. The developer is seeking several minor zoning amendments, including an increase in the maximum building height from the current 18 metres to 21.3 metres. Sina is not the first company to consider adding residential density to the site. Omnipex, which previously owned the property, submitted a proposal to build a six-storey residential building there in 2018. After several consultations with the city, the plan was downsized to a four-storey building, but Omnipex later sold the property and the original six-storey design to Sina. The latest proposal comes as the neighbourhood is poised to undergo a major transformation over the next few years thanks to a series of proposed new residential and commercial developments. Chief among them is telecom giant Nokia’s plan to tear down its existing campus on March Road and replace it with a new 500,000-square-foot office and R&D hub and as many as 11 residential highrises. Meanwhile, several other developers are also planning to add more housing to the area, a trend that has accelerated since the City of Ottawa adopted a new Official Plan two years ago that allows for greater density along major corridors such as March Road and eliminates rules that require a certain percentage of dwelling types on such properties. Last month, KRP Properties said it plans to convert a 10-storey office building near the Brookstreet Hotel into a residential complex as the firm tries to diversify its portfolio amid the ongoing shift to hybrid work. At another site not far from the Brookstreet, Gatineau-based Brigil is ramping up a plan to build more than 1,900 residential units on 50 acres of land northwest of The Marshes Golf Club. In addition, Toronto’s Main and Main Developments wants to transform a 13.6-acre site at the corner of March Road and Terry Fox Drive into a cluster of mid- and highrise buildings that would include more than 2,000 residential suites.